How many miles will a 2004 Saab 9-3 last?
Half of the 167 NHTSA owner complaints on the 2004 Saab 9-3 that list mileage came after 71,000 miles, and 1 in 10 after 129,000 miles. NHTSA's complaints file of November 11, 2026 holds 207 complaints on this model year; each mileage is the odometer when an owner reported a safety problem, not how long the vehicle lasted.
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See what the paid report includes →Of the 167 complaints on the 2004 Saab 9-3 that list mileage, the middle half came between 49,000 and 103,000 miles; 42 (25%) came after 100,000 miles, 6 (4%) after 150,000 and none after 200,000.
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How many miles will a 2004 Saab 9-3 last?
The 167 mileages owners gave run from 1 to 200,000 miles. A quarter are at or under 49,200 miles, half at or under 72,000, three quarters at or under 103,000 and nine in ten at or under 130,000; 42 (25%) came after 100,000 miles, 6 (4%) after 150,000 and none after 200,000.
These mileages say when owners reported a problem, not when a 2004 Saab 9-3 wears out. NHTSA's file holds only vehicles whose owners complained; one that ran without a problem never appears in it, so it gives no lifespan and no cutoff, and how a vehicle was maintained matters more than any one odometer reading.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Lowest mileage listed | 1 mile |
| 25th percentile | 49,200 miles |
| Median (50th percentile) | 72,000 miles |
| 75th percentile | 103,000 miles |
| 90th percentile | 130,000 miles |
| Highest mileage listed | 200,000 miles |
| Complaints after 100,000 miles | 42 (25%) |
| Complaints after 150,000 miles | 6 (4%) |
| Complaints after 200,000 miles | none |
Every model year together: Half of the 931 NHTSA owner complaints on the Saab 9-3 that list mileage came after 64,000 miles (NHTSA complaints file of November 11, 2026). How many miles will a Saab 9-3 last? →
Common problems with the 2004 Saab 9-3
NHTSA's file holds 207 owner complaints on the 2004 Saab 9-3. Owners named the seat belts most often: 79 complaints, and half of the 65 that list a mileage came after 84,000 miles. A complaint can name more than one component.
| Component (NHTSA category) | Complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seat Belts | 79 | 65 | 85,000 |
| Suspension | 52 | 50 | 64,000 |
| Air Bags | 20 | 9 | 79,000 |
| Electrical System | 13 | 12 | 45,000 |
| Engine And Engine Cooling | 9 | 8 | 15,123 |
Of the 207 complaints, 10 report a crash, 2 report a fire and 7 report an injury (8 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
Is the 2004 Saab 9-3 a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 2004 is a good or a bad Saab 9-3: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 2004 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file.
With 207 complaints, the 2004 ranks 2nd of the 13 Saab 9-3 model years from 1999 to 2011 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 2003 (212). The fewest: the 2010 and 2011 (30 each).
Recent model years have had less time to collect complaints, so their counts are still growing. No year is ranked by mileage here, because a year's median mileage mostly follows its age.
| Model year | Owner complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 Saab 9-3 | 80 | 51 | 79,480 |
| 2000 Saab 9-3 | 62 | 48 | 93,118 |
| 2001 Saab 9-3 | 83 | 62 | 70,000 |
| 2002 Saab 9-3 | 46 | 37 | 55,000 |
| 2003 Saab 9-3 | 212 | 167 | 49,000 |
| 2004 (this page) | 207 | 167 | 72,000 |
| 2005 Saab 9-3 | 95 | 77 | 60,000 |
| 2006 Saab 9-3 | 179 | 93 | 40,000 |
| 2007 Saab 9-3 | 155 | 81 | 64,000 |
| 2008 Saab 9-3 | 184 | 106 | 75,000 |
| 2009 Saab 9-3 | 43 | 26 | 62,500 |
| 2010 Saab 9-3 | 30 | 9 | Under 10 mileages |
| 2011 Saab 9-3 | 30 | 7 | Under 10 mileages |
2004 Saab 9-3 recalls
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 6 recall campaigns that name the 2004 Saab 9-3 (5 vehicle campaigns and 1 equipment or tire campaign that names this model year, often for aftermarket parts). A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
| Campaign | Report received | Component |
|---|---|---|
| 14V318000 | Jun 12, 2014 | SEAT BELTS:FRONT:RETRACTOR |
| 11E009000 | Feb 28, 2011 | FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP |
| 10V043000 | Feb 18, 2010 | SEAT BELTS:FRONT:RETRACTOR |
| 05V236000 | May 19, 2005 | SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:POWER ASSIST:VACUUM:HOSES, LINES/PIPING, AND FITTINGS |
| 04V226000 | May 11, 2004 | SEAT BELTS:FRONT:RETRACTOR |
What these figures can and cannot tell you
- Complaints are owners’ reports to NHTSA. NHTSA publishes them without verifying them: a complaint is an allegation, not a defect finding.
- The mileage is what the owner wrote on the complaint; NHTSA does not check it against the odometer.
- The make, model and model year are the ones on the complaint. NHTSA records them as filed, so a few complaints sit under a model year the name was not sold in.
- They are not a lifespan study. The file holds only vehicles whose owners reported a problem, so these figures do not say how long a typical 2004 Saab 9-3 lasts.
- A complaint count rises with how many vehicles were sold and how long they have been on the road, so it is not a rating of the 2004 Saab 9-3.
- Nothing here describes one vehicle: its title brands, odometer readings, accidents and open recalls are in the records for its own VIN.
- 40 of the 207 complaints on the 2004 Saab 9-3 give no usable mileage (blank, zero, a filler such as 999999, or over 500,000) and are left out of every mileage figure.
- NHTSA names counted: 9-3 and 9-3 CONVERTIBLE. NHTSA files some vehicles under several names (a series name and a trim name, for example); this page counts only these.
- Recall-file names matched: 9-3 and 9-3 CONVERTIBLE.
Primary sources behind this page
Open the underlying public source and verify that its scope matches the question you are asking.
- NHTSA complaints flat file (FLAT_CMPL.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Complaints file field layout (CMPL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls file field layout (RCL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recall and complaint datasets: scope and documentationNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls Lookup by VINNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
NHTSA’s complaints file was downloaded on November 11, 2026 (FLAT_CMPL.txt, dated 2026-11-11 10:15, 2,265,416 rows), with its recall files (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.txt and FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.txt, dated 2026-11-11 08:02). Each complaint is counted once, by its NHTSA number, with the model year and mileage of its first row; a model year has a page only with 10 or more complaints. The collection script and its rules are in scripts/collect-nhtsa-model-year-longtail.mjs.
2004 Saab 9-3 questions
How many miles will a 2004 Saab 9-3 last?
Half of the 167 NHTSA owner complaints on the 2004 Saab 9-3 that list mileage came after 71,000 miles, and 1 in 10 after 129,000 miles. Of the 167 complaints on the 2004 Saab 9-3 that list mileage, the middle half came between 49,000 and 103,000 miles; 42 (25%) came after 100,000 miles, 6 (4%) after 150,000 and none after 200,000. These are mileages at a reported problem, not a lifespan: the file holds no 2004 Saab 9-3 that never had one.
What are the most common 2004 Saab 9-3 problems?
NHTSA's file holds 207 owner complaints on the 2004 Saab 9-3. Owners named the seat belts most often: 79 complaints, and half of the 65 that list a mileage came after 84,000 miles. A complaint can name more than one component. Of the 207 complaints, 10 report a crash, 2 report a fire and 7 report an injury (8 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
Is the 2004 Saab 9-3 a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 2004 is a good or a bad Saab 9-3: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 2004 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file. With 207 complaints, the 2004 ranks 2nd of the 13 Saab 9-3 model years from 1999 to 2011 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 2003 (212). The fewest: the 2010 and 2011 (30 each).
How many recalls does the 2004 Saab 9-3 have?
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 6 recall campaigns that name the 2004 Saab 9-3 (5 vehicle campaigns and 1 equipment or tire campaign that names this model year, often for aftermarket parts). A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
How do I check a used 2004 Saab 9-3 before buying?
Take the 17-character VIN from the vehicle and compare the odometer with the readings on file for it: title transfers, inspections and auction sales record the mileage on the day. VIN Lookup (free-vin-lookup.com) sells the original ClearVIN PDF for $14.99 (3 reports for $29.99, 5 for $44.99): odometer readings, title brands and auction records on file for the VIN. Check the VIN before buying a used 2004 Saab 9-3.