14th Apr 2007, 10:37

I love my 1995 SL2. It has 236,000 miles and is going strong. Yes, it does burn some oil, about a quart every 1,000 miles, and has required minor repairs, but I drive the car a lot. Long live my SL2 and I can't wait to buy another one.

16th May 2007, 17:59

Where are you getting that saturns are junk from. My 95 SL1 with a 5 speed has 187,000 miles on it. goes through a little bit of oil, but what car doesn't at that mileage?

10th Jun 2007, 10:27

I just got a 95 SL2 about 2 years ago from a friend. He'd blown a rod racing it. After it hit 160k mileage though. I've put a new head and block in it (1,000,000 Mi Warranty) from Gopher Engines and slapped the turbo and cold air intake back on it and it flies. The 5-speed is really suited for getting all the power out of that engine. The car has almost 200k on it now and still have yet to replace the clutch. But anyway. I gotta run. Putting a new crank in it tomorrow and need to go pick it up. Adios.

16th Aug 2007, 15:16

Why do you need a switch for you to be able to downshift going down hills in an automatic? That's what the lower gears on the selector are for, so you don't fry your brakes.

28th Aug 2007, 10:02

I'm truly sorry to hear about some of the bad experiences some of you have had. My experiences with Saturn have been fantastic! My parents had a 1994 SL2 that they traded in 2 years ago. It had 260,000 miles at trade in and had only two issues outside normal oil changes. It needed the clutch replaced at 175,000 miles and a new fan motor at about 140,000. Not bad for 11 years of use.

I used to own a 1994 Saturn SL1. I bought it used with 85,000 miles on it and sold it with 125,000 miles. Never had to put a dime into it outside regular oil changes. The only reason I sold was because my wife was pregnant and couldn't reach the pedals anymore:-)

I just purchased a 1993 SL2 and so far it's looking good. It did have a new tranny put in at 140,000 miles (prior to my puchasing it). The engine is running great. It does go through about a quart of oil every 3,000 miles - not unusual for either a Saturn or a car with 150,000+ miles. Some Lucas treatment will go in on the next oil change and every one after that.

Three cars, 15 years of service. $700 total in non-standard maintenance. That's pretty solid.

30th Aug 2007, 18:41

I have a 1998 Saturn S series and I love it. I have hardly put any money into it at all other than brake pads once and new tires. It uses a lot of oil because it has a steel timing belt rather than one that needs to be replaced. I bought the car new and have 102,000 miles on it.

Speaking of mechanics, I still need to find a good one. When I was hit in a hit and run accident, I needed the drivers side mirror replaced. The shop I went to wanted to charge me $350 dollars, this included painting the housing, which by the way, is NOT PAINTED on the car! Anyway, found the part online for $35 online and my husband replaced it in 15 minutes! I know I need to learn all this stuff myself, because you can't trust anyone!

11th Oct 2007, 20:28

I have a 1992 Saturn SL2. Due to its polymer body it looks not a day over five years old, if that.

I bought it three years ago and have put at least 70K on it (the odometer stopped at 150K). I have put one set of rear brakes, one alternator, one battery, one air filter, one cam cover gasket, one set of plugs, one set of plug wires, two tires and not enough oil changes on/into the car. Some of this is routine maintenance, obviously.

I get about 35 mpg (but could be getting 40 mpg if I replaced a sensor). So far my average yearly cost (not including gas) for the vehicle is $300. If anyone can find me a reliable, fuel efficient vehicle that will never leave me on the side of the road for $300 I'll buy it! I suspect, though, based on my experience with 10+ previous used cars of similar vintage over the years, that this is not possible (unless it's a 20+ year old Volvo 240).

My Satty can't be beat, and once it does kick the bucket in 100K+, I'll have to find me another!

24th Oct 2007, 22:11

I can agree with some of the comments. The Saturn is not a flashy car, but was made for one reason.. cheap transportation.

I have 2 Saturns at the moment. The first, a 93 SL1, has 247+ thousand miles, and the other, a 95 SL2, 189+ thousand.

I will agree they do use oil and have a lot of annoying malfunctions, but consider the cost of the Saturn verus other cars on the market. The parts are cheap and they are easy to work on. If you add the cost of just one major repair of an import verse the upkeep of the Saturn, it justifies itself. Saturns don't die; people kill them. However I have never seen any American car besides the Saturn match the high miles that the imports are capable of.

3rd Dec 2007, 00:03

I own a 1996 Saturn SL2 as a second car - with around 168,000 miles on it. The only thing I've had to do is replace the transmission filter because it somehow got a crack in it which cost me $4.00, the horn which cost me $75 and the alternator which was like $130.00. It does take a little extra oil in the summer it seems, but otherwise in the fall/winter it's just fine with an oil change every 3,000 miles.

14th Jan 2008, 23:45

I have a 1996 saturn SL2 and its got a little over 277,000 miles on it. I bought it from my nephew when it had 120,000 miles on the car. It has been a good car other than all the oil it uses. So, I'm seeing there is all kinds of reasons that the car uses oil, but has anyone came up with a definate way to stop the problem?