Saturn Surprise

Saturn SL1

When my husband and I married, we both brought a used car to the marriage. His car died within months of the wedding. However, this wasn't much of a problem. We still had my 1985 Mercury Lynx and having only one car simply gave us more time to be together.

For financial reasons, we had postponed our honeymoon for eight months. However, it was August and we were finally ready to take our honeymoon on beautiful Mackinaw Island. Our reservations were made and paid for and we were ready to go. Then the Lynx died. Our mechanic told us we'd be better off buying a new car than spending the money to replace the engine. We ended up renting a car for our honeymoon, but afterward we came home and the hunt for a car began in earnest.

The Saturn Dealership

It was during this hot August month that I came to hate car dealerships. Every salesperson kept pushing us to make a decision immediately, telling us that if we left the lot, we'd never come back (true statement-but because of the pressure they were putting on, not because of the cars). Another tried telling us that the car we wanted might be gone by the next day. My husband laughed and pointed at the row of 30 Escort Wagons (the car we were interested in) and told the salesperson that if he could sell all 30 by the next day, more power to him.

Finally, my husband talked me into going to the Saturn dealership. I had been resisting because I didn't think we could afford a new car, and certainly not anything as new and innovative as the Saturn was at the time. The dealership was like a breath of fresh air. No one pressured us, the sales staff was genuinely helpful, and the cars were not as expensive as I expected.

After several visits to the dealership (with no one telling us that we couldn't leave without buying a car), we settled on one of the new model years that had just arrived on the lot: a 1994 Saturn SL1. My husband even managed to convince me to get the stick shift, though I didn't know how to drive one at the time.

Basic Features

Our Saturn is a 4-door, 4-cylinder manual transmission. It came with AC, cruise control, driver-side air bag, manual locks and windows, ABS, rear window defroster and a cassette player.

The back seats are able to be folded down, allowing long objects to be placed from the trunk to the back seat. Our car salesperson said it was a great way to transport skis. We haven't done that yet, but we have moved set pieces and other objects.

Why The Saturn Is Wonderful

It's really not enough to list the features that I like about the car. They deserve much more raving than that. The Saturn is a wonderful car for reasons of reliability, ease-of-use, and efficiency.

The car has an attractive interior. By 1995, Saturn had remodeled the car's interior so that it was more bumpy and stuck out. However, the 1994 model retains a slick look and a relatively flat panel.

What has been one of the most telling points about the car is how little maintenance it has needed. Both my husband and I had always driven used cars before we purchased this Saturn. We were accustomed to having to pour at least a hundred dollars a month into the upkeep and maintenance of our cars. That expense all but disappeared with the Saturn. Other than routine oil changes, tire replacements, and two battery changes, we've needed to do very few repairs. Our car is now at 130,000 miles and we just recently had to make our first major payment of car repairs. We have had a few minor problems over those years--the odometer stopped at one point, we lost the cruise control, and we had to replace spark plugs-but everything else has had incredible durability.

There were two other features that were important to us and are part of why we think the Saturn concept is so brilliant. We live in Michigan. For four months out of the year, we drive on wet, salt-covered roads. Rust is a major problem for Michigan drivers and you simply don't see cars that are more than five years old without rust on them. Unless that car is a Saturn. The Saturn exterior is plastic, placed around a reinforced steel frame. The car doesn't rust.

The second feature we rave about is also related to its plastic panels. The car rarely dents. Yesterday, I had a car back into my passenger side back door as I was driving by. When we got out to assess the damage, it was much less than it would have been if the car had been a steel one. There was paint damage and one of the lower panels by the tire had come loose, but there were no dents and the door panel popped right back into place.

The Saturn is also an attractive looking car-especially the earlier models. It is slick and even reminds me a little of the Knight Rider look (boy, I'm dating myself here!). The newer models are starting to morph into a body that looks like every other car on the road, but the early ones still looked like something new and different.

Also, the car gets very good gas mileage. We typically get around 35 to 40 miles per gallon, though we rarely drive in heavy traffic and that probably increases the mileage somewhat.

OK, I'll try to write a few negative things about the car

The Saturn is a loud car. If you're looking for an engine with a nice, quiet purr, this isn't the car. It has gotten louder as it has gotten older, but it was never a quiet car.

It isn't very large. I still bump my head way too often on the frame as I get in and out of the car and I don't even want to tell you how many times I bumped my son's head on the car as I lifted him in and out of his car seat.

Back To The Dealership

In the past, I have avoided dealerships for car repairs. I had a mechanic that I liked and trusted and who never overcharged me. It has only been since owning the Saturn that I've begun to use a dealership for repairs. They work at making the experience a good one. The lobby has a toy box, popcorn, and television to amuse you while the repairs are being made.

After working on your car, they wash it and leave a carnation in it. We ended up even doing all of our oil changes at the dealership as they would keep records for us. I should also add that we did this despite the dealership being on the other side of town, a side of town we rarely get to.

In recent years, I've been less satisfied with the dealership service. They have a fee that they charge for assessing problems. Once when I was describing what I considered symptoms to a single problem, they charged me the $29 fee for every symptom I described, not just once for the problem. Fortunately, they built another Saturn dealership on our side of town and they seem to still have that initial fervor and commitment to customer service.

Deserving of Loyalty

Although we don't like to think about having to get another car (we've become quite attached to this Saturn after seven years), we don't expect miracles. When this Saturn goes to rest, we'll be back at the Saturn dealership looking at the Wagons (our family has grown a little). I once was a loyal Mercury customer, but I can't imagine now buying anything but a Saturn.

--B. Redman