Used 1999 Saturn S-Series SL1 4dr Sedan Consumer Reviews
Used S-Series for sale
Best-Quality American-Made Car of the Late '90s!
skeetervt, Middlebury, VT, 07/02/2011
Saturn S-Series SL1 4dr Sedan
16 of 20 people found this review helpful
I bought my 1999 Saturn SL1 -- used -- in September 2002. It had just over 31,000 miles on it at the time. Nearly nine years and over 186,000 miles later, I won't part with it until it finally dies -- or I die, whichever comes first. Even today, with more than 217,000 miles on it, my Saturn still runs very smoothly. And aside from the usual parts replacements you'd expect to have as your car ages (brake pads, battery, shocks & struts, spark plugs and, of course, tires), it has never had a major mechanical failure. As far as I'm concerned, the 1999-2002 Saturn SL1 and SL2 were the best-quality cars that Saturn's Spring Hill, Tennessee plant ever produced.
I will never buy another Saturn
jenna, 10/13/2004
Saturn S-Series SL1 4dr Sedan
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
I bought my Saturn SL1 brand new in 1999. I was very happy with it for the first 65,000 miles, however, I did have a minor coolant leak that was untraceable. Upon reaching 70,000 miles I found out where the coolant was going. Saturn SL1's are notorious for cracked heads, and my coolant was leaking into my oil. Saturn declined responsibility for this, nor did they offer to aid in any way. So much for "Customers First". I had to invest $1700 for a new head, in a car that was only 5 years old, for a defect that Saturn claimed they had fixed. I changed my oil every 3,000 miles and did all prescribed services at the mileage suggested. I will never buy another Saturn again.
Very reliable used car
saturnmass, 07/29/2003
Saturn S-Series SL1 4dr Sedan
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
This is a great car for someone who doesn't need lots of space. I have owned the car for 2 years and am sad to see it go...just not big enough for growing family! The only work that I have done on car is upkeep(brakes, oil change, etc.).
Great Car/Drinks oil @ 45k
sillyc, 08/18/2003
Saturn S-Series SL1 4dr Sedan
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
We have owned our SL1 for 3 years. My major complaint is, that it uses oil when I drive it, but when my wife drives it, it does not. The primary reason it burns oil when I drive it, is because my shoe has a big lead weight in it :) My friend has the same problem with his 96 sl2. Not a good car if you are over 6ft tall, the seats don't go back far enough.
Excellent commuter
Mike, 07/24/2007
Saturn S-Series SL1 4dr Sedan
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
I bought this car as a graduation present for my son 5 years ago for under $5ooo. I talked him into getting another car about six months ago since I was worried about the reliability of any car with well over 130Kmiles. I've been using it as a second car and I'll have to admit that I was wrong. It has been extremely reliable with nothing done to it but normal maintenance. I recently took it on a 400 mile trip and averaged 38mpg at 70mph. In my opinion it should have no problem making it to 200Kmiles. Even if it doesn't, it has served us well. At nearly 140Kmiles, it uses about a quart of oil between changes, but I'm not complaining about that.