1995 Saturn SL SL1 review from North America

When I first got this vehicle, it was blowing blue smoke, i.e. burning oil. So after narrowing down the problem we ended up spending about a week tearing down the engine and replacing the gunked-up piston rings. Also it turns out the return port for the EGR valve was completely blocked with carbon.

We eliminated the oil burning problem, but over the next year the car would completely lose all accelerating power when going up a hill or starting from a dead stop. After taking it to the dealer, they told us the spark plugs and wires had to be replaced, and that only Delco plugs performed acceptably in standards (i.e., not Bosch Platinum). After we did this, it was fine, until it got totaled.

The whole point of Saturns was to build up a reputation of a reliable American car. But in order to do this, GM assembles parts from all over the globe, though they are all assembled at their Saturn plant in Tennessee.

There are also many other quirks that one has to know in order to keep their Saturn running. For instance, never use any oil weighted above 10W-30 (this eventually leads to the piston ring/EGR valve problem, and burning oil) and only use Delco spark plugs if you want to get anywhere without being embarrassed that your car simply will not go.

I will say, however, that this car does live up to its reputation for safety. I ended up getting T-boned in an intersection, as the other car ran into the back door behind by driver's door, shattering the polymer body and denting the frame, but not affecting the driver's side. In this situation, however, the airbags were little more than an annoyance, causing a brush burn on my arms that lasted about a month, but overall the results from this crash were much better than they probably would have been if it was a non-plastic, non-safety-conscious car.