1996 Saturn SW SW1 review from North America
"Great little family wagon!"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
When the car was brand new I had the dealership make a couple of minor door alignment adjustments.
Idiot light came on due to fouled spark plug.
Cruise control required a software patch.
Nominal cost.
Brake pads replaced at approximately 140,000 miles.
General comments?
After a break-in period of 5,000 miles with mineral oil, I switched to Amsoil (synthetic) and their filtration (air & oil) system.
The car ran trouble free for the first 125,000 miles.
At 125,000 I took it in to the dealer because the "Service engine light" came on. The cruise control had been giving me problems around this time. It turned out the idiot light came on because of a fouled spark plug (2nd set since new).
The cruise control needed a software patch.
I ran the Amsoil until about 200,000 miles, when the car started to burn a quart every 5,000 miles. at this point I switched back to mineral oil (Mobil 10-40).
This car is only on it's second set of brake pads and has the original clutch after 285,000 miles. I should qualify this by saying that I drive 65 miles each
way to work (all highway). I have done most of the routine maintenance myself.
In 98'I got side swiped by a 3/4 ton truck on black ice. I thought the car was totaled. Because of the plastic body panels that Saturn uses, everything just popped back into place. There were several scratches that ran the length of the car, and the side view mirror needed to be replaced.
Not bad!
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| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Yes |
| Year of manufacture | 1996 |
| First year of ownership | 1996 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2003 |
| Engine and transmission | SOHC Manual |
| Performance marks | 5 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 10 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 7 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 10 / 10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 10 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 0 miles |
| Most recent distance | 285000 miles |
| Previous car | Honda Accord |
| Date of Entry | 10th January, 2003 |