94 SL2 problem solved by you guys!

Dec 27, 2003 5 Replies

Just a brief note from someone who hasn't posted in this group since about '96. THANK YOU. Recently, my manual '94 SL2 (~78K miles) began having a most annoying problem (the first actual mechanical problem I've had with it). As I would approach a stop sign/red light and take the car out of gear and apply the brakes, there was a noticeable decrease in RPMs which would unnaturally go way down (to about 200) and then immediately pop back up to (almost) normal idle speed. There was also a corresponding dimming of dash/headlights to go with this.



Last Monday, I brought the car into the local dealership (Saturn of Anchorage) and they diagnosed it as being a faulty alternator and a battery that was not holding charge. This seemed reasonable and expected, so I went ahead with that repair. $420. Ouch.



Picked up the car and drove away. The problem was still there.



So I hopped onto Google Groups and began searching and came up with a few posts about the EGR system.



I printed out the threads, and showed them to the head mechanic. All the while I was sure to convey that I was not trying to tell him how to do his job, but merely pointing out something that he might want to look at.



Well, he read them and followed them. I now have a fixed auto. :-) Thanks rec.autos.makers.saturn!


What was the final solution?

Rick

Did they refund the $420 which was spent on a repair which was not needed?

-David

Did he put your old battery and alternator back in and return the 400+ dollars for the wrong repair?

Brigitte

They replaced some part of the EGR system. Runs just fine now :)

Unfortunately no, since the alternator and battery did need replacing. I don't really have any reason to believe this isn't true--they been a good shop over the years. They did however give me free labor and 50% off the EGR system part. I'm fine with it.

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