Used Saturn Relay Buying Guide: 2005-2007 Vans, AWD and Recalls

A used Saturn Relay is a 2005-2007 minivan, and the one I'd shop is a 2005 or 2006 with its seat-latch and parking-brake recalls done, or a 2007 if you want the stronger 3.9-liter V6 and can live without all-wheel drive. Every Relay is now 19 to 21 years old, so you're buying a cheap seven-seat hauler with old-GM electrical quirks, not a collectible. Price it that way and check the paperwork before the seller's story.

Saturn only sold this van for three model years, which makes listings rare and sellers vague. On Monday morning, October 19, 2026, I went through Consumer Guide's 2005-07 Saturn Relay review, the IIHS file for the van and NHTSA's recall list for 2005, 2006 and 2007. What follows is what those sources actually say, plus what I'd check in a driveway.

What the Relay is, and what it shares

The Relay was Saturn's first minivan. Consumer Guide says it shared its basic design with the 2005 Buick Terraza, Chevrolet Uplander and Pontiac Montana SV6, all of which put an SUV-style nose on the older 1997-2004 GM van structure and got called "crossover sport vans." There was one body length and seating for seven: two removable second-row buckets and a 50/50 third-row bench. Standard gear was generous for the money, including four-wheel disc brakes with ABS, 17-inch wheels, OnStar and a DVD screen. Curtain side airbags were never offered, which is the single biggest safety gap on this van.

Because the bones are shared, a lot of the mechanical detail lives in our used Chevy Uplander buying guide. The Uplander ran a year longer, through 2008, according to IIHS. The Relay differs in trim, in its roof-rail storage modules and in which engine and drive combinations Saturn sold each year, and that last part changes what a fair price looks like.

Year by year: engines and AWD

• 2005: trims 2 and 3. A 3.5-liter V6 rated at 200 hp with a four-speed automatic, front-drive or AWD. Traction control and StabiliTrak were available on front-drive vans only.
• 2006: traction and stability control became standard on front-drive vans, front side airbags became standard on the Relay 3, and second-row side airbags were newly available. A 235-hp 3.9-liter V6 was optional on front-drive Relay 3s.
• 2007: a cheaper Relay 1 joined the lineup, the 3.9 V6 at 240 hp became the only engine, and AWD and the load-leveling suspension were dropped.

So an AWD Relay is a 2005 or 2006 with the 3.5, full stop. A "2007 Relay AWD" listing is either a typo or a different van, and our Saturn VIN decoder post shows how to read the engine code before you drive across town. Consumer Guide measured 19.8 mpg in a front-drive 3 and quoted GM's 0-60 times of 10.5 seconds front-drive and 11.2 AWD. That's slow, but the reviewers said the van feels livelier than the numbers.

Known trouble spots

Consumer Guide's trouble list for the Relay is mostly electrical, and a couple of items overlap with older GM vans. A wiring connector under the driver's seat can get wet and corrode, causing no-starts, stalling and random warning lights (2005-06). The fuel level sender can corrode from sulfur in fuel, so the gauge reads fuel that isn't there and the van stalls empty (2005-06). EGR valve failures lit check-engine lights and got a replacement valve plus a computer flash (2005-06). The 2005 3.5 could whistle under acceleration until the PCV tube was replaced. I'd pull the driver's seat carpet back and look for green crust on anything metal. A wet floor can be a door seal, or it can be a flood van, and our flood car smell and corrosion signs checklist helps you tell them apart.

Crash ratings, honestly

IIHS rated the 2005-07 Relay Good in its original moderate overlap frontal test, though the test car was an Uplander and the dummy's head bottomed out the airbag and hit the steering wheel. Head restraints and seats were rated Poor. Consumer Guide lists NHTSA frontal scores of 4 stars for the driver and 5 for the passenger on a 2005 built before Feb. 9, 2005, with no side score. Without curtain airbags, I wouldn't sell this van to anyone as a family safety pick. It's a budget people mover.

Recalls to confirm by VIN

NHTSA's API lists three manufacturer recalls across the Relay's run. 05V061 (2005) covers the outboard release handle on the second-row bucket, which could let the seat unlatch early in a side crash; dealers removed the handle and capped the stud. 05V287 (2005) is for rear calipers whose parking brake lever could slip, so the van might roll when parked. 05V552 (2006) replaced a tire and loading label that printed the wrong capacity. 09E005 only matters if aftermarket Dorman or NAPA steering knuckles were installed. For 2007, that aftermarket entry is the only one listed, so run the VIN anyway. Our Saturn recall check by VIN walkthrough covers it, and since Saturn retailers no longer exist, a Chevrolet or Buick-GMC service desk is where you ask whether the work was done.

Before you pay

Cycle both sliding doors several times, pull the second-row seats out (that's the point of owning one), and check the fuel gauge against an actual fill-up. Search the VIN on NMVTIS for title brands, then get a history report you pulled yourself, never a PDF the seller emails over. We're a licensed CARFAX and AutoCheck reseller with no tie to CARFAX, AutoCheck, Experian or GM. In mid October 2026 our checkout showed roughly $5.50 for a guest report, $4.50 for members and $6.75 for the two-report bundle, versus about $39.99 to $44.99 retail. Those numbers move, so trust the total on your checkout screen.

Sources

• Consumer Guide: 2005-07 Saturn Relay
• IIHS: 2005 Saturn Relay minivan
• NHTSA recallsByVehicle, Relay 2005-2007, queried Oct. 19, 2026, e.g. 2005 Relay; NMVTIS