"Ike" (untitledcarshow)
12/28/2015 at 16:43 • Filed to: Unfair reviews
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"Ike" (untitledcarshow)
12/28/2015 at 16:43 • Filed to: Unfair reviews | 1
| 13 |
So as many of you may or may not know, my first real car was a 2004 Saturn Ion sedan. I loved this little car, I did cry when I let it go, and I still regret doing so to this day. That being said, after driving a 1991 Volvo 740. I finally get what everyone is on about American fit and finish being crap.
So I drove my Saturn until 250k miles, so believe me I am quite aware of its flaws.
The most jarring thing I remembered is I used to start the car then take the key out of the ignition to prevent the car from turning off on me while I drove, (didn’t know this was an issue back then). Really though the biggest issue with the car is it just rattled and creaked ALOT. Everything vibrated, I used to keep the rear seats bucked to stop them from rattling off of each other, or the cheap plastic trim they would rest on otherwise. Road noise was easily louder than engine noise, it always felt just a bit leery at higheay speeds. It never seemed to settle down the way it should. The panel gaps were huge on the car, but the car was plastic so they had to be.
Now flash forward to the past, when I got my 1991 Volvo 740, if we take out the ungodly racket the hole in the exhaust makes.
The wind noise from the faded and worn window seals is about on par with the Saturn, but the most noticeable thing is the lack of rattle. It’s quite remarkable how well a twenty four year old car can hold up. The vehicle feels planet and very stable at highway speeds, very planted. It looks like a pile of trash down the highway, and I see the looks I get from some people in newer cars, then I see the looks from the early 2000’s era GM driving people. I want to tell them, I want to let them know, this one is better, now I only need to get the exhaust fixed.
Is this a fair comparison? Well yes and no; the Saturn was built to fit a budget, conners where cut to fit a budget; yet the Volvo is about 13 years older then the Saturn, in that time you should have stepped up the quality or quality control to make a car to compete on the global market. It has to be better then a 13 year older beater. I used to lament the death of Saturn, but I know a bit better as to why it went, after driving a 1991 Volvo.
Ike is host of the Untitled Car Show ( untitledcarshow.podomatic.com ) he has owned 2 Dodge Challengers; a Volvo C30, a V70XC, a V70R, 740; and a Saturn Ion . He is a new father and loves driving and autocrossing. He can jerry rig with the best of them, and he wrote his bio in third person. He also has 2 dogs, 2 cats and is a crazy person some say!
Email the author untitledcarshow@gmail.com
Justin Hughes
> Ike
12/28/2015 at 16:53 |
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The original S series Saturns weren’t as bad, but Volvos were always made to a higher quality standard than basic econobubbles. They’re also more solid that most other cars out there. The Germans come close, but Volvos are tanks, and certainly not Tupperware like Saturns were.
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Ike
> Justin Hughes
12/28/2015 at 16:57 |
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I want to get ahold of and drive every car Saturn ever made, to reflect and to show the good ideas turned bad by gm
RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
> Ike
12/28/2015 at 17:00 |
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Fun fact: everything you describe in your ION was largely the case with the L series, and both the ION and the L-Series are Opel platforms. While the Saab relative of the earlier platform was made more nicely, I don’t think the Opel was at all, really. Having driven an Opel/Vauxhall platform vehicle on vacation in the UK (a different platform, the Vauxhall Corsa), I observed a large quantity of the same issues as in any Saturn in terms of materials cheapness, fit and finish, interior design, etc., and it was just a few miles from brand new! Maybe marginally better QC. Marginally.
What you’ve IDed here is not necessarily a “US made car” issue so much as a “Wow, GM corporate builds to a price point like no other,
worldwide.”.
Further, GM has not stepped up much since your Saturn was built, so the fact that an older Saturn fits on the continuity between a late 90s Cavalier and a modern Corsa/whatever... yeah. Not really surprising.
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Ike
> RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
12/28/2015 at 17:12 |
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Hmm interesting, I always assumed this was a “bring that platform over here, and let’s make it worst!” Aspect of GM, I would love to cross test a Opel/Saturn/Chevy and see the difference in fit, finish, and quality control.
Hoccy
> Ike
12/28/2015 at 17:16 |
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It is even more impressive when you include that the 740 is a design that debuted in 1982. Of course, you have the facelift, but the basics are still there. After an extensive redesign (while keeping several parts as well), it continued to 1998 as the 940. Here in Norway they are still common in traffic, and nice examples have doubled or tripled their value in recent years, People would rather have a 940 than a S40/V40 or something Japanese. American econoboxes like the Neon or PT-Cruiser (that initially sold well) are only found in junkyards.
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Ike
> Hoccy
12/28/2015 at 17:25 |
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If you ever happen across a 940 manual transmission for cheap to free over there, let me know! those things were not shipped over here, and they can be used to mate a new Volvo turbo I-5 to a RWD Volvo, I may have plans for this one.
(I'm mostly kidding about this, unless you want to ofcourse lol)
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Hoccy
> Ike
12/28/2015 at 17:35 |
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I guess you want the 5-speed M90 then? They aren’t that common to find for sale here, mostly because they are picked up pretty fast to replace units with a bad 3rd gear. I can keep my eyes open though..
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Ike
> Hoccy
12/28/2015 at 18:20 |
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Yep, I would love to have one, but I’m sure shipping would cost a ton!
Plus I maybe getting a Chevy small block V8 for it anyway
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Hoccy
> Ike
12/28/2015 at 18:37 |
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Shipping would be expensive for sure.. If you can get a V8 swap road legal it is as good as any Volvo engine. People have done that here, but it’s not possible to make them road legal anymore.
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Ike
> Hoccy
12/28/2015 at 19:08 |
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Car is old enough that I can basicly do what ever to it; and it’s “road legal” at a certain point it turns more into, “we the state of Maryland no longer care about your 20+ year old car so do what ever you want “
boxrocket
> Ike
12/28/2015 at 19:49 |
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What exhaust problems do you have? I think I still have a Bosal OEM-style exhaust system I got for my 1990 760 Turbo Wagon I never used. Plus a bunch of MANN oil filters.
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Ike
> boxrocket
12/28/2015 at 22:49 |
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My exhaust ends where the catalytic converter should be, currently there is a muffler hanging there kinda making the car somewhat tolerable.
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Hoccy
> Ike
12/29/2015 at 05:15 |
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Haha, that’s brilliant! Here that only counts for paying taxes for added hp, to legally have plates on something all modifications have to be included in the title. The lower suspension fitted to my 142 is included in the title, with serial number and everything