1997 Saturn - 2 issues

Hi, my teenager is looking at buying a 1997 Saturn 2dr that appers to be a
good deal if these issues can corrected inexpensively. It is a pivate
seller and has been sitting 6 onths while he has been on deployment. Before
taking it to a shop to get checked, I was hoping to get some guidance here.

1. The brakes are pulsing considerably and barely work. Owner states that
since the car has been sitting in a humind climate for 6 months, the rotors
have warped and will need to be changed? Sound about right or could the
master cylinder or other components cause this?

2. The service engine soon light is on. If it's like my Toyota, it means
to change the oil and can be reset manually. Is this the same thing? He
said it has been on for almost a year and the car runs fine, that his
mechanic had the machine diagnose it OK.

It's a good deal, considering these issues above, and it runs strong &
drives well. Thanks fo any advice!

The good folks here will give you far better detailed advice about
this car than I can ... but my first question is how much money ?
An 11-12 year old Saturn isn't worth all-that-much - but one with
problems ... maybe minor ; maybe not...
A close inspection by a good mechanic will give you some idea of the
necessary repair costs - to get it on the road.
If you have to pay a garage to do all the repairs
( $ 100 /hour ) plus parts ..
.. sometimes it's better to spend a little more up-front.
The fixer-uppers can be great for the driveway mechanics -
who know the auto-wrecker - and his kids names & birthdays ..
Good luck.
John T


>Hi, my teenager is looking at buying a 1997 Saturn 2dr that appers to be a
>good deal if these issues can corrected inexpensively. It is a pivate
>seller and has been sitting 6 onths while he has been on deployment. Before
>taking it to a shop to get checked, I was hoping to get some guidance here.
>
>1. The brakes are pulsing considerably and barely work. Owner states that
>since the car has been sitting in a humind climate for 6 months, the rotors
>have warped and will need to be changed? Sound about right or could the
>master cylinder or other components cause this?
>
>2. The service engine soon light is on. If it's like my Toyota, it means
>to change the oil and can be reset manually. Is this the same thing? He
>said it has been on for almost a year and the car runs fine, that his
>mechanic had the machine diagnose it OK.
>
>It's a good deal, considering these issues above, and it runs strong &
>drives well. Thanks fo any advice!
>

WendyC88 wrote:
> Hi, my teenager is looking at buying a 1997 Saturn 2dr that appers to be a
> good deal if these issues can corrected inexpensively. It is a pivate
> seller and has been sitting 6 onths while he has been on deployment. Before
> taking it to a shop to get checked, I was hoping to get some guidance here.
>
> 1. The brakes are pulsing considerably and barely work. Owner states that
> since the car has been sitting in a humind climate for 6 months, the rotors
> have warped and will need to be changed? Sound about right or could the
> master cylinder or other components cause this?
>
> 2. The service engine soon light is on. If it's like my Toyota, it means
> to change the oil and can be reset manually. Is this the same thing? He
> said it has been on for almost a year and the car runs fine, that his
> mechanic had the machine diagnose it OK.
>
> It's a good deal, considering these issues above, and it runs strong &
> drives well. Thanks fo any advice!
>
>

Pulsing brakes are a common problem with the SL cars. It has nothing to
do with humidity - it was heat buildup while braking. You can buy
replacement rotors at a NAPA or like store for about 50 bux for the
pair, but you have to install them yourself.

The SES light means that there is something amiss with the emissions
control system. It could be as simple as a loose gas cap or as complex
as a bad computer (PCM). Take it to an AutoZone and they will scan it
for free. Many other stores likely offer the same service in the hope
of selling you the parts that the scan reveals are the problem.

If you are taking it to a mechanic anyway, he will scan it, but will
likely charge you 40 to 75 bux for the scan.

I've been pretty happy with my 97 SL2 - almost 11 years old and it has
almost 200,000 miles, but still goes strong.

JimR

> Pulsing brakes are a common problem with the SL cars. It has nothing to
> do with humidity - it was heat buildup while braking.

Not necessarily. If the vehicle is sitting outdoors without being driven
much, rain or humidity will cause the pads in contact with the rotor to
leave some friction material on that part of the rotor. Spin the rotor, and
it looks like a bit of rust in that one location. This causes enough of a
variation in thickness to be felt as pulsation through the brake pedal.
I've had this on my Saturn before. StopTech has a whitepaper on this
behavior he http://www.stoptech.com/tech_info/wp...rakedisk.shtml

Lane [ lane (at) evilplastic.com ]
---
Visit my Saturn Car Audio and Performance Page at http://www.evilplastic.com


"JimR" > wrote in message
...
> WendyC88 wrote:
>> Hi, my teenager is looking at buying a 1997 Saturn 2dr that appers to be
>> a good deal if these issues can corrected inexpensively. It is a pivate
>> seller and has been sitting 6 onths while he has been on deployment.
>> Before taking it to a shop to get checked, I was hoping to get some
>> guidance here.
>>
>> 1. The brakes are pulsing considerably and barely work. Owner states
>> that since the car has been sitting in a humind climate for 6 months, the
>> rotors have warped and will need to be changed? Sound about right or
>> could the master cylinder or other components cause this?
>>
>> 2. The service engine soon light is on. If it's like my Toyota, it
>> means to change the oil and can be reset manually. Is this the same
>> thing? He said it has been on for almost a year and the car runs fine,
>> that his mechanic had the machine diagnose it OK.
>>
>> It's a good deal, considering these issues above, and it runs strong &
>> drives well. Thanks fo any advice!
>
> Pulsing brakes are a common problem with the SL cars. It has nothing to
> do with humidity - it was heat buildup while braking. You can buy
> replacement rotors at a NAPA or like store for about 50 bux for the pair,
> but you have to install them yourself.
>
> The SES light means that there is something amiss with the emissions
> control system. It could be as simple as a loose gas cap or as complex as
> a bad computer (PCM). Take it to an AutoZone and they will scan it for
> free. Many other stores likely offer the same service in the hope of
> selling you the parts that the scan reveals are the problem.
>
> If you are taking it to a mechanic anyway, he will scan it, but will
> likely charge you 40 to 75 bux for the scan.
>
> I've been pretty happy with my 97 SL2 - almost 11 years old and it has
> almost 200,000 miles, but still goes strong.
>
> JimR

"Lane" > wrote in message
...
>> Pulsing brakes are a common problem with the SL cars. It has nothing to
>> do with humidity - it was heat buildup while braking.
>
> Not necessarily. If the vehicle is sitting outdoors without being driven
> much, rain or humidity will cause the pads in contact with the rotor to
> leave some friction material on that part of the rotor. Spin the rotor,
> and it looks like a bit of rust in that one location. This causes enough
> of a variation in thickness to be felt as pulsation through the brake
> pedal. I've had this on my Saturn before. StopTech has a whitepaper on
> this behavior he
> http://www.stoptech.com/tech_info/wp...rakedisk.shtml
>
> Lane [ lane (at) evilplastic.com ]
> ---
> Visit my Saturn Car Audio and Performance Page at
> http://www.evilplastic.com
>

great link, thanks

"Private" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Lane" > wrote in message
> ...
>>> Pulsing brakes are a common problem with the SL cars. It has nothing to
>>> do with humidity - it was heat buildup while braking.
>>
>> Not necessarily. If the vehicle is sitting outdoors without being driven
>> much, rain or humidity will cause the pads in contact with the rotor to
>> leave some friction material on that part of the rotor. Spin the rotor,
>> and it looks like a bit of rust in that one location. This causes enough
>> of a variation in thickness to be felt as pulsation through the brake
>> pedal. I've had this on my Saturn before. StopTech has a whitepaper on
>> this behavior he
>> http://www.stoptech.com/tech_info/wp...rakedisk.shtml
>>
>> Lane [ lane (at) evilplastic.com ]
>> ---
>> Visit my Saturn Car Audio and Performance Page at
>> http://www.evilplastic.com
>>
>
> great link, thanks
>

Thanks all. 97 sc2, $1500 OBO. 140,000 miles, new timing belt and water
pump. I'll take it to a local shop and have them check.

In article >, "WendyC88" > wrote:

>Thanks all. 97 sc2, $1500 OBO. 140,000 miles, new timing belt

??

S-series Saturns don't have timing belts. They use timing chains. And a chain
should last a lot longer than 140K miles -- seller may be BSing you.

>and water
>pump. I'll take it to a local shop and have them check.

WendyC88 wrote:

> Thanks all. 97 sc2, $1500 OBO. 140,000 miles, new timing belt and water
> pump. I'll take it to a local shop and have them check.

Chain not belt, but it's good that they changed it since the chain
should be changed a lot sooner than 140K miles. Some mechanics recommend
75K mile timing chain replacements on Saturns as preventative
maintenance, since there have been a lot of issues with the timing chains.

Around here, AAA has a used car evaluation service that's pretty good
but it's not cheap at $99 for members, $110 for non-members.

"http://www.csaa.com/portal/site/CSAA/menuitem.c13d2427e527f6a08e7ea35492278a0c/?vgnextoid=d8331ed39f3bd010VgnVCM100000c512daceRCR D&cpsextcurrchannel=1"

"SMS" > wrote in message
...
>
> Chain not belt,

Correct

> but it's good that they changed it since the chain should be changed a lot
> sooner than 140K miles. Some mechanics recommend 75K mile timing chain
> replacements on Saturns as preventative maintenance, since there have been
> a lot of issues with the timing chains.

IMHO, this is completely wrong,
(provided that the engine has had regular oil changes at proper intervals.)

IMHO, The timing chain is NOT a preventative maintenance item,
(provided that the engine has had regular oil changes at proper intervals.)
it should last the life of the engine or at least until other major repair
is required.
If the head needs to be removed for repair of valves or rings then
replacement of the timing chain (and tensioner service or replacement) would
be advisable.

just my .02, YMMV.

"Doug Miller" > wrote in message
...
> In article >, "WendyC88"
> > wrote:
>
>>Thanks all. 97 sc2, $1500 OBO. 140,000 miles, new timing belt
>
> ??
>
> S-series Saturns don't have timing belts. They use timing chains. And a
> chain
> should last a lot longer than 140K miles -- seller may be BSing you.
>
>>and water
>>pump. I'll take it to a local shop and have them check.

I asked if a receipt was available and was told it was. $1700 for the chain
replacement and other work last year. It is a very young army couple, car
needs complete redo up front with brakes, I don't think they can afford it
and would rather have the cash. Taking it to a shop for a once over.