I have a '00 LS2 where the airbag cover has cracked (I notice that Saturn doesn't use high grade materials for their interiors). I don't really want to pay 500 for a whole new assembly and I was wondering if there was a way to take off the airbag assembly and replace the cover over the unit?
Also, last month I took in my LS2 to have my brakes replaced and it cost me $500 just to replace the front end!! Apparently Saturn deliberately uses hard pads and soft rotors so when it is time to replace the pads, the rotors are already to far gone to be resurfaced. Does anyone else find this ridiculous?
The air bag cover should "not" be removed from the air bag unit. You could try that interior patch stuff they show on tv. Just try finding it in the stores.
The choice in pads was not deliberate. Personally I hate organic brake pads and I dont know of any factory cars with that soft crap. How many miles did you put on those rotors and brakes? Dont just snipe Saturn without some facts to back up your claims. You could buy new aftermarket rotors for the price of having had those rotors turned so shop around next time.
For the airbag, I would be very hesitant to apply any sealers, etc.as they might damage the bag itself - plus whatever you put on there is going to be launched at your face if the airbag deploys - have you brought it in to the dealer to see what they say? Maybe they will replace such a critical safety item... if not, they do turn up on eBay pretty regularly (you could also see what the local parts yards could come up with)
We had to do the fronts on my wife's 01 L300 recently - I was also a little surprised at the degree of wear on the rotors - we still had enough there to turn them, though. I was shopping around for parts - couldn't find much better than $70-80 a crack for the rotors, plus the pads are around that, too - so you figure over $200 for parts - then you factor in labor. $500 sounds a bit steep, though - if we had purchased new rotors, we would have been in the $300-350 range. I would shop around - replacing front brakes is pretty trivial - I am sure you can find a reputable shop which will do it for much less (most places don't even mind if you supply the parts, so you could get oem if you wanted them)
My only real complaint about the front brakes is that they dust much more than others I have used (more of a cosmetic issue than anything else) - I have tried waxing the wheels, etc. to see if I could get it to not stick so bad, but to no avail. It could just be the design of the wheel...
The patch stuff I'm talking about stays soft like vinyl. Eh, I got a blue pontiac air bag unit with radio controls. To bad thats not what he needed.
The problem with the L300 is its still very new and not made here. If I remember correctly its an Opel so parts are rare. You can get a front rotor at advanceautoparts for $63.99... Still high compaired to 20-25 for brakes for an s-series saturn. Prices always get better as the models age and when theres more out there. If its to new a model you will always be hurting for parts, more so if its not made in the US.
Most waxes would just make the dust stick I think.
I've run 3 or 4 different brands and types on my 97SL2 - the dust levels all seem to be different. I think the Carbotech's might have had the least dust, I'm running Green Stuff EBT's currently and they're not bad. Carwash soap cleans the wheels right up and I used a med soft nylon brush to get the grime out around the wheel weights.
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