2000 Saturn SL SL1 1.9

Summary:

Reliable, cheap to buy and maintain with good gas mileage, but lacks comfort and pick-up

Faults:

Engine died @ 98,000 miles due to no oil, but that's not Saturn's fault.

All in all, very few repairs.

General Comments:

Very reliable car, no perks, little comfort, no performance per se (no pick-up), but cheap to buy and maintain.

Factory radio/CD/audio is surprisingly good.

The car depreciates very fast, resale value is very low, so it makes it a great used car buy.

Gas mileage is very good, lower than a Corolla but not by much.

Can't rust, due to plastic - good thing for Canada. Overall recommend if you can get one with low miles.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 25th July, 2008

2000 Saturn SL 1 1.9 SOHC

Summary:

Happy little economic car!

Faults:

Barely anything at all over the 8 years.

New brakes at 120,000 kilometers, did them all. that is expected wear though.

The top engine mount collapsed at 163,000 kilometer (common problem) cost me $44 for the mount from e-bay and free labour while they did the serpentine belt at the same time!

New tailpipe just recently at 165,000, once again normal wear and tear.

I am discovering that the car is starting to burn oil enough that in 4 months, the oil will go from full to empty... is there any fix to this other than a new engine?

Also, the gear shifter sometimes seems difficult to get into first if the car is running and in neutral, what could that be?

Otherwise I am VERY happy with the car!

General Comments:

I only paid $11,000 for it brand new, it was a 2000 on the lot in 2001 so I got a great deal!

Manual is easy to drive, smooth and well geared.

Engine seems pretty happy. Not too slow but just fast enough to keep up!

It is the bare-bones package, no A/C, no power windows, doors, mirrors etc.

Paint looks great, LOVE the polymer!

It is amazing on gas, quite the difference from my 1990 Cherokee I had before!

Seats are a little hard but are holding up well.

Fold down rear seats are great, I managed to put a 42 inch LCD TV in the truck with the seats down and it was no problem!

I just need information on how to fix the oil leaking. It doesn't seem to be burning off (nobody ever sees blue smoke), so I am quite puzzled!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 30th May, 2008

1st Jun 2008, 14:52

Hi, I am the original reviewer for this review and the reason that the oil level was going down is that the dummy at Pennzoil forgot to fully tighten the oil filter. Now that I did another oil change myself (that filter is hard to get to!) I made sure to tighten EVERYTHING and it seems to be back to normal. I am very happy with this car and recommend it to anyone on a budget.

28th Nov 2010, 14:42

Thanks for sharing! I am considering buying a 2000's SL.

2000 Saturn SL 1.9 4 cylinder SOHC

Summary:

Dependable and cheap, but you get what you pay for.

Faults:

Shortly after I first purchased it, I started it, took off, and noticed none of my gauges were working. I pulled over, turned the engine off, restarted it, and it hasn't done it since.

Once or twice, I have had the clutch slip a little, but it's only happened on really cold days with a cold engine while trying to accelerate heavily.

General Comments:

I have only owned Toyota until I bought this Saturn, and I choose my Saturn because it was such a great price. Since Saturn's don't hold their value like a Toyota or Honda, I was able to get mine for about 1/2 of the price of what any equivalent 4 year old Corolla or Civic with under 30k miles would cost. It has never let me down as far as dependability, but I believe you do get what you pay for.

It's been 100% reliable, but it's still a cheaply built car. It rattles a lot, and has a pretty bumpy ride, and get uncomfortable on long road trips.

The lack of the optional power-steering sucks. I'm still amazed that was only an option in 2000.

The clutch is very finicky, causing the car to buck very easily. I drive it enough to know how to prevent it 99% of the time. Although, if anyone else who is unfamiliar with it drives it, it's never a smooth ride.

I've only replaced changed the oil, replaced the tires, and replaced the battery BUT it WAS 6 years old, which is great in Texas with the heat.

Even with Texas heat, it has an incredible A/C.

For a car that was purchased when I was a student and needed something to get me through school, it has been an excellent car for the price. And, after 4 years, I could probably sell it for almost what I paid for it. I wouldn't hesitate to purchase another Saturn.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 21st April, 2008