Cheap Saturn Ion Mods

[MercenaryForHire]

Originally posted by: Zim Hosein

Originally posted by: EngineNr9
Roofmounted external speakers that loop the songs from the commercials?

LMAO EngineNr9

<Ricer> BAAAAAAMMMMMMMMMMMM! </Ricer>

Edit - Sorry, but like MikeD says, this post is putting you deep in rice territory. Asking about "rims" and "performance chips" for an Ion is really pushing the envelope.

- M4H

 

[Goosemaster]

Originally posted by: Sundog

Originally posted by: kevinthenerd
I think I decided I want the Saturn Ion.

Best modifications for under $1k?


($1024 hehe)

I think I'll add a poll once I get some ideas.

Why would you mod an Ion?

Ionize it....seriously



I'd be interested in seeing a nickel-covered Saturn ION rolling down the street....

 

[gUEv]

YOU ARE AN IDIOT.


kthx


haha

btw...diamond plated floor mats get dirty easier then normal ones. your idea for hooking up a laptop to the car to adjust timing is....retarded, at best. The saturn ion has been bashed in reviews as a cheap, poorly designed car.

if you want to mod it for looks, why are you buying an ugly car?

if you are modding it for speed, why are you buying this pos?

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: MercenaryForHire

Originally posted by: Zim Hosein

Originally posted by: EngineNr9
Roofmounted external speakers that loop the songs from the commercials?

LMAO EngineNr9

<Ricer> BAAAAAAMMMMMMMMMMMM! </Ricer>

Edit - Sorry, but like MikeD says, this post is putting you deep in rice territory. Asking about "rims" and "performance chips" for an Ion is really pushing the envelope.

- M4H

LMFAO!!!!!!

WTF? :Q

 

[kevinthenerd]

Originally posted by: gUEv
YOU ARE AN IDIOT.

Thanks. I appreciate that. I'm glad I'm not normal. Normal people bore me.

Originally posted by: gUEv
diamond plated floor mats get dirty easier then normal ones.

Whenever I'm a designated driver, I suppose it would be easier to clean puke out of the passenger-side floor if I had those and the hole on the bottom like I mentioned before. (just water it out with a garden hose, an idea inspired by my father's Jeep Wrangler)

Originally posted by: gUEv
your idea for hooking up a laptop to the car to adjust timing is....retarded, at best.

Again, thank you. I know The Fast and the Furious was an extremely erroneous movie full of ricer crap, but I thought having a laptop in my car give me all my stats would be a great idea. Many cars today include small little computer screens that give you your standard guages (mph, tach, odometer, gas, gas milage, etc.). I just thought, for an instant, that having a laptop do something in my car would be cool. Right now, though, I just realized that the conversions from analog to digital would require more hardware than I'm willing to buy.

Originally posted by: gUEv
The saturn ion has been bashed in reviews as a cheap, poorly designed car.

I don't care. I guess you never read my earlier post. I get a wicked discount on GM cars. It's cheap, but at less than $12k MSRP, I'd expect it to be cheap. The Civic is no better, IMO. I'm entitled to my own opinion, right?

Originally posted by: gUEv
if you want to mod it for looks, why are you buying an ugly car?

It's pretty euro-looking compared to most GM stuff. I like that. I think the Ion has the best possibilities of a sweet-looking car out of all the low-end GM lineup.

Originally posted by: gUEv
if you are modding it for speed, why are you buying this pos?

If I wanted speed alone, I'd buy my coworker's highly-modified MR2. (It has over 50,000 miles on it, though.) If I wanted reliability alone, I'd buy a Civic. If I wanted price alone, I'd get a used Kia. I want none of those, however. I want a trade-off between all of them. The Ion seems to fit that compromise well.

 

[jlee]

Over 50k on an MR2 isn't bad at all..it's a Toyota!

Jeez people -- IIRC, ATOT's decision was that he should get an Ion...or at least a LOT of people recommended it out of what he had to choose from. Now everybody's bashing it?

 

[NutBucket]

Originally posted by: CadetLee
Over 50k on an MR2 isn't bad at all..it's a Toyota!

Jeez people -- IIRC, ATOT's decision was that he should get an Ion...or at least a LOT of people recommended it out of what he had to choose from. Now everybody's bashing it?

We're bashing him for modding it. And, we recommend its the lesser of three evils between his 3 choices. I still say he should get a truck but he must have one of these POS sedans.

The Civic is no better

In the interest of preserving my sanity I won't be checking back into this thread. I'll just say I'd rather have my 1991 Accord instead of any of these 3 NEW cars.

 

[Ryan]

Originally posted by: NutBucket

Originally posted by: CadetLee Over 50k on an MR2 isn't bad at all..it's a Toyota! Jeez people -- IIRC, ATOT's decision was that he should get an Ion...or at least a LOT of people recommended it out of what he had to choose from. Now everybody's bashing it?

We're bashing him for modding it. And, we recommend its the lesser of three evils between his 3 choices. I still say he should get a truck but he must have one of these POS sedans.

The Civic is no better

In the interest of preserving my sanity I won't be checking back into this thread. I'll just say I'd rather have my 1991 Accord instead of any of these 3 NEW cars.

BWhahahahhahah - you took the words out of my mouth!!!!!

 

[kevinthenerd]

Originally posted by: CadetLee
Over 50k on an MR2 isn't bad at all..it's a Toyota!

Jeez people -- IIRC, ATOT's decision was that he should get an Ion...or at least a LOT of people recommended it out of what he had to choose from. Now everybody's bashing it?

No car will take 100,000 miles if you shift at red line every time! That car has taken quite a beating.

 

[kevinthenerd]

I'm only going to post one more car thread on AT ever....

stay tuned for my last car thread

 

[CraigRT]

everyone in this thread with the exclusion of the originator are a bunch of jackasses... way to make fun of someone... losers.

 

[alkemyst]

I thought I was rather helpful.

 

[Vette73]

Originally posted by: CraigRT
everyone in this thread with the exclusion of the originator are a bunch of jackasses... way to make fun of someone... losers.

You forgot Anandtech is all full of Honda/Toyota Flamming Fanboys, so if it is GM to them it MUST be junk

Of course these are the same people that keep saying Hon/Toyo is better but then when JD Powers ranks GM close to Toyo and above Honda (Int. Quality) then it is a faulty survey, even though it is the same group they use as examples when it fits THEIR needs.

 

[NutBucket]

Originally posted by: Marlin1975

Originally posted by: CraigRT
everyone in this thread with the exclusion of the originator are a bunch of jackasses... way to make fun of someone... losers.

You forgot Anandtech is all full of Honda/Toyota Flamming Fanboys, so if it is GM to them it MUST be junk

Of course these are the same people that keep saying Hon/Toyo is better but then when JD Powers ranks GM close to Toyo and above Honda (Int. Quality) then it is a faulty survey, even though it is the same group they use as examples when it fits THEIR needs.

And what the hell does initial quality have to do with how long a car lasts? Doesn't initial quality just mean the car isn't falling apart when you drive it off the lot? (not meant to be taken literally)

EDIT: Or if we're pointing out there are better cars for the money as told by NUMEROUS publications and personal experiences.

 

[kevinthenerd]

Originally posted by: NutBucket
Or if we're pointing out there are better cars for the money as told by NUMEROUS publications and personal experiences.

Every time someone tries to find me a "better car for the money," it's always a few thousand dollars more. That's not "for the money" if you ask me.

I get a GM discount! A sticker price of 12k on a GM is a lot less than a sticker price of 12k on a Honda for me. The zealous Honda and Toyota fans never remember that. In a comparison of "bang for the buck," the "buck" matters just as much as the "bang."

In a competitive market, a car at full price could never have the same "bang for the buck" as a serious-discounted car.


Those are the facts, and I'm sticking to them. I'm getting a GM car, and that's all there is to it. I'm about 90% certain that I want the Ion, and that's all there is to it. If you want to come up with real facts, let 'em rip in a PM. Until then, have a good day.

 

[NutBucket]

Originally posted by: kevinthenerd

Originally posted by: NutBucket
Or if we're pointing out there are better cars for the money as told by NUMEROUS publications and personal experiences.

Every time someone tries to find me a "better car for the money," it's always a few thousand dollars more. That's not "for the money" if you ask me.

I get a GM discount! A sticker price of 12k on a GM is a lot less than a sticker price of 12k on a Honda for me. The zealous Honda and Toyota fans never remember that. In a comparison of "bang for the buck," the "buck" matters just as much as the "bang."

In a competitive market, a car at full price could never have the same "bang for the buck" as a serious-discounted car.


Those are the facts, and I'm sticking to them. I'm getting a GM car, and that's all there is to it. I'm about 90% certain that I want the Ion, and that's all there is to it. If you want to come up with real facts, let 'em rip in a PM. Until then, have a good day.

This is true; they would be a few grand more, new. We're saying you're still better off buying a used car of another make.

I will say this, however. The Ion will most likely last a long time. If you don't mind the way it looks then good for you. Personally, I've never been impressed with the interiors of GM products, Ion included. I'm not saying its a terrible decision. You decided you wanted a new car and that your best route is using a GM discount. Fine. We are simply providing our perspectives on the situation as you did as what we would do in your situation.

Finally, we are jumping on your back for wanting to mod an Ion simply because it is a car that is designed to be thrown out after 10 years or so. This isn't a knock on the Ion because many commuter cars are built this way now days. That, and the fact that your ideas for modding the copmuter and what not are just pointless and wasteful. You'd be lucky to squeeze 10hp out of that motor. Rims/stereos are certainly understandable since factory stuff just doesn't please you/us. But then you want to cut holes in your roof for aftermarket sunroofs and what not. Another bad idea.

I hope this sheds some light as to why we're getting on your case about this.

 

[alkemyst]

Saturn does have a One lap of america car that does pretty well.

I had no idea of the potential of my Saturn until I owned one. Everyone pictures the 4 door beaters, but there are a lot of nice ones out there.

The problem is for every Saturn there are about 100 tricked out Hondas/Nissans/Toyotas ....

I would like to keep my car but at 100k now I have to realize repainting, rebuilding the engine, new clutch, interior updating, etc is going to not be cost productive when I can take that $10-15k and buy a 944 turbo esp when I am also selling my car for even more cash (sell + the money I need to put into my car would give $14k-21k depending on sale price). Someone who doesn't mind doing things in stages it'd be a nice car.

 

[LordMorpheus]

If you add a spoiler or a fart pipe, I will call my hit man and have him neuter you in your sleep.

 

[Salvador]

Yes, but you have to drive a Saturn. I crack up when I see these Kia commercials saying that their car is a couple of thousand less than a Civic or Accord. You also have to look at resale and the fact that you end up driving a Saturn or Kia instead of a quality car like a Honda or Toyota.

BTW.. Are you a chick or gay? Just wondering.. I can't see any kind of guy that knows anything about cars buying a Saturn.

Sal

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: Salvador
Yes, but you have to drive a Saturn. I crack up when I see these Kia commercials saying that their car is a couple of thousand less than a Civic or Accord. You also have to look at resale and the fact that you end up driving a Saturn or Kia instead of a quality car like a Honda or Toyota.

BTW.. Are you a chick or gay? Just wondering.. I can't see any kind of guy that knows anything about cars buying a Saturn.

Sal

My 96 SC2 can out handle just about any honda, the body is more rigid (my SC2 has a spaceframe, which is very different than the standard unit body) and other than turbo'd out the a$$ B engines hold it's own. With turbo and 6 psi (about $2k) our cars are in 13-14's, 12 psi 12's...the engine is capable if built to 17psi or so (about 450hp at the wheels is about the most powerful now I believe, car weight about 2100lbs)

It's a lot harder to build a Saturn as most parts have to be crafted...however you don't see yourself on every corner. Everyone claims to have a 10sec civic/integra...but most of the 'fast ones' down at the track here are 13-15sec cars. I have yet to see a street car there that is a real 10 sec car...there was one supra that was 10sec's (guy had about $40k in the powertrain) and his buddy with a GS400 at 11secs also about the same in it. 12's are very fast times with the camaro, mustang, corvette crowd and an occasional Porsche or Viper showing up. The muscle cars all vary with the majority 13-14sec, not really in tune or nice.

Plus unstripped my car only weighs 2400lbs, that's with a full leather interior, stereo, power everything. Most people only see the manual everything models. Still I am going to go the 944 route. Much easier to put out about 350hp+ at the rear wheels and also a light car with 50/50 weight distribution, of course buy in is much higher, but the parts are plentiful and relatively cheap.

All Ion's come with the Ecotec engine I believe. There is already mods for this engine and it's being used / planned for use in quite a few platforms.

However, for it's price point as a 'nice' car with options and some power it's hard to beat the Ion right now.