1997 Saturn SL SL1 review from North America

Alternator went bad 6 years or so after I bought it, although it still could provide enough electrical current to power the car after I jump-started it (couldn't source enough current to charge the battery, so the battery died).

One motor mount went bad somewhere around 85000 miles.

Fuel pump went bad somewhere around 85000 miles. Did not result in a breakdown -- it just extended the crank time when I would try to start.

The cassette player (yes, I'm in the stone age) picks up electromagnetic interference nowadays. When I'm playing a tape, I can hear a tone that correlates to the whir of the engine. My theory is that the new alternator they gave me doesn't have enough shielding or something, and it's inducing a signal in the audio system.

While the engine whir during tape playback is annoying, I'm very happy with the car otherwise. It's never really broken down -- it just needed a jump-start that one time when the alternator went bad. I keep the car well maintained by getting all of the factory-prescribed maintenance at the dealer.

I like the looks of the car. The plastic panels keep it from getting dents.

Paint is still intact after 8 years.

I enjoy the pickup, despite the mere 100 horsepower.

Gets good gas mileage. Up to 35 miles per gallon or so on the highway. Hard to find that kind of gas mileage in newer cars, outside of the hybrids.