1997 Saturn - 2 issues

The good folks here will give you far better detailed advice about this car than I can ... but my first question is how much money ? An 11-12 year old Saturn isn't worth all-that-much - but one with problems ... maybe minor ; maybe not... A close inspection by a good mechanic will give you some idea of the necessary repair costs - to get it on the road. If you have to pay a garage to do all the repairs ( $ 100 /hour ) plus parts .. .. sometimes it's better to spend a little more up-front. The fixer-uppers can be great for the driveway mechanics - who know the auto-wrecker - and his kids names & birthdays .. Good luck. John T

Pulsing brakes are a common problem with the SL cars. It has nothing to do with humidity - it was heat buildup while braking. You can buy replacement rotors at a NAPA or like store for about 50 bux for the pair, but you have to install them yourself.

The SES light means that there is something amiss with the emissions control system. It could be as simple as a loose gas cap or as complex as a bad computer (PCM). Take it to an AutoZone and they will scan it for free. Many other stores likely offer the same service in the hope of selling you the parts that the scan reveals are the problem.

If you are taking it to a mechanic anyway, he will scan it, but will likely charge you 40 to 75 bux for the scan.

I've been pretty happy with my 97 SL2 - almost 11 years old and it has almost 200,000 miles, but still goes strong.

JimR

Not necessarily. If the vehicle is sitting outdoors without being driven much, rain or humidity will cause the pads in contact with the rotor to leave some friction material on that part of the rotor. Spin the rotor, and it looks like a bit of rust in that one location. This causes enough of a variation in thickness to be felt as pulsation through the brake pedal. I've had this on my Saturn before. StopTech has a whitepaper on this behavior here:

Lane [ lane (at) evilplastic.com ]

great link, thanks

Thanks all. 97 sc2, $1500 OBO. 140,000 miles, new timing belt and water pump. I'll take it to a local shop and have them check.

??

S-series Saturns don't have timing belts. They use timing chains. And a chain should last a lot longer than 140K miles -- seller may be BSing you.

Correct

IMHO, this is completely wrong, (provided that the engine has had regular oil changes at proper intervals.)

IMHO, The timing chain is NOT a preventative maintenance item, (provided that the engine has had regular oil changes at proper intervals.) it should last the life of the engine or at least until other major repair is required. If the head needs to be removed for repair of valves or rings then replacement of the timing chain (and tensioner service or replacement) would be advisable.

just my .02, YMMV.

I asked if a receipt was available and was told it was. $1700 for the chain replacement and other work last year. It is a very young army couple, car needs complete redo up front with brakes, I don't think they can afford it and would rather have the cash. Taking it to a shop for a once over.

Say whaaat? Timing *belts* *are* preventive-maintenance items. Timing *chains* should last the life of the [rest of the] engine.

I agree. Timing chain should last if oil was properly serviced at regular intervals. On the Check Engine light, there are two known and common issues that may cause this with Saturn SLs and they are the Coolant Temperature Sensor (CTS) and the Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) valve. Both are fairly simple fixes if either is the cause after getting the code scanned at AutoZone for free.

Bob

IMHO For those of you who are not regular readers of this NG it is worth noting that Steve Scharf (SMS) is the major proponent of the Saturn timing chain needs to be changed theory. For a more complete research into this issue I suggest reading

do a search in Google Groups for other and more recent threads. As in all such things there is no definitive correct answer and nobody can accurately predict the service life of an individual mechanical component. This is especially true of preowned vehicles. Most reports of failures are anecdotal and can be considered anomalies.

Mechanical service life is a bit of a crap shoot that is influenced by maintenance and operating conditions and driving style. Most people lump the SOHC and the DOHC engines together when reporting service issues such as oil consumption and valve train wear. Engine wear increases are not linear with speed and are normally considered to increase at the square of the engine speed. In other words wear will be 4 times higher @ 6000rpm than at

3000rpm. DOHC engines are much more likely to be driven in a 'spirited' manner and IMHO are much more likely to suffer issues of oil consumption and valve train wear as well as reduced tire and brake life. For this reason (and lower fuel economy) I would never purchase a used DOHC.

Beyond original warranty, there are no guaranties of service life and engine lifetime management becomes a balance between doing nothing and perhaps incurring a costly failure and overdoing preventative maintenance which results in added expense from fixing stuff that aint broke, as well as issues caused by the quality of the repair work. Repair work seldom has the quality control of the original factory. Regular maintenance and oil changes are the cheapest and most cost effective way to lengthen service life especially when combined with proper warm up in cold weather and the avoidance of 'spirited' high rpm operation and short trips.

As these cars age the benefits of excessive preventative repair become smaller as does the cost of any needed repair due to catastrophic failure. The economics of engine management is that a catastrophic failure is less of a loss on an engine nearing the end of its service life than if it occurs near the start. If you really want to maximize service life some would advocate a half life rebuild including new rings bearings and valve guides, and a new timing chain would certainly be appropriate at that time. However most of us know that such a rebuild does not add any resale value to the car and we prefer to continue use until some problem occurs at which time we can make the repair or replace decision at that time.

As this model ages they are now quite common in the scrap yards and we have more options for economical repair. A good used engine can now be purchased for very little more than the cost of replacing a timing chain. A complete running car with good tires and battery will only be a little more (or less). I just purchased a very good running car with near new tires and battery (and a new stereo/CD player )for $400. It had a little easily repairable body damage and drives very well, I have repaired the damage but this would have been an excellent donor car to use for spare parts. These cars are easy to work on and a little DIY mechanical can save a LOT of money.

Good luck, YMMV

Wendy, I am not a mechanic, but have owned and driven a 1998 SATURN since 2001. I DO keep it well maintained - common "joke" is if I ever bought a Lamborghini, I'd keep the Saturn for dependability.

I transferred from New Hampshire to Nevada in January 2005 - drove - I believe it was 3,200 miles .. Erie, PA, Chicago, Rochester, MN .. winter time - stopped in Deadwood, SD for 3 days, then dropped down to Casper / Rawlins, WY - Salt Lake - Nevada .......... not ONE LICK of car problems.

It now has 70,000 miles on it < I only drive like 100 miles a Month > .. been to Oregon and back with it a few times, California and back alot .. again, not a lick of problems.

I don't see where you can go wrong with purchasing it for a teenager < I'm talking actually not seeing the vehicle ... assumed > .. the most important factor in ANY car < even Lamborghini's > is maintenance.

My broad stroked rule of thumb is to do naturally, the regular oil changes, and about Quarterly check a major item .. EGR Valve ....next Quarter, brakes .. alignment the next, etc etc.

We've been getting the smoke from all the California fires, so here shortly I'll be purchasing a new air filter as I can only imagine what the current one looks like.

IF you do purchase the '97 and the little radiator looking light comes on - right top light on the '98 dash - don't be alarmed like I was ... I was on my way back from California and it came on - went straight to my mechanic ... all's it was telling me was my engine coolant RESERVE was

1/8th of an inch low, not the radiator, the 1/2 gallon RESERVE bottle !

Can't speak for the 2007/2008's, but my '98 has treated me like GOLD.

Good Luck :-)

No... It shouldn't.

Yeah it's no surprise that "mechanics" will push a needless upsale.

A lot huh? I've seen more broken timing belts before 70k than broken timing chains before 140k on anything.

Lets make it clear that you do not and have not worked in a car shop nor have you ever owned or worked on a Saturn in your life.