2001 "S" series?

are you buying a particular model or the whole series? PLease step out of your mothership and go look then tell us exactly what car you are referring to.

As far as oil burning issues, if you search this board, you will find the answers as that is a very repetitive question. marx404

Yes, but I don't have the specifics with me right now. Wagon, dual cam, automatic. That's all I know for sure until I get a hold of more info.

Okay. Done.

Um... I didn't ask about the oil buring issue's specifics, I asked if it was common to the new vehicle that I'm considering as it is with my present vehicle. I know lots about the issue in particular, but not what years and models it affects.

Why so abrasive with your response BTW? Was my question out of line somehow?

Joe in Northern, NJ - V#8013-R

Currently Riding The "Mother Ship"

Ride a motorcycle in or near NJ?

I didnt mean to sound abrasive, lol, but you didnt give us a whole lot to go by there , Joe, if ya leave us guessing, youll problably get the wrong answer. :-)

quote: Any issues like the 1995 "oil burner" I've got now or something similar that would make me want to avoid this car?

so, yea, you do want specific info on the oil burning issue and it is a common question here and other Saturn boards, thats why I said to hit that search button . Theres more info available on that than I can type.

Anyways, now that you gave me more of a clue, you are talking about (and I still have no clue as to what you are currently driving) you are referring to a SW2, twin cam engine 124 hp, wagon. 2001, 2002 saw a model upgrade, but the 1.9L remains primarily the same as before.

It has been reported that some earlier 1.9L TC engines would burn oil. I have had 3 and they never burned oil. I guess it all depends. Also find out more about how the former owner treated his SW2, that will tell you alot. Hope that helps, Best of luck.

marx404

Sorry. I'm so used to people on the newsgroups being abrasive that it's a conditioned response from me I guess. My apologies to you.

wish I had more info to give you.

I'm currently driving a 1995 SL1 with oil burning issues. :)

I'm currently borrowing the 2002 SW2 wagon. Definitely has more HP. Haven't found the high MPH limit yet, but I would guess it is higher than the 105 or 115 that the SL1 had... I doubt I'll play that wild anytime soon.

Previous owner is family - this the great deal if I decide to go with it. Only downsides are that my 1995 has power windows, cruise, and is a stick. The wagon is manual everything (how the heck do they expect you to adjust the passenger mirror!) and doesn't have cruise.

I drive EVERYWHERE on cruise so this is a real shock to me. Plus, it's a lazy automatic. Also has less leg room which is a real bummer since I drive

70 miles a day minimum in NJ traffic.

See comments below ... Good luck with your vehicle search. I'm not sure what other issues you have had with your 1995 SL1 or what mileage you have put on it either. You also give no idea of how much oil is consumed or over what mileage so it is difficult to understand if this is a real problem or simply a nuisance. As Marx pointed out, you really do not share much information and appear to have come to this group with an axe of some kind to grind.

I'm not a Saturn expert, but my son's 1996 SL1 has been a very reliable and easily maintained vehicle. It now has over 140K miles and he is the second owner. He purchased it at 112K miles three or so years ago. It burns about

1-1.5 quarts of oil between 3K mile changes. We found that replacing the PCV helped some and doing the piston ring soak with Marvel Mystery Oil also seemed to help as well.

By the way, the 1.5 quarts/3K miles includes some dripping from the oil seals onto the drive as well. All in all, this has been a very good investment and a very economic vehicle for us.

Bob

Gee, I wonder why it burns oil? Only had it up to 115 MPH, huh? I'd be scared to death to get a SL up over 80-90 MPH! They were not designed to cruise evewn for short period of time at this type of speed!

Comment: Sounds like your 1995 SL is either a SL2 or was ordered with a lot of options by the original buyer. Most SL1s come bare bones without options since they were more inexpensive. If it is indeed a SL1, then it is a bit unique from my perspective.

I thought you said it had "manual everything" ... but now you say that it has an automatic transmission?

Out of curiosity, just what exactly does this signature line mean? What is a mother ship?

Joe, I have ben running Mobil1 Synthetic oil in my cars since forever. :-) Some claim that it may help prevent oil burning. I use the same viscosity as OEM 5w30, yet I still religiously change my oil every 3000 miles to keep the engine happy.

Twin cams were notorious for burning oil but not everyone had that problem. It is not a very common problem with single cam engines.

Also check out

lots of nice helpful ppl there too, some of whom are here too.

marx404

I've posted here on and off for a while now. Problems have included two alternators (always right after a rev-limiter mistake in neutral) and the oil. 158,000 miles. Last time I posted was probably at 156-157,000.

.5 to 1 qt every 500 miles.

No axe. Just a mistake on my part with that one post. I frequent a bunch of other newsgroups which seem to be falling apart. You post a legitimate question and all of a sudden, folks are on your back about this or that. It was 100% my mistake to respond to Marx that way and I apologize.

Now... About sharing. I'm simply curious if the 2002 SW2 has any ghosts I should be aware of. I only mentioned the oil burn because it is such a well known, widespread problem that affects almost everyone. I'm simply curious if the car I'm considering has any problems of the same scale and used that as an example. Unfortunately, because of the nature of the problem and the focus of this group, the very mention of the oil burn problem took us off track from the moment I posted it.

I've done the PVC - right after I fouled Plug #3 (see archives for everything I've tried - from heavy oil to SeaFoam which is rated better than Marvel, etc.)

I could live with 1.5 qts per 3,000 miles as I change it religiously. However, I've been known to forget to check the oil and on my second tank of gas been almost 2 qts low and in total horror! I'm simply amazed that the oil pressure light didn't come on.

But... Back to the real topic... Anything I should know about the SW2 before acquiring it?

CAUTION - THE LOW OIL PRESSURE LIGHT IS NOT AN OIL LEVEL GAUGE.

While the pressure switch setting of the (well named) idiot light varies, in most cases it is much lower than the engine requires for extended life. When the oil level gets low, vehicle motion causes the oil to slosh away from the pump pickup and the pump can suck up a lot of air and frothy oil. This air and frothy oil will be compressed and while an oil pressure gauge may show pressure fluctuations and lower pressure, an idiot light will not light. As the engine speed increases more oil is pumped to the valve cover area and drain back slowly allowing the oil level to drop just when the engine needs it most. Compressed air will keep the idiot light off but is not an effective lubricant. Low oil quantity will also tend to cause the oil temp to rise and this will cause rapid oil and viscosity breakdown which will both cause increased consumption and make the problem worse.

There is only one reliable oil level gauge, it is called a dipstick and it should be used frequently. I check the oil level at every fueling AND before AND after any long trip. I have never seen any engine damage or dipstick failure caused by overuse. Opening the hood will also reveal unusual oil or coolant blowing around or leaking, and the visible reservoirs for coolant and other fluids make it easy to check those levels frequently as well.

YMMV