Another Saturn on it's way out

[bromli]

I am afraid my LS1 has got one foot through the pearly gates. She has 221k on it and it's not worth putting money into. Insurance runs out in april and once it runs out I am not getting another one. Getting a 2012 prius and the LS1 will be a winter beater for when salt and snow comes. Problems on the saturn include

-Heavy rust on the front subframe behind the passenger tire. Can stick your fingers through the holes and it likely isn't safe to drive
-Driver seat collapsed and was replaced with one from a subaru outback (hillybilly as heck but free was free)
-No Air conditioning
-Tires are dry rotted and getting low on tread
-Heatshield and exhaust shake at speed
-Wipers chatter really badly and don't work properly on intermittent
-The interior has generally fallen apart with the center console hinge broken and various panels just rattling all the time

This car has been pretty decent for the 100k miles I have put on it and if it wasn't for the horrible rust I would keep it going, but it's time to move on.

[pierrot]

^I agree - you're right and you need to move on. I wish you the best of success with your replacement car.

[rfisher]

hi pierrot - sad news. my 01 L100 has 198k. still runs well, but wonder how much longer it will be feasible to run it. no major problems. just replaced front speakers with kenwoods. sounds great but a lot more work than i expected. needed to search out adapter brackets and speaker plug in harnesses . almost ran out of polite euphemisms. did you ever use such words?. happy new year and much thanks for you past help. bob fisher

[pierrot]

rfisher, since you've posted to this thread titled "Another Saturn on it's way out," I suppose that your vehicle may also be on the way out. However, that may be completely incorrect. What would I do to determine if your L100 was coming to its useful end? Primarily, check the engine compression. When the engine came out of the factory had a compression of 221 psi. Opinion: if your numbers are still near or above 190, the transmission is functioning satisfactorily, and you're not consuming an unusual amount of oil then there are more good years left to be used.

I have replaced all of the speakers on my car. When I replaced the front speakers I did it with a pair factory advanced system types out of a wrecker at a Pick Your Part yard. No need for finding adapters of any kind and no bad words... for that job. There have been plenty of opportunities for that with other work done.

[bromli]

Originally Posted by rfisher

hi pierrot - sad news. my 01 L100 has 198k. still runs well, but wonder how much longer it will be feasible to run it. no major problems. just replaced front speakers with kenwoods. sounds great but a lot more work than i expected. needed to search out adapter brackets and speaker plug in harnesses . almost ran out of polite euphemisms. did you ever use such words?. happy new year and much thanks for you past help. bob fisher

My input would be to check the front subframe for rust. You gotta catch it early before it gets terminal because once it gets bad there it's basically totaled. Replacing that front subframe is a whole job because essentially the entire front of the vehicle bolts into that subframe, and that is assuming you can even find a clean rust free subframe to swap in. If mine didn't have fist sized holes I would have kept the car instead of scrapping it. In terms of the engine, diligently check spark plugs, ignition, and your coolant hoses. Those were common recurring issues on my LS1.

Of course, the rest of my car just basically fell apart over time, especially the interior. When you're stapling and gluing the fabric back your sun visor and the interior is creaking like a 90 year old with arthritis, it's usually a pretty good indicator that it's time to throw in the towel