Anyone still like the plastic GMs?

By this I mean S series Saturns, particularly first gen "doorstop" SWs.

I think they are great bang for the buck if you are looking for a commuter/minihauler that gets good mileage, is cheap, simple, and easy to work on, and reliable as long as you keep oil in it. The green is an automatic 80k mile DD, and the red is a 5 speed waiting on an engine swap and some BC/BR coilovers from a Subaru. 

Anyone else similarly afflicted?

I got to autox a reasonably prepped(for the time) SC2 back in the early 2000’s several times & it was a blast! Handled well, transitioned great, and was reasonably quick. 

They are pretty popular in dirt oval sport compact and hornet type racing.

I was driving Northwest out of Tulsa about 10 years ago, and far off in the distance saw a huge plume of black smoke.

As I got close I could see it was a car, and going past saw that it was indeed an old Saturn enveloped in the most extravagant car fire.  That sucker could burn.

The owners were just standing there watching with a state patrolman - nothing anyone could do but take in the show.

So that was pretty awesome.

It may have been that teal color.

In reply to Cooter :

I bought my daughter one when she graduated from high school that was 16 years ago. 

She still drives it and it has the original clutch in it that she learned how to drive a manual transmission.  

Somewhere north of 230,000 miles on it.  I’m proud of her and Happy with the great service it’s given. 

I was a MoPar kind of guy when these first came out, and my wife at the time was a Honda girl. I was intrigued by the double roller timing chain and the spin on trans filter, along with the fact that they didn't seem as cheaply made as their prices suggested.  I bought her a 94 SW1 brand new, and then another SW1 replaced it in 98, with the 94 going to my parents to replace their 89 Horizon they bought new.  They then bought a 2002 SL as a closeout because they liked the wagon so much. Never had a lick of trouble with any of them. 

My mom bought one new and owned it for what seemed to be a godzillion years. I wrenched on it a couple times for her, and parts were cheap and readily available, and it was really easy to work on. 

I asked her to give me first right of refusal if she ever decided to sell, and she did. I drove it, and hated pretty much everything about it. But as a cheap, indestructible appliance, I figure they’re tough to beat!

Could you get a twin cam, 5spd, wagon? Because that's were the lust lies.

Appleseed said:

Could you get a twin cam, 5spd, wagon? Because that's were the lust lies.

YES

In reply to Appleseed :

My red SW2 in the photo is a twin cam 5 speed 

I had an SL1 as my winterbeater/commuter before I bought my Yaris.  It had 125K on it when I bought it.  I can't even remember the mileage when I passed it on.  I ended up giving it to a friend of mine who has absolutely driven the wheels off of it.  His whole family learned to drive a stick on it too.  I'm sure it's well north of 200K now.  They are my universal recommendation for cash strapped folks looking to buy a "first car" for their kids.  

I've had a 5sp 1G wagon alert set on CL for about 6 years..., ever since I sold my last one.  Ideally I want a '95, but that probably wont happen.

In the time since then, my DD has been a '98 SL2.  Its not a great car by any means.  Its buzziness/rattles/noise on the highway is wearing on me, but luckily 95% of its miles are in town <50mph now.

It is cheap to operate and fairly reliable and very easy to work on.  Working on one of these will make you hate working on almost anything else modern.

I like them, quirky enough to be cool (at least in my eyes) and the one I had could be fun to toss around. My brother has a 2nd gen twin cam 5spd wagon he’s trying to resurrect.

I wouldn’t mind owning another if I could find a good one.

saturns have become the caviliers of today. They run forever and still look good doing it.

I've been daily driving a 1996 Saturn SL2 5-speed manual for the last 17 years.  I bought a burgundy one off of ebay in 2001 (back then you could get a pretty good deal on their auctions).  I did a fly and drive from Indy to D.C.  Bought it with 125k on the clock, and drove it trouble free until it had 273k on it.  Then sold it my brother in law, because I wanted a different color ( I know so much like a woman)  I'm currently driving a dark green metallic one.  Yes, I liked it some much that I bought the exact same car.  This one now has 223k on it. 

Like others have said Super cheap to buy, repair and maintain.  You MUST add oil, they drink the stuff, other than that awesome little car for  a cheap ass like me.

I think a Saturn wagon would have a great shot at winning the challenge wagon class.

I worked detail at the local Saturn dealer just out of high school. Bought a 4 year old SL1 with power nothing and a clutch pedal. Had 38k on it then. My BIL drives it now (once my sister taught him how after he corolla got crunched). 130k miles and many spare quarts of 5w30 later and it is still on the road every day. Almost traded it in on a SW but it had a LOT of miles. Easy to wrench on as has been stated. Needed a water pump once and a coolant temp sensor more than once. And the intake mani gasket cracked once but it was cheap and easy too. Other than that it has just been batteries and tires. Also I frequently saw north of 40 MPGs at 80 MPH.

Robbie said:

I think a Saturn wagon would have a great shot at winning the challenge wagon class.

Really? Have you seen the DATSANITI build?

I will say, now that I'm around my mid 40's, the buzzy-ness, and feel of interstate noise is starting to make me want something a bit more refined and luxurious.  I'm lusting for a Jag XJR.

Here's my current Plastic Appliance:

My wife's plastic car is an 04 ion. But I secretly want one of the late 90s wagons for a daily and I'm pretty much a die hard Ford guy. 

I would buy a sc2 with a manual if i could find one near me

Buyers guide tip of the day: the 1995  model combines the early first generation body style with the second generation interior.  This means that you get air bags for both front passengers instead of the "squirrel" moving top seat belt restraint thingy.

I have several, and can echo what has already been said, great commuter for the money

Indy-Barely Functional-Guy said:

Robbie said:

I think a Saturn wagon would have a great shot at winning the challenge wagon class.

Really? Have you seen the DATSANITI build?

Of course I have, and if datsaniti is firing on all cylinders it'll be tough to beat.

Doesn't mean something else can't have a great shot too!