Modifiying an SL2?

[saturnhead]

Hey saturnheads everywhere. I have a 1998 SL2 with automatic transmission. I've recently become interested in the racing/performance side of Saturns and want to modifiy my car now. I know Saturns that can be decked out to the extreme, but I'm not even thinking about that. My Saturn's a daily driver. I just want more power, better handling, etc. Embarrasing Civics wouldn't hurt either; what Saturn owner doesn't feel that way. My friend said it's not worth the money to modify a Saturn, much less with auto trans. Is automatic really that bad? Tell me what you guys think; your opinions matter much. Thanks.

Saturnhead

[wei_]

You may find new tires will be helpful. The recent thread "Nuke those Firestone Affinity tires" has been helpful in making my decision. Good luck.
-Wei

[jcesl2]

Does your friend have a Civic? :) Its worth the money. An SL2 is .3 faster in the 1/4 mi. than a Civic EX. So it makes more sense to do it to a Saturn than a Civic anyway. Spend $150-$200 on an intake. That'll make a huge difference, and probably wet your appetite for more...

[GreenEggsAndHam]

There's not that much you can do to Saturns. Aside from better air filter and exhaust, nitrous is your last resort.

[jcesl2]

Well, after intake and exhaust, you can get headers, heads, pistons, valves, rods, turbo or supercharger, NOS, clutch, flywheel, wires... There's lots of stuff. Check out www.cwcmotorsports.com, they have a lot.

[toeachitsown]

wtf sl2s r da ****...i only have a home made intake and have taken plenty of cars...theres just one question...i think civic owners are catching on because i have never raced a civic...ever...its the wierdest thing...ive taken all types of other cars...80' v8 malibu stock except for a high pref. camshaft, honda accords, decked out corrolas, all types of old v8s....lincoln w/ custom intake and dual cherry bomb exhaust, old cougars, 96 grand am se v6, mazda 626 v6, full size chevy truck 350 w/ flowmasters and cal induction hood, altimas...i dunno the list goes on and on but no civics

[wingnut]

The performance options for saturns are growing! In addition to the aforementioned items there is also turbo/supercharging....

anyway, it can all be done, all you need is some $$$$$

You can buy anything in the world, with money.

Also, a lot of people prefer auto tranns at least for drag racing just because of the consistency and quicker shifts. The downside is more weight, higer complexity, and longer gear ratios. But if this is a daily driver and you are just out to have some fun, go with what you are comfortable with.




remember, it's not what you drive.... it's how you drive it!

[RustyJCNC]

I've got an auto trans on my 2000 SL2 and I've added a few things here and there. It's fun...don't get discouraged.

Tires were the first thing I did and that made the biggest difference yet. Can't say enough about the Dunlop SP Sport A2's.
I added the cold air intake next. I've got to agree with whoever said it before, it definitley makes you want to do more and more and more. Adding a cool aftermarket stereo w/ some new speakers & subs is nice too.

As for the civic's ....I really can't stand the riced-out ones especially. If you hit one on the street and blow one away, its a really good feeling. Gives you that daily sense of accomplishment.

-j

[toeachitsown]

hey...i sit low in my saturn....i think its safer and more confortable....i rear ended some dude at like 50 mph cause he didnt see me and pulled out in front of me at a gas station...sitting back did the trick i think...my face never touched the air bag...then again i knew it was comin out and i locked my arm in front of it cause i didnt wanna get hit by that crap...that piece of junk is made of canvas and puts smoke all up in the car...anyway...sit way back and drop the steering wheel down on ur sc2 sl2 model and u'll be ridin oh so clean

[RustyJCNC]

Originally posted by toeachitsown
hey...i sit low in my saturn....i think its safer and more confortable....i rear ended some dude at like 50 mph cause he didnt see me and pulled out in front of me at a gas station...

hey thats cool. It just looks funny to me when I see someone in a civic or a neon or whatever sitting so low it appears as if they can't even see over the steering wheel. It probably is safer in a crash but I just can't drive like that.....

-j

[toeachitsown]

it helps that i'm 6'0...most ricers are 4' asians...they probably sittin' high and on a phone book...it just appears that theyre sitting low

[Marshall]

Originally posted by saturnhead
My friend said it's not worth the money to modify a Saturn, much less with auto trans. Is automatic really that bad? Tell me what you guys think; your opinions matter much. Thanks.

Saturnhead

I agree with him. It's not that Saturns are any worse than any other 4 cyl FWD cars, it's just that it still is a 4 cyl FWD car. Small displacement+ natural aspiration= not much power potential. Even if you did have power, you won't be able to put it to the ground with a FWD car.

My advice is to keep the Saturn as a daily driver, and get something that's cheap to mod like a Mustang or a turbo car like an eclipse. Or maybe even an old 300ZX from the 80's, just by turning up the boost you can run low 14's.

[RustyJCNC]

But...sometimes we all don't have the bucks to buy an extra car. I know if I had the money I'd buy an old vette. However, I've got to just tinker with minor things on the SL2 until I can afford to play.

I agree. It's not good to mess to much with something that you've got to have as a reliable car. It's still fun for little things here and there.

-j

[toeachitsown]

why would you buy a fwd eclipse turbo when u can build a fwd saturn turbo...even if it cant build the power of those cars...s series saturns still weigh under 2500 lbs and handle great...i'm sure you could whoop your classic american v8 on a track with turns...1/4 mile and oval track is a different story...but i believe saturns are pretty cost effective for building power..especially for their class...sure not as much as a 350 small block but then again look at what youre trading it off for...lighter engine...more gas mileage...fwd handling..and if you count the stock body that comes with it...its damn light!

[Marshall]

Originally posted by toeachitsown
why would you buy a fwd eclipse turbo when u can build a fwd saturn turbo...

Well the Eclipse guys are turbo stock, so they have all the parts available to them for them and have plenty of experience tuning their cars.

Turbo Saturns are kind of rare, and I don't think there's the knowledge base available to Saturn owners to make tuning easy for them. What ECU will you use for a turbo Saturn? What internals?

[toeachitsown]

hack that crap

[Privateer]

Originally posted by Marshall

Turbo Saturns are kind of rare, and I don't think there's the knowledge base available to Saturn owners to make tuning easy for them. What ECU will you use for a turbo Saturn? What internals?

Only reason people don't hop up their saturns more is because people say it can't be done or shouldn't be done. I'm sure the first set of people modifying their civics got a ton of **** from nay sayers as well. The people with turbo/N2O/super/etc are the pioneers; they're ones driving the development and application of these systems. They're learning something new every run, and sharing it. Not just applying someone else's setups.

there are other forums around that have more aggressive owners who are in turn more aggressive with their setups.

later
P

[toeachitsown]

im dont know much about turbo but i know theres been plenty of turbocharged saturns with no problems...just dont go crazy...keep it simple...im sure if youre running no more than 7 psi, you're not gonna have many problems, with forged pistons and a little hard work youll be even safer...the computer can adjust...need more fuel...add more injectors or put on one of them apexi things, or raise the pressure...you drive a 300zx turbo and you probably look at your saturn as a car not even worth modifying heavily...when all u got is a saturn...sometimes ull do whatever it takes to make power out of it...we all know its not impossible to turbocharge so what's the problem...they had a live installation at the xrc car show right...with twistec...if more people got into it and believed in really building power out of their saturns, problems will be figured out and cheaper and more effictive parts will be out there...people have done a lot more with a lot less than a saturn...

[RustyJCNC]

The reaction the guy got when he said I'm going to deck out my vw bug in 1970 is the same reaction Saturn owners get when they enter the performance shop for the first time.

The resounding....Huh? What? Why?

No matter what you drive, why not make the most out of it....? All with in reason of course...

-j