questions?

I'm thinking of buying a 1998 saturn sl with the single overhead cam
motor. is this a good car or does anyone have any big problems? also is
118,000 alot of miles for this motor? any feed back would be great.

thanks
thehawk93

 

By '98 the S series had about fully evolved and IMHO is one of the best
value cars ever produced. They used to have a large premium on the used
market but they are now old enough that there are now some real bargains
(and no doubt some real lemons). The single cam is my favorite as it is a
(little) torque monster that does not need to run at high revs and gets very
good fuel economy. Some people report excessive oil consumption which I
have suspected was caused by poor maintenance and by "overly spirited"
driving style and shift points regularly above 3000 rpm. The driving style
and maintenance received from the previous operator is the big wild card and
is the usual gamble in any used car. I have 150,000 miles on a '96 which
has just started to burn oil at about 1,300 mi/qt. It is still on its
original clutch which I believe is also helped by low shift points.

My only service repairs have been -
- Tires (stock Firestones lasted 85,000 miles, no complaints)
- Front brake pads and rotors (stock rotors are very poor quality, replace
with low cost from overseas = much cheaper, better service life, use good
quality pads).
- Muffler strap rusts through long before the muffler needs replacement, but
heavy wire seems to work just fine (and has lasted longer than the stock
strap).
- Spark plug wires and poor grounding of the ignition modules cause problems
and error codes that are easily and inexpensively solved with new wires and
by cleaning the ignition mounting and grounds and using lots of dielectric
grease. The dealer will try to sell you expensive, new, often unneeded
modules. I use platinum plugs.
- Alternator problems are reported by people in hot climates.
- Plastic under the front bumper and inner fenders is easily (and usually)
damaged or missing.
- Windshield seems to catch more than its share of rock chips and cracks
easily and is very expensive to replace. Many people may require a (crack
free) vehicle inspection for insurance and registration.
- Front wheel bearing at 130,000 mi ???
- Driver door hinges squeak (lack of lubrication?) and require replacement
(purchased but not yet changed).

I have no experience with the auto transmission but I am prejudiced and
would not own an auto if you gave it to me. This is due to the lower
performance, poor fuel economy and higher cost of repair.

All these small front drive cars have easily damaged steering and I would
want to have a complete front drive inspection and alignment done by an
experienced specialist before purchase.

During the prepurchase inspection (by YOUR expert), I would recommend
changing all fluids including transmission, engine coolant, and brake fluid
flush. The old fluids (drain into a CLEAN container) can tell you a lot
about the cars condition (use a magnet and a fine filter to examine old
fluid), and are probably due for a change anyway.

Inspect for door and window leaks and corrosion under the carpet and on the
under body space frame (especially door sills) and on the oil pan which is
exposed to road gravel and is often badly pitted. A sunroof probably leaks.
Check that body and door drains are clean and not blocked.

The SL was the BASE stripped down model, it will have the bottom book value.
In the negotiation, CASH is king and the buyer is in control. Most people
do not have enough money to afford to buy a used car. Do not underestimate
the power of a cash offer. There are more good cars for sale than good
buyers.

Happy trails, YMMV

 

wow that was a very good reply.. Bought my 97 sl with 140k and it runs
like a champ. Very easy car to work on.. just did my son's 96sc's
struts all around.. first time but.. very easy to do. after that was
done took it in for a complete all around alignment and new tires which
were paid for by putting in the struts ourselves!!

 

98 SOHC is a hearty little car. Our '97 SLis a "teenager driving learner"
car and is still going strong at over 200K miles. Thoroughly inspect
anything over 100K miles.

DOHC was known for oil consumption, not SOHC. SOHC had some issues with
leaky head gaskets, but a well maintained SOHC may never experience that.
SOHC is an excellent gas mileage car and has great pickup at low rpm. I
prefer the high bucket seats on the SL1 over the SL2's low seats.

marx404