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Car Forum / Saturn Cars / April 2005How I spent my 100,000 km Service - 1996 SL2
I've followed Saturn's recommended service fairly closely since I got this boat in the fall of '95. Probably never missed one but had them a little earlier or later, depending on circumstances. After close to 10 years on the road I'm still satisfied. My only beef is size, mainly getting in and out. The old knees can be very sore and I have to lie down to drag myself inside because the door opening are too narrow. (I had a Festiva once, practically the smallest car on the road, and ingress and egress was much better, not to mention hauling a box with a 27" TV!) Anyway, Saturn noted the following after the 100,000 km service,(done at 104,330): * Motor mounts sagged,but just within spec, $196.05 to replace. * Oil leak at back of engine. They've mentioned this four times; I've never seen a drop of oil on the floor. In fact, I cleaned the engine with the garden hose and aerosol engine cleaner and it looked like new. I'm not panicking. * Steering gear leaking into boots, $653.63 with non-Saturn parts! A real turd! However, no visible sign of leakage, so I'm not rushing into this. * Four new tires, not surprising, since they came with the car. * Muffler rusted through, although I can't detect it, $269.19. Not bad for 10 years. And my stuck horn. Even though I found half a dozen places on the web mentioning a '98 recall, they knew nothing about it, $172.23 to replace. I'd buy a cheap one from CND Tire, but Saturn was clever enough to put the relay on the horn, making it an oddball. I contacted Sixth Planet and they will sell me a used one for $40, including shipping. Replacing it can be a bitch without a hoist, but I've read that removing the headlight assembly will open it up. I think Sixth Planet has a good reputation. What do you think? > I've followed Saturn's recommended service fairly closely since I got this > boat in the fall of '95. Probably never missed one but had them a little [quoted text clipped - 30 lines] > without a hoist, but I've read that removing the headlight assembly will > open it up. I think Sixth Planet has a good reputation. What do you think? 6th Planet has an excellent reputation. AFA the horn goes, I installed a set of Fiamms using the relay that came with the horn set. They work fine. Ken snip > the smallest car on the road, and ingress and egress was much better, not to > mention hauling a box with a 27" TV!) You should have got a SW > Anyway, Saturn noted the following after the 100,000 km service,(done at > 104,330): Our SW1 now has 238,000km. > * Motor mounts sagged,but just within spec, $196.05 to replace. Wait until they are a problem > * Oil leak at back of engine. They've mentioned this four times; I've never > seen a drop of oil on the floor. In fact, I cleaned the engine with the > garden hose and aerosol engine cleaner and it looked like new. I'm not > panicking. Good, "if it aint broke don't fix it" > * Steering gear leaking into boots, $653.63 with non-Saturn parts! A real > turd! However, no visible sign of leakage, so I'm not rushing into this. No opinion, not enough information, monitor it, do not run it out of oil. > * Four new tires, not surprising, since they came with the car. We got 145,000 km. (approx.)out of ours but we ran them until they went flat. Lots of people here do not like the stock Firestones but we got good milage from them > * Muffler rusted through, although I can't detect it, $269.19. Not bad for > 10 years. You must be making a lot of short trips or live where they use a lot of salt. Our strap rusted through but the hay wire repair seems to be working well. No excesive corrosion on the muffler or pipes. Repair seems pricy to me. > And my stuck horn. Even though I found half a dozen places on the web > mentioning a '98 recall, they knew nothing about it, $172.23 to replace. I'd [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > without a hoist, but I've read that removing the headlight assembly will > open it up. I think Sixth Planet has a good reputation. What do you think? I would like more information on the horn failure. Our horn sounded while we were driving on the highway, then stopped by itself. I removed the fuse. I think this is not an uncommon problem and have heard several reports here. I am curious about the recall. Do you know where I can get more info? We also have no backup lights. I have tested the lamps, and wiring and the switch tests ok. I suspect a bad connection at the switch connector. Any comments from others? Happy trails Well, you've gotten good service from your Saturn. My mileage is pretty wimpy for a 10-year-old car. About the horn: http://www.alldata.com/TSB/53/965310F5.html http://home.earthlink.net/~egibbons/98C01.DOC http://www.accidentreconstruction.com/news/feb99/020899.html http://www.theautochannel.com/news/press/date/19990208/press003548.html http://www.recall-warnings.com/auto-content-5354.html About the muffler; 80% of my km are city to suburban driving, and we use salt. Not as much as some places, but enough. This car's been much better muffler-wise than other vehicles I've owned. Repairing mufflers was a biennial event in those days, not to mention the semiannual tuneups. I got nowhere getting my horn repaired on recall. They know nothing! I'm going to call the customer service line in hopes I'll get some straight talk. I could understand if the recall was over and done.... but not knowing anything about it?? > I would like more information on the horn failure. Our horn sounded while > we were driving on the highway, then stopped by itself. I removed the [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > > Happy trails |
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