1996 Saturn SL SL2 review from North America

Nothing.

The car does however require that you check and expect to add or drop a quart of oil every 1000 to 1500 miles.

This is actually normal for high revving engines designed for performance. If, you drive and your RPM exceeds 3000 approaching redline at 6500 as a normal course of business... this type of oil consumption is normal.

You can use thicker oil such as 10w-40 or 20w-50 during the summer. But, if fuel economy is your ultimate goal, then lower viscosity oil such as 5w-20 or 5w-30 is your choice.

I used Redline Synthetic 5w-30 during the winter and will use 20w-50 after the temperature will be above 40 degrees on a regular basis. This oil make a real difference in both keeping the engine cool by lowering oil temperature and making it rev much quicker due to the oil being very slippery, and it will not foam even when running your car at redline in my experience since 1984.

It is more expensive but well worth it. You can run it for as much as 18,000 miles as long as you change your filter at regular intervals either 3000 or 5000 miles, but I will change the oil and filter at no more than 7500 miles due to extreme use.

This little car is great. It is my first Saturn and is a blast to drive.

The 1.9L DOHC 4 cylinder engine, which is mated to a 5 speed manual with traction control make the car very quick and pulls well to the limiter of 108MPH.

The suspension is very good from the factory, along with the four wheel disc brakes and ABS.

The cars interior is roomy and good for what the car is, an economical people mover.

This car has most of the available options and drives very well, both in the city and on the highway.

I like this car so much that I am going to upgrade it to a track car by late April, just in time for the summer.

I am replacing the factory brake rotors all the way around with EBC GD Slotted and Dimpled Sport Rotors.

The brake pads are by Performance Friction Brakes their "Carbon Metallic" pads.

Don't forget to bleed your brakes and clutch slave cylinder on a regular basis with a synthetic brake fluid such as Valvoline's Syn Power Full Synthetic DOT 4 Brake Fluid. This fluid stays fresh longer and is fully compatible with regular DOT 3 and DOT 4 brake fluids.

The struts/shocks are KYB GR-2 with new strut mounts all around along with using H&R Race Springs.

My clutch is a F1 Racing, Stage 3, 6 puck clutch and comes with a new pressure plate and bearing.

Lastly, I changed the header with a 1991-92 DOHC factory exhaust header from the junk yard, which has better flow characteristics then the 1996 version. This was done to increase performance using the stock exhaust downpipe before I will go out and spend money on an aftermarket header such as an OBX Racing Stainless Steel header and spend over $200.

The car is a blast to drive and has been very reliable.