1996 Saturn SL Engine cooling Problems

“In summer of 2002, I paid over $1500 to have a head gasket repaired on my Saturn. Last thursday, the car was having the same issues and it was determined that it has a cracked engine cylinder. This is an item on a TSB issued from Saturn, I realized today. Now I am facing over $2000 to have the cylinder replaced, putting my total cost for repairs over $3700 on an issue that Saturn has been aware of for some time, yet never notified its customers.”

“I replaced my brakes and rotors today. The mechanic wanted to show me the mess that they were. I looked at them and he pointed out how unusually destroyed the inside pads are. He said he rarely sees anything that bad. The horn works when it wants to. The key gets stuck in the ignition and some days I really have to work hard to get it out or get the steering wheel to release so I can turn the key. Also the exhaust system is just hanging on before the rust overruns it.”

“I purchased my Saturn sl2 new in 1996. After 70,000 miles it started using an inordinate amount of oil. Oil consumption started to eclipse 1 qt. For every 500 miles. My oil change service said Saturn engines were notorious for bad rings. I took to Saturn dealership. They wanted several thousand dollars for a new engine. I replaced engine with a Saturn engine with 23,000 miles. After another 40,000 miles the replacement engine exhibited the exact same behavior. I now need to purchase a third engine.”

“My wife and I own a 1996 Saturn sl1 with 69001 miles on it. I notice that oil was in the coolant reservoir. Contacted Saturn of corpus christi and asked if they had an idea of the problem. Maybe a bad head gasket and gave me an estimate of $840 plus $2.30/mile to tow it in. Living outside of beeville 65 miles away a total of 13o miles. Contacted my mechanic told him the problem and he gave me an estimate of $900 saving on towing fee, I went to him. He looked at it and told me that my cylinder head was also cracked. …”

“Purchased the Saturn sl1 in sept 24 of 2004 with 94,32 0miles. I had the oil changed that very same day. I 've kept up on all fluids and service religiousily. At 96910 miles the car would not go into 1st, 3rd or reverse without force. On 9/10/03 I had the clutch replaced and the slave cable. Then is when it started having problems overheating, mechanic did two diffrent diagnostic test both came back with no conclusions. The car still heats up everyday ,but I have no other car to drive. There is no power in the car now and the oil is sludge filled. …”