White_and_Nerdy's Saturn SW2: Readers Rides:

So this is how GRM folks get the cool cars! I wasn’t looking too seriously, but when I found a Craigslist ad for a Saturn SW2 5-speed for a fraction of what a hardtop for the Miata would’ve cost, it was a no brainer. Even an ugly but mechanically sound car would’ve been a good deal. But with the shape this car is in, I practically stole it. It even has a couple of tasteful mods that I would’ve made anyway (intake, muffler). But it’s a pretty stripped down car - no real options, not even AC (it’s occurred to me that a supercharger could fit where the AC compressor would…) At the moment my plan is still to just drive it through the winter while the Miata hibernates. But given the super low purchase price, the remaining $1710 in a potential Challenge budget is almost what the $2004 Challenge SL2 cost. I’m pondering… :)

watkinsglenfan
Nov. 4, 2009, 11:42 p.m.

Hey W&N: I bought a 95 SW2 with manual trans in 99 with 72K on it. Put another 60K more on it and traded it in 2002. It was generally a fun and reliable car, good on gas. A cold air intake gave it a nice engine note. Keep an eye on your oil level. With time, it burned more and more. This may have been a Saturn trait for the time because a friend owned an SC from that time that also lost oil regularly. PS: I splurged for the full factory manual set (3 binders) and still have them - want them cheap?

JetMech
Nov. 5, 2009, 4:27 a.m.

My parents had a 1994 SL2--never had a problem with it losing oil. Maybe that one was an exception? It was kinda fun to drive; just not too kind to tall folks.

wrenchedexcess
Dec. 1, 2009, 4:08 a.m.

I have owned 4 Saturns SL, SL1, 2 SC1 all with the sohc engine. Once the engines hit 150k is when the oil issues start to come up. Either leaks on the valve cover gasket, seal on the oil drain plug or outright burning. In 2 of the cars I was using a quart every thousand miles. My current one leaked. Replaced the valve cover gasket with one from Saturn,(expensive $$$ 50.00) so far no oil issues, but this one only has 120k on the clock, so the jury is still out.