It's time for a SATURN UPDATE

"I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker" (qaaaaa)
01/02/2020 at 09:03 • Filed to: None

Yesterday I took a few hours to work on my 1994 SC2. It’s been parked up for a month or two as it had been overcooling and generally running like garbage. Then the battery died, so I just kind of ignored it. I charged the battery overnight and put it in, but found one of the terminal screws (thanks GM) had stripped, making it hard to keep it running. Two zip ties later and the bolt is snug ish. Good enough. On to the overcooling issue...

Up to (I think) 1995, Saturn’s DOHC 1.9 motors came with not one but two coolant temp sensors. One sent temperature to the PCM, the other to the gauge cluster. The PCM one had failed and I had had it unplugged for a while, forcing the radiator fan to stay on whenever the car was running. Plugging the sensor in resulted in the car running extremely lean, to the point of being undrivable. So I replaced that and took it for a spin, but the car was still overcooling. Next up was the thermostat. The old one had failed open, it seems. I now have heat!

The car is infinitely more drivable now. The to do list on the car is now:

1. Wheel bearings (has a little play in the front wheels right now. It’s not a daily driver, but they should be done before it goes into DD service)

2. Exhaust. Right now it’s sawzalled off after the catalytic converter. It redefines loud.

3. Fix the leaky sunroof. There’s just some adhesive on top of the weather stripping right now, and it seems to have stopped keeping the water out. It gets damp inside when it rains. I may replace the stripping and figure out the motor so I have a working sunroof and a watertight car.

4. Swap in more comfortable seats. The current ones are original and show it.

5. Fix the odometer. The gears that turn it are made of plastic and lose teeth over time. It’s a known issue and aftermarket replacement gears are available.

6. Make it pretty. This might mean paint, might mean wheels. Who knows.

For now, the car will continue being a support vehicle for when the Golf breaks. Now that a backup car exists and is serviceable , I am confident the Golf will break next week.

DISCUSSION (20)

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
01/02/2020 at 09:40

Kinja'd!!!

TrickJos > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
01/02/2020 at 09:54

If you end up fixing that sunroof I will be very impressed. It never worked in the time that I owned it. In high school I used to force it open by pushing up and then back. I quit doing that after I had it painted for fear of scratching the paint.

The sealant on the weather stripping is actually there to hold the window down. At highway speed the airflow over the car had a tendency to suck the sunroof open just enough to make things really noisy in the cabin. It is actually a pretty quiet car when there is a full exhaust system on it.

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > TrickJos
01/02/2020 at 10:05

Hm. I hadn’t dug into it yet but that’s about what I expected honestly.

The headlight motors have been behaving more recently. I might n eed to tear them apart and clean them a bit but the limit switches seem to be working and shutting the motors off when they close now, so that’s fantastic.

facw > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
01/02/2020 at 10:08

I’d guess if the sunroof doesn’t open, you haven’t but have you checked the drains? Normally “leaky” sunroofs are actually ones that don’t drain properly. I think when Zoidberg fixed the one on his Celica it was just blowing them out with compressed air or something.

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > facw
01/02/2020 at 10:13

It’s probably drain related. I’ve just not had time to dig in yet.

TrickJos > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
01/02/2020 at 10:27

Those headlights operated longer than I expected them to, honestly. They had only started to behave poorly shortly before I stopped driving the car. I just left them open knowing I would be getting a new car soon. It looks so much better with them closed though.

I saw a blue SC2 at a stop light the other day. Had to have been a couple years older than mine/yours/ours (I’ll always think of it as mine, sorry) because it had the steering wheel with no airbag. It was in very good condition. Stick shift too. I couldn’t stop staring at it until the old lady driving it noticed me looking her direction and things got uncomfortable haha!

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > TrickJos
01/02/2020 at 10:39

Reading around online, the motors in them seem quite long-lived. Expensive to replace if they die, though. There’s a 1st gen SC2 at LKQ right now, I might snag the motors. However, I’ve also been toying around with buying a “real” daily driver and doing serious weight reduction to the SC2, welding up the diff pin, and turning it into a rallycross toy for when the season starts in a few months. You’re more than welcome to take it for a send if I get around to it. Did you ever get out and do some autocross last year?

MiniGTI - now with XJ6 > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
01/02/2020 at 11:11

My 85 Jaguar has at least 4 temp sensors, possibly 5:

1. For the gauge

2. For the EFI

3. For the smog pump

4. For the auxiliary fan

5. Inhibits the cabin blower until the temp is up a little.

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > MiniGTI - now with XJ6
01/02/2020 at 11:13

Jesus. I actually have a third, maybe more- there’s an intake air temp sensor, but I wasn’t counting that. Just coolant sensors.

MiniGTI - now with XJ6 > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
01/02/2020 at 11:18

They’re all different too. 1-4 are neatly lined up on the water rail on top of the engine, and 5 is on the pipe to the heater core (which I replaced recently) . As far as I know they even all work reasonably correctly.

speedyboi > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
01/02/2020 at 11:40

Sell that POS

TrickJos > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
01/02/2020 at 11:45

I would love to take it for a spin if you do that!

Sadly I haven’t had a chance to give autocross a try. I’m planning on going to the IMSA race at Mid-Ohio again this year. That’s typically the only motorsports related event I’m able to carve out some time for each year. I think I might make a post soon t o see if there is any interest in an Oppo meet/tailgate in the infield before the race.

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > TrickJos
01/02/2020 at 12:38

That would be cool! I’d be down for that if I can carve out a weekend in my schedule.

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > speedyboi
01/02/2020 at 12:41

You spelled “dump several hundred dollars into it” kinda weird.

Are you in your lab today?

speedyboi > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
01/02/2020 at 12:46

No I’m working from home.

You have a nice rabbit that could use that money.

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > speedyboi
01/02/2020 at 12:52

“working”

you’re just jealous of my popup headlights, miata boy

speedyboi > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
01/02/2020 at 12:53

“working” just like you buddy

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > speedyboi
01/02/2020 at 12:55

I’m compiling

speedyboi > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
01/02/2020 at 12:58

You’re an electrical engineering, not a computer engineer!

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > speedyboi
01/02/2020 at 13:03

I just do math