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No wonder why I have so much paper trash on recycling day!
http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/pb/saturn.htm
Have you seen a lot of problems with Saturns in your experience at the store?
My experience with Saturns is with the SL series which got bad-mouthed in the article I posted. They think the ION is a lot better (and IMHO it looks to be so far).
My Saturn experience was very positive. There were some issues with squeaks and rattle early on but they were resolved by the excellent dealer network. I am very very picky about this kind of stuff and they managed to fix everything. The car does not feature the high quality interior materials of my Civic or Corolla but it is well put together.
Resale on Saturns may now be an issue as with most US vehicles, due to current fire sale rebates. I did very well on the resale on my two Saturns but I sold them before this kind of stuff started. At one time Saturns rivaled Japanese cars for resale and they are still better than most US cars in this aspect.
Mazda Protege is a fine car (I prefer the car over the ION)but resale can be an issue and our local dealer is not impressive.
My current car is a 2003 Toyota Tacoma Prerunner Reg cab 4cyl. I owe 16,700 on it and it is worth 13,500 on trade.
I just want a more comfortable car. I only have 6500 miles on the truck. It was a impluse buy.
I have owned a protege before also (2001). It was a good car with a minor idle issue.
I just fear the Saturn quality. We get like 2000 or 3000 off with my vendor discount but I wonder if this vehicle will hold up
Have not heard of any major issues with the ION. Seems to be excellent in terms of reliability so far. I'm not sure what your fears are based on, but Saturn service is about the best in the business and they will take care of you.
I don't think you need to fear the car. GM makes the about best auto transmissions in the world (I think they even supply BMW) and Saturn service is excellent. You won't go wrong with an Ion, we are very happy with ours. If you hate it, you can always return it after 30 days.
I would rather buy an L series over Malibu. IMHO it looks and drives better and you will get that awesome discount. GM cars in general are pretty decent, arguably the best of the American-made stuff and some models rival Japanese for durability.
Is your experience where you work different from this generally positive outlook most of us have about Saturn?
I am not sure if there is one for the iPod, but I know other MP3 player can use radio transmitters (between $12 and $25) that attach to the MP3 player. You then tune your car stereo to a certain station, and you can then listen to the MP3 player.
I'd imagine that as popular as the iPod is that someone has probably made a transmitter for it.
mazdaprofour : Never seen that? The cars have a lot of polymer panels on it so it would feel quite like a steel body car.
GEO NJ
I have not used one myself. One of my staff members has, and he said it's pretty good. The only issue he has is that the model he bought only transmits on one station, and he sometimes gets interference that is so bad that he can't get a good signal from his player.
I think there may be units where you can adjust the station that it transmits on, but I'm not positive. I'm thinking of buying one for my wife to use with her Saturn (trying to stay on topic), so I'll let you know how it goes.
All-in-all, not a good solution. Anyone know of any decent add-on cassette decks that fit a standard DIN slot for not much money?
gstout1: Sorry about your weather stripping. This has not happened to me. I guess it's possible Saturn did not use enough adhesive or something. At least your dealer should fix it for you--even though it is a pain to take it in. Good luck.
MP3: You know, for 2004, Saturn is offering a radio with an MP3 player. I know it won't be the cheapest route to take; but, have you thought about getting one installed in your ION? It will look much better and may help at trade-in time. Just a thought.
MP3 option seems limited for people with CD decks. I know some cars come with MP3 players in them now, but that doesn't help me. Only option is to replace and I can't be bothered.
Mazdaprofour:::: What do you mean the trunk "wabbles"?
uga91 : You are correct. I had heard a CVT was available, but maybe that never materialized.
hey everyone, funny story.....well actually not that funny.
A coworker just blew thousands on a new Escape a couple months ago. Meantime, car #2 (mustang) blew its head again (3.8v6) and Ford won't pay.
Anyways, they are shopping for another new rig now, with not much to spend. You'd be proud, I even said it was something they ought to at least take a look at.
I said, its quiet and has plastic panels and ok overall, if you can stomach the looks and put up with the center gauges.
Anyways, I told her to check it out because Saturn is giving away dells with a new car sold.
Of course I told her the Protege, Focus, and some others were maybe a bit nicer. but still you oughta be proud of me, I put it on the receommended list at least.
She hates buying cars so I'm sure she'd appreciate the Saturn environment anyways.
My friend who was looking for a car has decided that he will move closer to work and take public transit. His 15 year old car is still running but not much to look at. He wants to buy a house first before getting a new car. Too bad because he had pretty well decided on the ION2.
I am not convinced his ancient 3rd hand Corolla is going to survive the 18 to 24 months he expects to delay his purchase. Plus in the area where he wants to buy, I am sure they would not take kindly to have his rusting hulk of a Toyota in the driveway.
There are not a lot of older vehicles where I live. Even in the townhouses, most people can afford a $250/ month lease to a new Saturn, Hyundai or Cavalier/Sunfire.
Of course the option of downsizing a bit and getting a car like Ion would exist although in this class, Mazda3 or Protege, Focus, Lancer, Corolla all would be before Ion in the pecking order.
The gal I receommended Ion and a slew of other cars to is going to get the Protege. I certainly can endorse that decision. When I asked her if she checked out the Ion, she said they looked at them and she thought it looked 'strange'. I didn't editorialize anything to her about it. Just the look on her face was enough. So in this instance it was primarily a looks decision. Even if another coworker was extolling the virtues of Saturn sales, service, cheap insurance, low maintenance, etc.
They might take another peek at Elantra as well.
The looks won out in the end. She couldn't stomach the looks. And looks as you know are subjective. You guys would be proud to know nary did I bad mouth the car, I even told her it drove smooth and quiet and had good room in it.
Focus and Lancer before ION? The Lancer?
I think most of the bugs have been worked out on the Focus. I especially like the ZX5.
To each their own, I wasn't all that excited by the car.
Mitsus have low resale value though, because of all the rebates on them all the time. But that's most every car nowadays. I would gladly choose the Lancer over the ION if I had a choice only between the 2.
My nephew has a Lancer he just bought and his twin brother just bought a Protege. He likes the Lancer because of the room and stuff for he and his newlywed bride.
In other words, PLENTY of folks like the Lancer and you shouldn't dismiss it at all in comparison to the Ion because its more than likely a superior car overall. True Japanese fit finish and quality at a Korean price. Compared with all domestics except for Focus, its off the charts.
Back to the ION.