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So far so good, However I understand that the oil use problem usually shows up after 50K. I think this would be a good time to trade for a VUE, But my wife is happy with her SL2.
Saturn is offering special equipment packages on the base SL with a/a for 10k. They also have a base SL "sport" with sunroof, SL2 interior & alloy wheels, a spoiler, A/C and maybe a CD player??
I think the price was around 13k.
There is also a special SC2 with added leather, alloys and upgraded stereo for under 17k.
I think you can order one of these specials with ABS and or side air bags.
These are the final days for the S series before spring Hill retools for the new ION this summer.
Those are some good option packages considering how ultra expensive options are on the s series.
How about Yokohama Avid T4's ($269 otd) ?
thanks
chris
My only concern is the fuel filter. Do I relieve the fuel system pressure by just running the engine until it stalls with no fuel pump fuse? I'm a little concerned about this. My Haynes book says to leave the gas cap off. This should trigger the "check engine" light. Will this go off after I get everything reconnected and back in place? I hope so because its NEVER been on before.
We got a brand new 2002 SL base model with air conditioning for $9995 (including destination). After our trade ins, lien fulfilments, taxes, etc., we paid about $100 less.
According to the salesman, they're only making 300 of them, 5 per dealership. They sold the first one they got two days after it arrived. We had to set a deposit to claim the next one.
Overall, it was an awesome buy. Maybe we can keep a little equity in this one and trade it in a couple years for something a little nicer... We'll see.
Great car for young, new manual transmission driver or for getting to and from work.
I decided to wait for the ION. The saturn dealer only offered me $500 trade in for a carwith only 120,000 miles no body damage, clean with auto trans and A/C. That was totally taken care of by thier service dept. since I bought it.
Since they can't haggle with sticker price. I guess they wanted to haggle with my trade but I wasn't that driven to get another S series.
I can't believe they would not give you more than $500 for your 94 SL2! Maintained at that dealer? With auto and AC? I would have talked to someone about that. My local Saturn store gave me $1500 for a 1995 Kia Sephia 5 speed needing cosmetic work. I was expecting them to offer $500--maybe they got our cars mixed up?
the salesman actually told me "I talked to the service wrtiter and she said it was maintained by us and in good shape" They still only offered me $500. I have asked and gotten more from previous trade ins at this dealer. I just diddn't feel like playing the game for another S series. Even with low intrest rates. I am tired of sitting so low to other vehicles in traffic. I will shop around my SL2 with dealers for trade in price if I get the new ION to replace it.
It's tough looking for a good deal and being a "car guy" at the same time. I'm sure alot of other town hallers feel the same!!
When you wan't a certain car..but can afford only a....
I just joined the website. I was reading the postings about servicing a Saturn and decided to sign up so I can share my story about my Saturn. I am currently in college and drive a 1996 Light Plum SL2. My mom gave it to me when my blazer died in 1999. (Because she gave me her car, she went out and got herself another Saturn). My Saturn currently has 150,000 miles. She has been used for every type of driving: city, country, dirt roads...Since my parents purchased the car new, we have had very few problems with it. We have replaced the battery, alternator (both due to a dealer mistake so they replaced them for free), water pump, a hose (do not remember what it was for), and the spark plugs. We also had to clean the fuel injectors once. The other repairs were because of normal wear and tear (tires, a set of breaks, wipers...). As to oil usage, our Saturn dealership has changed the oil about every 3000 miles. I never need to add any oil between changes. She is a very reliable car and I trust her enough to drive anywhere. (This summer I am even planning to drive it across the country to visit a friend).
This Saturn in not the first Saturn in my family and it wont be the last. We have been loyal Saturn owners since our first red 1991 Saturn coupe (We still have it). I hope you like your Saturn as much as we love ALL of ours.
I do not know if this will help anyone, I hope it does.
1. Obtain your own financing. If you have excellent credit you should be able to get 6-7%.
2. Sell your 94 on your own. If it runs well you should be able to sell it for 1500 in about 1 day or hold out for 2500 (should take less than 30 days). If you REALLY want to hold out for top dollar you can sell that puppie for 3500-4000. This assumes it runs well and you can prove all the maintinence was done.
OR
Try a different dealer
I am really just waiting for the right time to buy, and get somehting different. The S series sits way to low to the ground with all the tall, suvs and trucks on the road. I can't even see past the parked vehicles in my town. To make a turn on to a street without creeping out and taking my front end of my car into jeporady!! Low riding cars that take corners and off ramps while sticking to the road. Aren't what american drivers wan't I suppose. They would rather have a truck based sedan that can go into deep snow the few times a year they need to then actually be able to have a car that turns and handles sharply. I don't think my SL2 even shows up in thier side view mirrors. If you can't beat them......
I called Saturn and the woman said there is a known problem with the 1995/96 S series and my vehicle was covered under a voluntary recall for 6 years or 100,000 miles. My problem is that I took delivery in November 1995, so technically the six years have passed. She suggested I call the manager on Monday and he may be able to work with me. Has anyone else gone through this?
Pete
I just got the car back today. I had it towed Monday afternoon and got the car back at 3pm Tuesday. AT least they did it quickly. I had to pay a "deductible" of $500 since I was 6 months past the recall limit. I thought a recall was absolute, not subject to change by a manufacturer. Pretty sad the Saturn failed with a mere 73K miles on it! All of my Japanese cars have been driven over 150K with no problems at all (Owned a Mazda Protege, Toyota Tercel, and a Honda Civic). I could have pressed the issue with GM, but my wife needed the car and I didn't have time to fight a lost cause. She is going to buy a Honda Civic early next year and dump the SL1. BTW - The recall affects 1994-1996 models only from what I have read on the net. Saturn does not make this common knowledge to owners though.
Have you seen the Letter from the Town Hall Manager on the Town Hall Welcome page? If not, you might want to follow that link to have a look.
And hang on to your seats. Change is never easy - for any of us - but resolving the Search problems we've had will be worth the pain.
Pat
Sedans Host
I just bought a 2002 SL2 5-speed and have noticed a rough idle in it from the day I bought it until now (approx. 3K mi.). I asked the dealer to look at the problem with about 150 mi. on the car, and he said to wait until the first oil change at 3K and the idle would smooth out. Well, I did, and it didn't, so I asked the dealer to look into the problem and fix the rough idle.
According to the service tech at my dealership, and according to the Saturn helpline area manager, the rough idle is caused by sticky exhaust valves, but is completely normal and within specs for the SL2's engine. The official Saturn "fix" for the issue was for the tech to drive the car at 5K rpm for a few miles to reseat the valves. That didn't do a thing. When I called the customer care line, Saturn's response was that this is a totally normal feature of the 5-speed engine, and that there is nothing which they can do to fix it. I find this hard to believe, so I wanted to post here to see if anyone else who has an SL2 or SC2 (which have the same engine, as far as I can tell) has experienced this rough idle, too.
Also, if anyone could point me to some other Saturn forums where I can do further research on this issue, I'd be grateful.
Thanks,
Steve.
You say it was like that the day you bought it? Was there any reason why you didn't test drive it before you bought it? It would seem strange that it drove smoothly on your test drive, then got rough after you signed the papers for it, IMO.
Thanks for the input.
use mobile 1 always, changed every 3,000 mi.
it now has 73,000 and has been very reliable. the motor mount (upper) does have a problem, and i think it's due to heat transfer from head. i am
experimenting with fixits for this. there is no oil burning at all. i am getting a few rattles in the interior around dash. saturn has been great to me in san diego area, but saturn usa says there is no problem with motor mount. they should check & see how many people have to have them changed. i think most of the vibration is caused by this mount. mine typically last about 18,000 mi & then the vibration starts. oil breakdown is not a problem, its the acid that builds up in the oil that causes problems. i have installed pirelli touring tires in size 195 60 15. much more traction, but not the quietest or smoothest. this size has almost exactly the same circumference of 185 65 15. they dont rub & work well. i really like the car & have respect for the way saturn has treated me.
where they start to touch the metal. (more clearance). I then placed the springs under the
mount to raise it back to stock position. it works pretty well! not to brand new standards, but this eliminated most of the vibration! If you check the condition of the rubber of a new mount against a bad one, you will find that the rubber gets very soft. movement will breakdown rubber, but heat will do more damage. Torque is not the problem, it is in the design of the mount. Before I buy a new mount(3rd time), I am going to try to make an insulater to divert heat. I'll post how it works. Saturn is really letting us down by not doing something about this problem. They certainly have the resources to fix this weak spot, but continue to ignor it. A real shame!
I am pretty sure when it comes to service and warr. items Saturn exceeds the rest by a million miles. www.saturnfans.com for picks of the new ion.
I believe it is a good engine, and a bit more refined than previous GM four cylinders. The 2003 Ion features many innovations not found on other cars in its class such as head curtain airbags, electronic power steering for better road feel and control, Traction control, On star navigation systems, and a cvt transmission for better fuel economy. The sedan may look a bit conservative from some views, but it'll be a hoot to drive. Hope this helped
The new ION is completely new from the ground up, and to make blanket statements as to its possible frame rusting/ and engine, is completely lacking data and fact.
Claywater, glad to hear you have had good luck with BOTH of your Saturns, as I have with mine.
There are many possible reasons for oil consumption and its possible it could be an relatively inexpensive fix.
BTW we have a 95 SL2 in our showroom with 293,000 on the original engine and transmission.
My son and his family have a 1996 SL2 which they purchased new. They use it as a second car for local driving (39,000 miles on the odometer). For the past two + years, there has been a persistent odor which they suspected was being caused by something inside the car being constantly wet. Until recently, the odor came and went and was tolerated. It got so bad, however, that took it to a Saturn dealer, and, after 2 days and $600.00, they were told that there was a leak in the engine fire wall which let water into the passenger compartment. Only time will tell if this fixed the problem, but I have my doubts. The carpet underpad, for example, was soaked in front and back.
Questions: 1)Do you think it is worth my time to pursue this with Saturn via their toll free customer service number? 2)If you do think it is worth while, do you have any opinion as to what I can expect from them? I don't know if Saturn cares, but they purchased a new Saturn in 1994. I also don't know if this problem is a matter of record with the dealer prior to the $600.00 visit, butI assume that any such visit is logged in their data base.
Sorry for the lengthy post and thanks again.
or
Try www.saturnfans.com
Check the extensive message boards, especially the tech talk section. There may be something there. Or post a new thread about your problem. Saturn techs do give free advice there almost daily.
I really don't think Saturn would pay for a repair on a 96' model though.
My wife's 1996 SL1 had a cracked head in May and we were offered the same deal. We missed the 6 years by a few months and had to pay $500. Last week both CV Boots cracked and I had to shell out $400 for two new boots and axles. Oh yeah, the car has 74K on it. Some other things we've had to get fixed include new motor mounts at 52K and a new alternator at 54K. The Saturn has been a money pit. We are buying her a Honda Civic EX Coupe tomorrow. I had a Civic for five years and put 149K on it and all I had to do was change the timing belt and water pump. My sister had a 91' SL2 that had lots of problems too. I would never buy another Saturn!
Rotors warping at 11,000 miles is clearly a manufacturers defect, however I do not blame Saturn. I blame General Motors, for many GM cars are now using "thin" rotors that wear quickly even under normal driving circumstances. My 98 Saturn went 30,000 miles without even needing brake pads.. Other than that, it has been so-so. I may or may not consider the Ion, I am also looking at the Corolla, Jetta, and Altima for its replacement in a year or so..
I was having a problem with rough idle and surging during acceleration, but then I woke up and changed the fuel filter. That fixed that.
I also notice a stale odor when first opening the door. I chalked it up to spilled baby milk in the back floor a few years ago, even though I cleaned the carpet once with a steam vac. but now, maybe I should chack for a leak.
The seats do a number on my back and I can't stand to ride in it for more than one hour at a time. I tried a Chevy Lumina and the seats were the same. Must be a GM cheep seat thing.
I do all my own maintenance, mainly because of the inconvenience of the 100 mile round trip to the dealership. When I bought the car in 95, I was told that they would be opening a new store in my town within one year. Never happened.
I do think that Saturn dealers are too few and far between. That is bound to hurt sales. It is the major reason I'm not looking saturn's way again.