Saturn owners, How do you like your car?

Question

I've driven Toyota's mostly and been very pleased, however I'm interested in buying either a sedan or wagon, and like the Saturn prices.
What has your experience been with Saturn, are they reliable? Would you recommend the make to someone else?

Answer 1

i purchased a saturn for my wife in 1995 it was among other things a oil sucking pig from hell. the service under warranty was poor, requiring many trips to the dealer and when the engine finally broke at 115k miles i purchased a new engine [remanufactured]from saturn and installed it my self. it became a decent car and we are now happy with it [currently149k miles]
later models use an opel engines the 4cyl also uses a poorly designed timing chain that gives up at 100k miles and bends valves or the v6 that has had a whole host of troubles[also found in some saabs] if you must have a saturn get one that uses the honda v6 [also of note their all wheel drive system is tinker-toy garbage. good luck

Answer 2

The engine is nice to write about in reviews and all, but in the real world, it`s a pain to maintain. Too much technology, and too expensive to repair.

There are still vehicles that need 3K oil changes, but it's not because the oil goes bad after 3K miles. One example is the Saturn S series. These vehicles have a timing chain system that is very sensitive to clean oil because oil pressure is used as hydraulic fluid to ratchet up the timing chain tensioner. If varnish forms in the timing chain tensioner bore then this system can fail and the chain will become loose and eventually break. Dealers have gone as far as tearing out the normal service schedule (6000 miles) and leaving only the severe service schedule. If your engine is destroyed (under warranty) by a failed timing chain then the dealer will legitimately request evidence of oil changes. Unfortunately this problem usually won't manifest itself during the warranty period.



I just bought a VW TDi Golf. No tune-ups, just oil changes...
and 50 freakin` miles per gallon!!
http://www.transmitmedia.com/golfTDI/

Answer 3

I just bought a Saturn Outlook and I have never been in love with my car before. I have too also driven toyotas, hondas and fords and I have never felt so at ease and comfortable in a car that my outlook. I highly recommend it. I feel at peace with my care and when I am driving now. It takes the stress out of driving.

Answer 4

I own a 1996 SL2 and a 2004 ION 3,and have not had any problems at all.