In September of 2001, my husband and I were involved in a bad car accident. Luckily the only thing that died was my beloved Subaru. So, we were thrust into the realm of looking for a new car. We didn’t have too much time, as the insurance company was threatening not to pay for the rental anymore. We ended up buying a brand new 2002 Saturn SL2.

We decided on this car due to many reasons. The foremost reason being that it has a very decent safety rating. After our accident, I was extrodinarily paranoid about car safety. I spent a lot of time on the Internet checking history of car safety, and the Saturns seems to have done well in the past. I was willing to sacrifice some extras to have safety. Front airbags came standard. We opted to upgrade to side airbags, as well. In our accident, my husband banged his head hard against the side window. Hopefully, the side curtain airbags would preclude that from happening in our new car. We also upgraded the brakes to anti-lock. I am just not comfortable driving in Minnesota winters without them. It surprised me that they were not standard.

I had my heart set on purchasing another Subaru Legacy (see my review at http://www.epinions.com/auto-review-1060-5A20F9-388E0E8A-bd3), but we decided that wasn’t feasible at the time. It was two weeks after the September 11th attacks, and I just didn’t feel good about purchasing a foreign vehicle. The deals that American built models were offering at the time were also just too good to pass up. We ended up getting a 4 year loan at 0.9%, which we were extremely happy about. The total interest of our entire loan will be less than $300. With such good deals, we could either buy a brand new Saturn or a 3-5 year old Subaru and end up paying about the same money.

Our Saturn gets great gas mileage, which is wonderful because we commute 60 miles to work every day. We average about 32-34 MPG. Granted this is mostly highway driving, but it’s also during rush hour and there is a lot of stop and go. It’s nice to not have to gas up every other day anymore and spend about the same amount of money.

The interior is nice. We have grey. The seats are comfortable for both myself and my husband, which is saying something. Usually one or the other of us has issues with being comfortable. Either he doesn’t have enough leg room, or the seatbelt is cutting across my neck, or his head is too close to the ceiling, or my knees are jammed into the dash, or …well, you get the picture. Both of us are happy in the Saturn. It has an adjustable lumbar support on the driver’s side which has been helpful. After the accident, we both have lingering back injuries, and it makes the drive more comfortable.

The back seats also fold flat to add lots and lots of space in the trunk. This has become SUCH a handy feature. We were able to fit a 6 foot stepladder into the car to take home. Granted, I was MUCH closer to the dash that I normally am, but the point is that it fit. We can fit a large amount of cargo into the trunk and backseat, which we rarely use for people. Speaking of the backseat as somewhere to sit, let me tell you it is S-M-A-L-L. It would be fine for small children, or even adults for short distances. There is no way you can get 5 grown people in there comfortably like the saleswoman told us. Seeing as that wasn’t our primary concern, we were ok with it. We don’t have children and the backseat is primarily used to store groceries on the way home from the store.

There are a few things that I don’t really care for in our Saturn. We upgraded to power windows, mirrors, and locks. I HATE HATE HATE that all the controls are located in the center console for the windows and mirrors. It is an extremely awkward place to have them. When we were looking, they didn’t have any models with power windows, so I dind’t know they were located in such an odd spot. I assumed it would be on the driver side door, just like every other car I can remember being in. It seems as if my arm is too short to reach it comfortably while driving. I have to pull off to the side of the road so I can actually look at the controls while adjusting. Granted I should have probably been doing that before, but every other car I’ve had, you could adjust without looking for the controls. I really have to contort my arm and bend it oddly to reach them. Strike one.

The car is also very low to the ground. I’ve heard that some people really like that. I’m not one of them. I always feel so short compared to other cars (other sedans, mind you…not SUV’s and mini-vans). It can sometime be an effort to climb out of the vehicle. Strike two.

All wheel drive is not even an option. I truly miss my AWD. My next vehicle will have it. Unless Saturn starts offering it, my next vehicle will not be a Saturn. Srtike three.

The ride of the car is a bit bumpier than I’d like, but nothing horrendous. I do find myself intentionally avoiding some areas because I know that the road isn’t very well kept. I have noticed this problem in other sedans as well, so maybe it’s just me being sensitive, and the car is fine. All I know is that it seems bumpier than my previous car. Strike four.

This is such a small thing that I almost feel silly about typing it…let’s talk about the radio. It comes standard with AM, FM, and FM2. FM2 is basically just another 6 available slots for pre-set radio stations. It also comes with an integrated CD player. I am sad that they do not offer any radios with tape decks any longer. I guess I’ll have to have all my favorite tapes transferred to CD. The volume button is strange. It has notches. Sometimes the level between two notches isn’t right. Sometimes one level is too soft, but if you move it up to the next, it is too loud. Very small thing, but it annoys me. THis is so little, I'm not going to count it as a strike.

All in all, I’m happy with the car. It gets me from point A to point B safely and with good mileage.

Amount Paid (US$): 16750
Condition: New
Model Year: 2002
Model and Options: SL2