How about a Saturn?
 

Well I have been looking for a little while now for a Civic VX and have realized that they are not the easiest thing to find. A co-work of mine suggested that I find a Saturn to drive. Doing a quick look around here at some of the cars others are driving I have seen some pretty impresive numbers coming from Saturns. So if I were to start looking for one what should I look for? What model/year is best? Does it matter if it is a four door vs. two? How about a wagon? It would be nice to have the room to travel on the longer trips as long as it doesn't kill the mileage.

Thanks,

Nathan

I just picked up a 1996 SC2 for pretty cheap. I couldn't be happier with my decision. I just can't seem to keep my foot off the gas. It's too much fun.

Make sure to get one with a DOHC engine. I know the early SOHC's used throttle body injection (not sure how long that stuck around).

^^ Do you still have the Jeep?


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Going to the football game this weekend? I hear they have extra tickets available :) (and who cares about finals anyway)

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72lml,

My first car was an SW2 ('93 DOHC). I loved it. We threw all sorts of bad karma, crap etc. at it - and it just wouldn't die. When my parents got a hold of it (I had a new car, this car was then handed over), they let the oil run dry. The timing chain guides blew apart and the chain started eating through the valve cover - but it still ran like a champ (replacement was messy, but pretty cheap and DIYable) :) I'd love to tell you the mileage I got, but the odometer broke at 68K miles (and 4 or so years before selling) :p But yes, as said on saturnfans - check your oil... and you'll never need to replace the timing chain ;)

72lml -

I'm re-using some stuff from e-mails I sent to Red earlier this year, hope this helps :

I think you should figure out whether or not it has the improved (S/D)OHC timing chain. Here are examples of two timing chain kits :

Good timing chain - SOLID gears :

99-02 Saturn S Series DOHC 1.9 Timing Chain Set Kit
https://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/99-02...spagenameZWDVW
Attachment 1109

Bad timing chain - gears with HOLES in them :

91-98 Saturn S Series DOHC 1.9 Timing Chain Set Kit
https://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/91-98...spagenameZWDVW
Attachment 1110

If the car was never abused, it may be a non-issue. But if it looks like it's been performance-modded, then this component may have been abused.

One of Diamondlarry's original Saturns had a timing chain failure. Since it's an interference engine, it was bad times all around.

I think the 99-up timing chains can be installed/retrofitted to the 98-below Saturns. That's probably a Saturn dealer question.

Here's some more posts :

How good or how bad have your saturn(s) been?
https://www.saturnfans.com/forums/showthread.php?t=92720

You should keep a quart of motor oil in your trunk. It seems like the average Saturn burns up to a quart every 3000 miles.

I'm only showing the bad stuff because all cars have 'em. I wish they'd stuck with the S-Series and kept improving them, :( .

CarloSW2

I wasn't aware of the good/bad chains... My '93 had the holes originally -- the replacement was solid :thumbup:

from the pics they look like they aren't. the cam holes are smaller in the later design and the crank sprocket is deeper on the older one. however that's just looking at those pics which is all sorts of inaccurate.

trebuchet: was that newer cam gears or was that a recall/service bulletin ("use this new part, it's better")?

Stick shift saturn wagon :thumbup:

It was me walking up to the parts counter of (select your favorite auto parts store)... Asking for a '93 DOHC 1.9 timing chain kit. At the time I wasn't aware of any differences :p I figured because it was after market, it was cheaper to just mfr a solid gear :p

My chain guide wasn't green though :p

How about this one? It seems like wagons with a 5 speeds are not all to common. The price might be a little high compared to blue book but maybe the could be talked down.

https://minneapolis.craigslist.org/car/463130173.html

Nathan

Yeah, I've still got the Jeep, but the trans rebuild is taking longer than expected and I was gonna make the switch over to something smaller and found a great deal over the holiday weekend.
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I may go and tailgate, but I don't think I can afford to make it a whole day thing.
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The odometer gears are weak. They do tend to break and I'm not sure if Saturn ever fixed the problem. As far as oil consumption goes, I'll have to keep an eye on mine, but I don't think the majority of Saturns on the road have noticeable blow-by. Also, the top motor mounts tend to wear out and cause a ton of vibration, but they're easy enough to replace.

Why are people suggesting the wagon? I don't see any benefits other than helping to prevent the spread of cooties and maybe storage if you need that much space.

For best FE, you want a SOHC 5-speed. The reason is that the DOHC cars have transmissions with lower gears and the revs at highway go up by 500-600 rpm's. If you were going to get a DOHC you would want to swap in a tranny from a SOHC.

If you wind up with a DOHC, you can also do just a 5th gear swap Like carloSW2 (can be done in car in short order): https://www.gassavers.org/showthread....;225th+gear%22

It would help out on the hiway anyway.

The wagons are a something of a cult classic. There well loved, especially the 5 speeds. Wait patiently for a smoking good deal. The only disadvantage a wagon has is a slightly higher CD. .36 compared to the .31 of the sedan.

diamondlarry -

Yes, I think any S*1 SOHC would be your best setup. Check to see that it doesn't have power steering (maybe that's a given with the S*1s?).

The other day in a parking lot I saw a grey SL1 with stickshift and UNPAINTED bumpers. I actually *want* unpainted bumpers because that's a sign of a barebones Satty.

CarloSW2

All Saturns came with power steering from what I've learned. Unpainted bumpers on 2000's an up aren't available. The SL and SL1 came with painted bumpers from 2000 on.

As to SOHC vs DOHC, yes, get the SOHC for FE. As for a 5-speed, be careful, 2000 and 2001 had issues with a Quill Bearing. Had to have my tranny rebuilt twice for $1,100 each. Ouch. Auto's have the same top gear ratio as manuals too.

Just my 2 cents worth :)

My first Saturn('97 SL1) didn't have power steering.

skewbe, thanks for the tip on the 5th gear swap. My son may be interested in doing this swap. He was pulling 60+ tanks this past summer. With this swap he may get close to 70.

Really, well I was kinda worried about this. I wonder if the 02 is better or if we just haven't heard about them failing yet.

I had a SW2 with an auto tranny. This was back in my days of VERY aggressive driving. I fried the tranny in 12k miles. :( I just "gave away!", yes GAVE AWAY! three weeks ago an '01 SL2. Had a front pump seal leak, I didn't feel like pulling the motor to fix it - it also had a VERY leaky sunroof. My brother gave me the car because he knew I was capable of fixing it though I told him what I was going to do with it - steal the leather seats for the street rod. In the end, I didn't have the heart for it. A buddy only has gas guzzlers and drives 60 miles one way to work everyday so we gave it to him. We owed him one.

Also, back when I had my SW2 - had a screen name with SW2 in it - you wouldn't believe the gay guys that constantly PM'ed/IM'ed me! :eek: :confused: :thumbdown:

OdieTurbo -

Yes, the infamous quill bearing. I was quoted $1800 at the Saturn Dealer, so I went "into the wilderness" and found my mechanic on the advice of a good friend. He did it for $1100. If I hadn't found him, I would have probably switched to a new car.

It sucks have no car-mechanic skillz, :mad: .

CarloSW2

Wazabi -

Oh great. Haven't been PM'd yet. At least at the Saturn site, it makes sense. The wifey is gonna laugh her butt off when I tell her.

CarloSW2

You want to avoid 91 to 93? Sx1 because they have throttle body injection. Any Sx1 from 94 on (I don't know the year for sure) would be your best bet.

I have owned 3 saturns I love them because you can buy them cheap and they get decent mpg. I have had problems with the exhaust heat shields coming loose and making annoying rattle sounds on 2 of the cars. There is slightly better handling on the Sx2 because of wider tires and the rear sway bar. Also, a noticeable acceleration increase on the twin cam because of the hp and gearing (both bad for mpg).

trebuchet03 -

I don't know that this is *the* fix, it's just the obvious difference, so it makes sense.

CarloSW2

I just filled up after doing 140 miles of city driving. 4 gallons went in. This was after a week or so of driving spiritedly and most of the time the a/c was on. 35 mpg city is pretty impressive.

Really? My brother had a '96 SL1 and it was toast at 85k. A lot of it started when the radio got stolen (somehow this messed up a whole lot of electronics), but the motor started going downhill and the repairs totalled it out. Needless to say, we're not too hot on Saturns anymore. Always got great gas mileage though.