Anyone know anything about Saturns?

Alright the EG Hatch is getting to be less and less of a daily driver as the weeks progress. I need a car to get me to school and work. I have a friend in quite a bit of dilemma and he needs cash ASAP and he offered his 99 Saturn SL1 with 24k miles to me for 5800. From what Ive researched its a good deal but Im not very familiar with saturns so I really have no idea whether or not its a good car. Ill be needing a car very soon as the hatch will be needing 100+ octane after the new cams and pistons. Also hows the car stereo in these, easy to put an empeg in or will I have to pull out the dremel?

That's the planet with rings, isn't it?

Seriously though, I think that's a great deal for a '99...as long as there are no hidden problems...from what I have seen Saturn seems to be a well made and solid car for an econobox.

John

Yeah I need to find out if the warrenty is transferable and the thing seems mint. He got some kinda of maintainence plan so he has all the records for oil changes and such. I think Im gonna talk to the bank tomorrow and see what kinda interest rate I cant get.

Well not to discourage you, because I really don't know a whole lot about saturns except that my roomate's girlfriend and her sister both have saturns, and both have completely broke down in the last month. One had the steering and brakes go out at the same time and Im not sure what happened to the other one, but it spent a week in the shop. But this could be just a freak of coincidense

from CR
<snip>
Used: Family car Saturn L-Series
Drive wheels: Front.
Reliability: Below par.

Overview: Saturn's midsized L-Series was loosely derived from the European-market Opel Vectra. Available as either a sedan or wagon, the L-Series competes against such family-sedan mainstays as the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry. As with Saturn's smaller S-Series models, the L-Series uses dent-resistant plastic body panels. It is available with a noisy 2.2-liter four-cylinder engine or Saturn's first V6-a 3.0-liter, 182-hp unit. The four-speed automatic transmission shifts well. Handling is competent but not nimble, and the ride is too stiff. The L-Series is fairly roomy in either body configuration, but its control-panel layout is only so-so.

Safety equipment: Driver and passenger air bags standard. Side- curtain air bags available from 2001. ABS available.
<snip>

CR does not list Reliability history for '99 but for '00 there were Electrical and Body hardware issues.

This snipet might prove useful
<snip>
Reliable used cars less than $8,000
Ford Escort '97-99 • Ranger (2WD) '94-96
Geo Prizm '94-97 • Tracker 94-96
Honda Civic '94-95
Mazda B-Series (2WD) '94-95 • MX-5 Miata '94 • Protegé '96-97
Mercury Tracer '97-98
Nissan Altima '94 • Pickup '94 • Sentra '96
Subaru Impreza '94-95 • Legacy '94
Suzuki Sidekick '94-96
Toyota Corolla '94-95 • Tercel '94-96
<snip>

It all depends on what you want out of it.

Hmmm something to think about. It is noisy as hell. Ill probably end up picking up another civic which suits me just fine until I decide to make it faster. Whats funny is Im pretty sure that v6 they are talking about is made by Honda.

Keep in mind the above info is for their L series cars and not the S series.

Overall, everyone I know with an S series around here has been happy. From my roomates mothers 95ish, to my 2000, and coworkers 2001, and others, it's been a good experience. While not the best cars on the road for peformance or confort, they do decently on gas mileage, and are good enough for the normal daily drive, or roadtrip to California.

Maintaince on mine has been tire repair (it seems mine attracted every screw in town my first few months of ownership), normal maintaince, and one problem with a coolant hose having a small leak. Thats after 35k miles now.

All Im looking for is the cheapest most reliable car to get me from point A to point B. I have my fun car but guzzling 5 bucks a gallon racing gas can get exspensive.

Ops!
Here is the S series
<snip>
Saturn S-Series
Drive wheels: Front.
Reliability: Very good.

Overview: While Saturn's S-Series cars have been largely unremarkable, the line's appeal has been bolstered by a good reliability record and a no-haggle dealer experience. The S-Series is available in sedan (SL), coupe (SC), and wagon (SW) versions. The uplevel SL2, SC2, and SW2 are much better cars than the less expensive trim levels, with more standard features and more power. In our tests, we've found the S-Series' four-cylinder engines noisy, and its automatic transmission prone to shift with annoying frequency. The front seats are low, and the rear seat is cramped on all models. A third door was offered on the coupe in 1999, improving rear-seat access.

Safety equipment: Driver air bag standard; passenger side standard from 1995. Side-curtian air bags available from 2001. ABS available.

Estimated retail prices: 1999 $10,000-$12,000
<snip>

For the price it sounds like a bargin.
And given you know the previous owner......and hence it's history, it would look like a safe bet.
As always "let the buyer beware" and spend the $100 or whaterver it is to have a mechanice give it a once over.

Well then that 99 Saturn sounds like a good deal then for that. My SL2 averages 28 or so MPG, and the SL1's are higher. If it still has a warranty, the local dealers are usually pretty good about getting things fixed up right.

To me, there are some cheeper alternatives, but most of them are basicially tin cans on wheels. Great as long as you are never involved in an accident with the typical SUV.

I'm selling a '91 maxima for $4200.

I am selling my BMW at 2 grand but you would need to come and get it and it has all the fittings for an empeg as it has just been replaced by another BMW with a 12 inch sub

Just traded my wife's Saturn and will NEVER buy another one. This was a 2000 SL1 model and was in the shop 10 times in 18 months. Also, and this probably doesnt interest you a lot but the car lost 65% of it's original value in 18 months. I was a diehard Saturn fan until I owned this car. We had another one before this one and loved it. I'm done with Saturn, though.

Well then. Hmmm since this car is probably gonna be driven till it dies I care little about resale but then again I dont want to be fixing it very often. I drove the car today and it seemed solid although very slow, but Im used to driving a car of the same weight with at least twice the HP so Im biased. The engine is noisy but thats not a big deal. Im having it checked out tomorrow. The main reason I want this car and not another honda is because with a honda Ill have a tendency to do a little something here and there. My one issue is the car is blackberry AKA purple which isnt my style but hey who cares when you have a monster in the garage.