Faults:

Nothing has ever gone wrong with this car! (Knock on wood)

General Comments:

This is the second Saturn I've owned and have never had any problems - at all. I put over 100,000 miles on my first Saturn without any problems. I now have over 100,000 miles on my second Saturn and have honestly never had any work done on it. No problems at all.

It has a lot of power and drives very smoothly.

The only problem with this car is the cup holders. They are really rather useless. They are not tall enough to hold any size cup, so my drinks are constantly falling over. I have trained myself to reach down and steady the cup while making turns.

Faults:

Water pump went bad, replaced under warranty.

Knocking noise during turns: replaced steering column (under warranty).

General Comments:

The lightweight plastic body and beefy V6 engine add up to quick, nimble performance that might not be expected from its looks. Strong acceleration even on steep hills, and firm braking.

I always thought that heated seats were kind of ridiculous, but I was sold once I tried them. Very comfy on cold days!

My car had been a display model in a regional auto show, and dressed up by Saturn with 17" alloy wheels and Goodyear Eagle RS-A tires. Exceptional handling from this upgrade; the tires stuck to the road like glue and offered outstanding control in evasive maneuvers. However it's an uncommon and expensive size to replace, so have recently switched back to the stock 15" wheel using Yokohama Avid H4S tires; so far performance is comparable, if a bit noisier.

A minor gripe: brakes didn't need replacement until about 55,000 miles, but this model usually requires new rotors as well when brakes are done- an expensive trade-off for greater longevity of brake pads, but overall not a big deal. This is apparently common with lots of cars now.

My Saturn dealer (San Francisco, CA) has been excellent, and the service department is top notch. I am looking into a VUE or other Saturn for my next car, although it is a few years off.

Faults:

Dragged the plastic piece under the bumper.

Water pump went bad.

Grinding noise during turns.

Battery died.

Ceiling in front and behind moon roof sags.

General Comments:

Overall, I've been pretty happy. I've had the car only a little over a year, and it's been in the shop 4 times already. However, the Saturn dealership has been great, never keeping the car more than 1 day, and they have covered everything except for the plastic piece under the bumper. Even the battery was replaced for free.

As for the car, I think they are a tad pricey brand new at over $25,000 for a fully loaded L300. However, I bought mine used 1 year old for a little over $14,000. For leather, moon roof, spoiler, V6 engine, heated seats and mirrors, CD and tape player, and much much more, it's difficult not to give this car a very serious second look.

The car picks up and goes very easily, and offers a very smooth ride (especially if you dump the factory Firestones and put on a set of B.F. Goodrich, makes a big difference). Automatic transmission shifting happens at the right times, and reserve power is there for you when you need the extra pickup to get through traffic quickly.

One concern: The Saturn dealer told me the V6 engine is the same Saab engine used in the Cadillac Catera. I have heard those cars don't do very well much past 70,000 miles. The first L300s will be approaching the 3 year mark quickly, and I do wonder how well it will hold up years 4-7.