Why the Saturn SL-2?

Back in 1999 my wife had quit her job to go back to school, and, for the first time since we were married, we definitely needed a car. But it had to be cheap, since we were down to my measly salary, and she was going to school (and everyone knows how expensive that can be!). We shopped around for a while. Cars we test drove were: Ford Escort (too noisy), Toyota Tercel (too tinny and horrible salesman), VW Jetta/Golf (too expensive) and the Saturn SL-1 and 2 (just right).

After a test drive, and the most polite and humane car salesman treatment by the Saturn dealership, we decided to go with the Saturn SL-2. The SL-2 features a slightly more powerful engine (124 HP vs. 108 HP on the SL-1), a more sporty suspension, upgraded seats, color match bumpers and a few other small upgrades all around. We opted for the 5-Speed manual with ABS. The SL-2 comes standard with Air Conditioning.

To keep the payments low, we also went with a lease, where we ended up pay about 2/3 of what it would have been to buy the vehicle outright.

Selling point #1: The Saturn no-haggle philosophy.

Shopping at Saturn was the easiest way to buy a car imaginable. There was no pressure to buy, no annoying phone calls after the test drive, and a take-it-or-leave-it pricing policy. The latter was the most appealing to me, because the thought of nickel and dimeing with the car dealer makes me want to cringe.

The commercials on this point do not lie. It is truly as easy to buy a Saturn as advertised.

We were lucky to get our Saturn when we did, because they were offering discounts ($550) on certain models with certain options (like 5-Speed manual SL-2’s with ABS).

Selling point #2: Ride, Handling and Acceleration

Since the SL-2 is a slightly more sporty suspension, you can expect the ride to be a tad rougher than that of the SL-1. This is hardly noticeable, except on very bad roads. The vehicle corners very well and has a tiny turning circle.

The SL-2 also comes with a 16-valve engine rated at 124 HP, and the extra few horses add up a wonderful acceleration and passing power. Also, since the car is so light, is just seems to fly across the road.

We also test drove the 3-speed automatic, which did not seem to translate the added power of the engine into acceleration, which is one of the many reasons I prefer a manual gear box over an automatic.

Selling point #3: styling and plastic body panels

The newer Saturn styling took a while to get used to. I actually still prefer the old sharkish styling of the original Saturns, but finding one these days with low miles and in good shape is proving more and more difficult. However, the car has a very distinctive look that does not blend into the other cars on the road (this was an issue with the Tercel and the Escort). You can always tell a Saturn on the road.

The other major plus with all Saturns is the fact that all side panels are made of high impact injected plastic, which will not rust and is very impact resistant. To meet Federal Highway Standards, the hood and trunk, as well as the roof are still made of steel. However, keep in mind that bodywork is still just as expensive on a plastic car was on a car with steel body panels, as we found out after a little run-in with some black ice in Minnesota.

Selling point #4: The Price is Right!

Considering the variety of options available with the Saturn SL series, you can easily find one to meet any budget. Ours was middle of the pack, since it is an SL-2, but has very few options (such as no leather seats, no alarm, no power windows or similar); we just got the basic one with a few upgrades. It fit our budget perfectly: We ended up paying $200 a month, plus gas. We also opted to the Saturn Car Care extra maintenance plan, where everything is covered for 3 years with no deducible, including oil-changes and scheduled maintenance. Since we paid for that up front, we never had to worry about extra car costs.

Driving it

The Saturn drives pretty much as expected. It is a light and small car that does not need any more power than it has. That is, I have never been in a situation where there was not enough acceleration. The automatic 3-speed transmission version we test drove was not quite as peppy as the 5-Speed manual we got, but it still had plenty of speed in it.

Another good point that speak for this car is that it is quieter than comparably priced cars, such as the Ford Escort, Toyota Tercel or Pontiac Sunfire (the latter of which I had rented once) to name a few that we test drove at the time. It has very little road noise when driving on the highway, and it makes for a pleasant ride. We drove the car from Minneapolis to Washington DC, all on Highways, and the ride (as well as the upgraded SL-2 seats) made the drive quite easy (and cheap, since we only had to gas up the car 2 ½ times on 1000 miles!).

Economy

Even with the slightly more powerful 124 HP engine, the Saturn SL-2 get amazing gas mileage. City Driving yields an average of 26-30 MPG and highway driving gets upwards of 38 MPG! As mentioned above, we drove almost 400 miles per tank (it holds 12 gallons) on our trek to Washington, DC. These stats are quite amazing, especially since we used the Air Conditioning all the time (it was mid-summer).

Service

Saturn service is nothing less than stellar. Though we have only brought the car in for scheduled maintenance, and one (very minor) recall, it has always been a pleasant experience. The waiting rooms are clean and well maintained, there is always coffee, tea and hot chocolate available; sometimes they even have donuts!

At our dealership in Minnesota (Saturn of Golden Valley, MN) they would give us a coupon for a free carwash at the super nice car wash place! It was a very nice touch. Our dealership now (Saturn of Fairfax, VA) washes the cars themselves, but do a pretty lousy job, so we just tell them not to.

But, It’s not all good

Despite the good points mentioned above, the Saturns do have weaknesses:

Small car!

It’s obvious when you look at it, but the Saturn is quite small. I’m 6’1” and weigh 195 lbs, and I have to put the driver’s seat all the way back. So, when I am driving, the person in the back will be quite uncomfortable. Also, if you plan to get it with a sunroof, and you are as tall as I am, your head may graze the roofline, since the sunroof mechanism takes away another 1 ½ - 2 inches of headroom.

Since the car has a swept and streamlined roofline, you can count on hitting your head on occasion when getting in or out of the car. This hold particularly true in the wintertime when you are wearing more bulky clothes and boots.

So, if you were any taller than 6’1” or weigh more than 250 lbs, I would not recommend this car, since it is barely big enough for me.

You can also pretty much forget using the back seat as passenger space for anyone larger than a 13 year old girl. There is virtually no legroom when the front seats are all the way back, and there is not much headroom to boot! However, the back seats have 3 seat belts, which is nice for carting kids around short distances.

However, the Saturn SL-2 has quite a large trunk for such a small car. It can easily fit several large suitcases with room to spare. It is quite deep and is cut out fairly low so lifting things into it is never very hard.

Why mount the mirror so low?

The rear view mirror in the Saturns is mounted quite low. So low, in fact, that it actually obstructs par of the front view area. The 1 o’clock – 2 1/2 o’clock (full forward being 12 o’clock) angles are taken up by the mirror. If the mirror were mounted higher up, the view would be a bit more unrestricted. On the other hand, I have noticed that many newer cars have the mirror mounted quite low on the windshield (such as in the Dodge Intrepid we just rented).

Large windshield

This is an issue with most modern cars that have sleek designs: The windshield is at a swept angle that makes it quite large. This is a consideration for wintertime (particularly in Minnesota, where we bought it), since you have quite a big area to scrape ice off of every morning.

It is also interesting to point out that if you intend to get a sunshield for this vehicle, you will have to get the largest one they make, and this barely fits.

Splattery wipers

In moderately heavy rain the wipers splatter the water back onto the windshield on the down stroke. I may have to do with the angle of the windshield mentioned above or the wind deflector on the wiper-blade; I’m not quite sure. However it is quite irritating when you drive to have the rainwater splatter right back from where you need it.

The Saturn cult: Nice, but weird

Though not as bad as in the past, Saturn has developed a strange cultist mentality towards their buyers. What I mean by this is that they have sent me birthday cards (nice, but weird), invited me to BBQ’s (again, nice, but weird), and things like that. I just find it a bit creepy, but I guess the attitude appeals to lots of people.

Conclusion

The Saturn SL-2 is a perfect car for someone just staring out wanting to buy a new car, or as a second “city” car. Saturn offers many amazing incentives to get people with “limited means” into their cars, such as a 39 month, $169 a month lease with $169 down at signing.

The Saturn is rather small, however, and has a few other quirks that are easily surmounted, as discussed above.
The lease on ours is running out in a few months, and it will be a sad day for my wife and I, since this was the first car we “owned” (leased) together, and the first new car for either of us. It has been an extremely reliable car, and we have never had to bring it in for anything other than scheduled maintenance.

The biggest plus, other than reliability, may be its economy. It runs fine on regular gas, and gets awesome mileage!

Amount Paid (US$): 13,000
Condition: New
Model Year: 1999
Model and Options: SL-2 5-Speed Manual