New Owner

[carnage]

I just bought a Saturn. It's an 1995 model SL 1 with a manual transmission (doesn't even have power steering).

I know very little about these cars. Ironically, both my brother and sister have had saturns in the past, but they were more sporty looking cars than this one I just bought is.

Why did I buy a Saturn? I was doing research on cars that get good gas mileage and one of the places I went said that Saturns did do well on gas mileage, so I thought I would try to find one.

What I didn't know is this........

It's hard to find vehicles that do well on gas mileage that are affordable and have low miles.

the car I just bought has ~43,000 miles on it. I ended up buying it at the asking price. I paid 3700 dollars for it and am HOPING that I didn't get ripped off. IF I can drive it for two years, pretty trouble free, then I should get enough return on my money to be okay.

I have a lot to learn about the car, but I'll be doing that over the next few weeks on the forums, but wanted to make my introduction tonight

[Jexxvexx]

what's up bro I just got a 1997 saturn sl2 it has 194xxx miles on it and it runs great I get about 35 mpg with it so I hope up get the same or better.

[ddeuces22]

welcome to the forums, i have a 96 sl2

2 things to know

1.If your temp gauge only goes a hair over 1/4 then you need a new ects
2. Always keep your eye on oil levels

enjoy your low mileage satty!

[carnage]

Originally Posted by ddeuces22

welcome to the forums, i have a 96 sl2

2 things to know

1.If your temp gauge only goes a hair over 1/4 then you need a new ects
2. Always keep your eye on oil levels

enjoy your low mileage satty!

This is why I love signing into forums.

I've read that Saturns are notorious for using oil, and I think I saw where they use 5w 30. I guess I had better stock up on oil.

Thanks for the information!

If I am reading things right so far, it is NOT uncommon to see people charting 40 PLUS miles to the gallon on the highway with these cars?

[ddeuces22]

40 plus isnt unheard of. These are usually people that have their vehicles meticulously maintained and dont mind driving 60-65 instead of 75-80
Do you have the sohc or dohc?

[alordofchaos]

Originally Posted by carnage

I just bought a Saturn. It's an 1995 model SL 1 with a manual transmission (doesn't even have power steering).

Originally Posted by ddeuces22

Do you have the sohc or dohc?

Sx1 = SOHC engine, where x denotes the body style (C = coupe, L = sedan, W = wagon)

I know very little about these cars. Ironically, both my brother and sister have had saturns in the past, but they were more sporty looking cars than this one I just bought is.

They probably had coupes I knew very little about these cars when I joined this forum about 3 yrs ago and now I am explaining the differences to newer people

the car I just bought has ~43,000 miles on it. IF I can drive it for two years, pretty trouble free, then I should get enough return on my money to be okay.

43k miles is creampuff territory. Keep an eye on the oil (check at roughly each fill up). If it is not burning oil yet, a good synthetic would be a good idea

When you break 200k miles, the guys with 400k+ will yawn at your excitement

40+ on the hwy for a 5 spd is very common for the SOHC engines and gearing. I can pull 35+ without trying with my DOHC and shorter gearing

[ddeuces22]

lol yup i missed a few things last night when responding to posts, whoops

[Razzle Dazzle]

I got a pretty good explanation for WHY they burn from PlasticCarsRock so if you want one ask him.

The stick shift SL's are some of the most reliable cars I think you can find, so enjoy your 40+ MPG, just don't expect it to race!

I've learned a lot here in just a few months. But I'm going with alordofchaos. Your motor is still a baby and shouldn't have oil burning problems yet. Use a true synthetic oil, like Pennzoil Platinum, Royal Purple, etc, and do 3k/3month whichever is first oil changes and you can keep the problem at bay for a very long time. Also don't use Fram oil filters! Pureolater PureOne is my recommendation!

I've used one for the past 2 or 3 oil changes now and it's showing! Oil in my car used to be completely black before 1k miles(Sludge - poor thing was unloved before me.)

[aaron95sl2]

First, look here: http://www.saturnfans.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=177672

Rule #1: Ask on these forums before taking to a mechanic or spending a single dime on parts. We collectively know everything about these cars, and we can save you tons of time and money. I've seen people throw thousands of dollars worth of parts at their Saturn over several months, then come on here and complain that they STILL can't get it to run right. They tell us how it's misbehaving, we point out the $10 part they need to replace, and they do a major facepalm and cuss out their mechanic. Save yourself this stress and ask us first.

Switch to synthetic oil now and change your oil regularly. Then you will get 200,000 miles out of that engine. I use Mobile 1 0w-30 oil in mine. Excellent for cold starts and is supposed to be good for fuel economy. I also use Motorcraft FL-400s oil filters. They're larger than the stock oil filters (which means more filtering) and somewheres I read that a fella cut open a bunch of different filters for the fun of it, and the Motorcraft filters were right up there in quality with Purolater, Wix, and Amsoil. Also, they're dirt cheap at Wal-Mart (as is the Mobile 1 oil). If you're at a parts store, they'll tell you it's not for your car; it isn't. It's for a Ford Escort. But if it didn't work, I wouldn't have been driving my Saturn for the last 7 years. NEVER USE A FRAM FILTER for anything on any car.

One of the first things you want to do is change the ECTS, even if it isn't a problem yet. The original ones were plastic and have short lifespans. It WILL fail. Any new one you get from a parts store is brass and will potentially last the life of the car.

Second, make sure the temp gauge sits at 3/8 once the engine is warmed up. If it doesn't go over 1/4, your thermostat has failed and you will waste fuel because the engine is always cold. On the other hand, idling in traffic will push the temp gauge to 3/4. Don't freak, this is normal. At that point the fan will come one and bring it right back down. If the needle hits red and the fan doesn't come on, THEN you freak out! You can test the operation of the fan by turning the A/C on (if you have it). Any time the A/C is on, the fan is supposed to be on. In summary, 3/8 to 3/4 is normal. I say this because most people are use to the temp gauge not moving at all in most cars (especially Fords). Our temp gauges are actually useful.

Replace your spark plugs with NGK COPPER PLUGS ONLY. No matter what the goober at the parts store tries to sell you. No other plug will make it run better, give it more power or more MPG. No matter what. If they don't have them, order them or go somewhere else. The part number for your SOHC engine is 7755 a.k.a. BKR4ESA-11. Change these every 30k miles. They shouldn't be more than $2 each ($8 a set).

And for the first bit of ownership, check the oil every single day before you drive it, so if it's using oil, you get an idea of how much and how fast, and you make sure you don't run it dry and toast the engine.

You got a real rarity with how few miles are on that car. Take good care of it now, and you'll still be getting 40 mpg in 2020 whilst laughing at Prius owners.

One last thought, though probably not an issue with your low miles: if you have idle problems, we can walk you through how to clean the throttle body. That's the other thing I always do to any Saturn I come across. It only requires a 10mm socket, can of carb cleaner, and old toothbrush. But if it's idling fine, ain't broke don't fix. I know the DOHC engines idle at 1200 cold, 800 warm (car not moving).

[aaron95sl2]

Oh, and the reason why they eventually burn oil: GM didn't design oil drain back holes in the pistons. So if you don't change your oil regularly, the oil rings on the pistons get gummed up and stop sealing like they should, and oil gets into the combustion chambers. If this starts to happen, you can get lucky by soaking the cylinders with this chemical or that, but it's just a band-aid. The only REAL way to fix it is to rebuild the engine with better aftermarket pistons and rings.

By changing your oil regularly (especially with synthetic), you keep this from happening.

CHANGE YOUR OIL REGULARLY.

[carnage]

WOW!!!

Thanks for all the information! Actually, I don't have the car yet. I bought it off of ebay (first time ever doing that, so this could be the worst nightmare ever) so I don't have it yet. I should get it by the end of this week.

ECTS not sure what that is...will do the research on it, though. The ECTS is not related to the temperature gauge/thermostat issue, right?

And I will FOR SURE post here first if I have any problems with the car...you guys/girls seem like you know enough that you could have built the thing.

And so...the first thing I will do is......replace ECTS, replace the plugs with the NGK COPPER PLUGS,, and then do a full synthetic oil change with a REAL synthetic oil. Check, check and check!

I really am excited to see if I can make the 40 mpg barrier. I will be the type to make it a game or a competition so as to see if it can be done.

I was really regretting paying 3700 for a car that old, but after reading these posts, I feel like I got a bargain!

[Zosozeppelin]

Originally Posted by carnage

I was really regretting paying 3700 for a car that old, but after reading these posts, I feel like I got a bargain!

They're great little cars. Better than a Civic or Corolla from that era in my opinion. If you show that car some love, it'll love you back. Saturns will treat you well as long as you take care of them

[AlainMDavos]

I bought my SL1 on ebay long ago. I had to replace the engine and now the car has over 337000 miles. I have managed to get 50 mpg with my car driving on a slow speed highway and the car is an automatic. Normally, I average 36 on the higway at high speed and roof rack.

[Signmaster]

Originally Posted by aaron95sl2

Replace your spark plugs with NGK COPPER PLUGS ONLY. No matter what the goober at the parts store tries to sell you. No other plug will make it run better, give it more power or more MPG. No matter what. If they don't have them, order them or go somewhere else. The part number for your SOHC engine is 7755 a.k.a. BKR4ESA-11. Change these every 30k miles. They shouldn't be more than $2 each ($8 a set).

The above is IMO the biggest myth ever repeated on these forums. While I can fully agree that these cars don't need anything other than conventional plugs, several people have experienced indications that the NGK plug runs on the hot side in the SOHC engine and has caused some pinging in some cars.

The NGKs were the shortest lived plugs ever used in my car (which is the same year and model as the OPs) and will never go in the car again unless I'm in a parts bind of some sort. So in my case I've experienced two types of plugs (the AC Delco and Denso) that did in fact make the car "run better".



Carnage,

What you have read about MPG is the honest truth. My last 10 tanks the average is above 38 MPG, and that is with combined driving. I've had tanks over 40 MPG combined. With mostly highway driving I have no doubt I could pull 45 or better.

[alordofchaos]

Originally Posted by carnage

I bought it off of ebay (first time ever doing that, so this could be the worst nightmare ever) so I don't have it yet. I should get it by the end of this week.

That's how I ended up with my car - I had done no research at all on these cars random low bid on ebay as I was going out the door (barely read the description) - turned out I was the only bidder

The ECTS is not related to the temperature gauge/thermostat issue, right?

Yes, the link that aaron95SL2 posted has more info and links to videos. Your '95 has two temp sensors - one has just one wire going to it and that one drives the temp gauge; the other has two wires (this is the one with the OEM part that is prone to failure) and the computer (PCM) gets the temp info from this one.

With your '95, the temp gauge is likely to read at the 1/2 mark normally, and up to 3/4 before the fan turns on - this is normal.

I was really regretting paying 3700 for a car that old, but after reading these posts, I feel like I got a bargain!

Depending on how much you drive, and what you were driving before, these cars can pay for themselves. My SL2 will pay for its purchase price (via gas savings over my previous commuter) in about four more months - by the end of the year, I'll be "making money"

Is this red one your car?
Don't mean to be a stalker it looks very nice. The dealer goes to some trouble to add lots of pictures, pointing out scratches, etc., so that is a good sign. With such low miles, I thought about the possibility of shenanigans with the mechanical odometer - the Autocheck summary had expired, but with only 15 records, the one-owner story seems likely

[adventureoflink]

Originally Posted by alordofchaos

That's how I ended up with my car - I had done no research at all on these cars random low bid on ebay as I was going out the door (barely read the description) - turned out I was the only bidder

and we're glad that you too are also here to help others, my friend

Originally Posted by alordofchaos

Is this red one your car?
Don't mean to be a stalker it looks very nice. The dealer goes to some trouble to add lots of pictures, pointing out scratches, etc., so that is a good sign. With such low miles, I thought about the possibility of shenanigans with the mechanical odometer - the Autocheck summary had expired, but with only 15 records, the one-owner story seems likely

hey now, it's not stalking if it's public

but yeah, nice car dude did you read over that new/returning s-series owners' checklist?

[kms2372]

Hello All! I am also a new Saturn owner. Just got a 2000 SL-1 about a week ago. Thanks to this forum (and a random Google out of anger!) you guys already saved me some $$ Two days after I got the car the key would not turn in the ignition. I was livid beyond belief thinking I completely got scammed with this car. I was going to get it towed after work but once I calmed down some I Googled the issue which brought me here. Turned out it was just the key. All I had to do was get a code and get a brand new key cut (didn't even realize how worn down the other one was!) and $13 later I'm good to go! As OCD as I am I'm glad it happened to because now I have an actual Saturn key and not an Ilco copy!

[sgoti]

Welcome new owners!

I think you'll love your cars. Can't add much beyond what others have said (especially checking oil, read the "New Owner Checklist", etc...)

With my SL2 and automatic tranny, I can get close to 40 on the highway (if I do nothing BUT highway), otherwise it's about 35 MPG or so. Treat yours kindly and I think you get excellent results.

Welcome aboard, and as others have said, ask here first. I've tended to lurk until just very recently, but what I've learned from here has saved my big $$$.

[carnage]

a lord of chaos.....

Yep...that's the car.

And if anyone is stalking me by checking the link, that's okay, especially if you are blonde and female. And if that's the case, I don't even mind getting a little sexually harassed tossed in there, too.

But anyhow,

that's the car!

If any of you have clicked on the link and looked at the car, and IF you saw anything that is a red flag, make sure you do NOT tell me, because I'm nervous enough as it is....LOL.

I'm hoping to have it in my driveway by the end of the week.

My brother has a saturn, but it's the sporty looking one, not sure what the model is, and his first words to me were.....

MAKE SURE YOU CHECK YOUR OIL!!!

Want to hear something funny/ironic? Before I bought this car, I *felt* like I had never seen one before, but since buying this one, I see these cars all over the place. It's amazing what a little awareness does to you...LOL.

[madpogue]

That's actually an SL, not an SL1; one of the very few with air conditioning. What's also interesting is the front seats with adjustable headrests; I'm not that familiar with the gen-1 cars, but AFAIK, those are the seats used in the DOHC (SW2, SL2) cars.