Saturn Sky Redline, is this a good idea?

[Topweasel]

GMPP turbo upgrade (otherwise known as GMS1) is nice. I got it for my LNF (cobalt ss) and it was totally worth it. That said, if you don't have warranty left I would probably go with an aftermarket tune instead. There are ones that are better than GMS1. Only I reason I went with GMS1 was for warranty.

Considering that Saturn died in 09. I am not sure even the last Redline off the lot is going to have drivetrain warranty.

 

[Insomniator]

An automatic? Are you serious? I know we are just supposed to praise whatever anyone buys around here but that completely defeats the purpose of the car.

 

[jaha2000]

Considering that Saturn died in 09. I am not sure even the last Redline off the lot is going to have drivetrain warranty.

GM Shops are still doing warranty work.
There is not much on the car that is saturn, the ecotech is in a bunch of cars today.

Are they still producing the Opel version of the car?

I had a saturn astra for a while which was an opel with new badges. parts were no problem, the only issue was EVERYTHING had to be ordered for it. While you could get parts, they did suck to get...

 

[JCH13]

Sounds like a good snag. Enjoy it!

 

[Ricky Spanish]

I'd do the FRS personally, so much more available and parts are not growing extinct.

 

[QueBert]

An automatic? Are you serious? I know we are just supposed to praise whatever anyone buys around here but that completely defeats the purpose of the car.

Saying it was an automatic I expected to get plenty of shit, I really really wanted the stick/ But I really really wanted this car, I found 1 stick within 100 miles of it, but it was the black one and black cars are too much damn work to keep looking clean. Not to mention, I found it after I bought mine lol. I had to have this car and I couldn't wait until maybe I found a manual one. I'd been looking every week on craigslist and autotrader for a manual Redline, they just never come up. Strangly ebough I found another manual in my area on autotrader, but looking closely at the pics it's an auto too.

I'm still butt hurt about it being automatic, but coming from a grandma Camry I can't help but smile when I get in it and take off. Maybe one day I'll find a low mileage stick around here I can run and get. I do notice most Sky's I see for sale have very low mileage. So I have fun with this for 2 years, find a silver stick version and I trade up. A good thing is I got it for 3-4k cheaper than any others I was seeing. So if I do sell it, I might even be able to come out ahead a bit, or at least break even pretty easily.

And auto or not it's still a fucking blast to drive compared to a Camry so for the time being I'm going to enjoy it

Were you the person I spoke to on the phone from my insurance yesterday about a quote? I think they must really hate automatics too because I was quoted $503 a month for full coverage.

And Jesus must hate automatics too because I just went outside and I felt a few rain drops. FUCKING SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA and it's going to rain the 2nd day with my beautiful convertible :~(

 

[nerp]

503 a MONTHA?!?! omg. Are you young, have a pile of tickets or prone to crashing? How can it be that high!!?

 

[QueBert]

503 a MONTHA?!?! omg. Are you young, have a pile of tickets or prone to crashing? How can it be that high!!?

Like I assumed it was because they hate autos. lol, I'm not young, have no speeding tickets, and no points on my record. I called elsewhere and obvious found a much better rate. Freeway quoted me $67, which honestly sounds wtf no way on the opposite end of the spectrum from what my insurance company said. I'm about to drive to the office and sit down and see what the catch is, I fully expected to pay $150'ish a month for this car, maybe I'm way off though.

Tjhe $503 quote just blew me away, I'd pitty anyone who that was a good rate for.

 

[Topweasel]

GM Shops are still doing warranty work.
There is not much on the car that is saturn, the ecotech is in a bunch of cars today.

Are they still producing the Opel version of the car?

I had a saturn astra for a while which was an opel with new badges. parts were no problem, the only issue was EVERYTHING had to be ordered for it. While you could get parts, they did suck to get...

Not my point. Saturn, the badge that this name was only ever sold as died in 09. That means the last car to go off the line as a Saturn did so in 09. Which means that the latest this car which again has a Saturn badge on it could have exited the factory line was in 09. Generally sporty cars (Redline, SS, GXP, SRT, RT, SVT, and SV) have 3 year 33k warranties on the the powertrain (engine and trans). 2013 minus 3 years equals 2010. 2010 is one number greater than 09. Which brings me back to the original point. Saturn died in 09. I doubt that there is a manufacturers warranty that would still be viable on that Saturn.

As for parts and repair-ability. I already commented on the fact that it should have good support for a long while. I just doubted the existence of an outstanding coverage on the engine that would hold someone back from buying an upgrade kit for the engine.

From Wikipedia.

As the above statement reads the plant closed in July 2009 so there was no 2010 production. The only 8 built for 2010 are Pontiac Solstice COUPE Models which were most likely GXP (turbo) versions. These will no doubt be the most coveted collector pieces of the Kappa Production run, but the entire Kappa line could become highly collectable due to the type of car and small number produced.

 

[SpongeBob]

Not my point. Saturn, the badge that this name was only ever sold as died in 09. That means the last car to go off the line as a Saturn did so in 09. Which means that the latest this car which again has a Saturn badge on it could have exited the factory line was in 09. Generally sporty cars (Redline, SS, GXP, SRT, RT, SVT, and SV) have 3 year 33k warranties on the the powertrain (engine and trans). 2013 minus 3 years equals 2010. 2010 is one number greater than 09. Which brings me back to the original point. Saturn died in 09. I doubt that there is a manufacturers warranty that would still be viable on that Saturn. .

He could have an extended warranty from GM. My '09 cobalt ss is covered bumper-to-bumper until July of 2014 (or 60K miles). I don't know how much it cost new, but I transferred it from the original owner for a $50 fee

 

[RichieZ]

The FRS is still a sick car, I'd still love to have one, it's a totally different kind of sports car. The lack of trunk space is going to kill me because I love car stereos and big sub woofers. But I'll learn to adjust.

And I'm puzzled why I saw so many people bitch about the convertible top. I've never had one, but this one's not difficult at all. I'm sure it could be more intuitive but after 10 tries I can already do it in about half a minute. A few posts elsewhere made it sounds like it was this huge task that took forever. I'm pondering ordering the GMPP Turbo Upgrade kit, not too expensive with decent HP/torque gains. And slightly better gas mileage even.

i don't know much about this car but I'm assuming its a manual top if people are bitching about it? shame b/c one of the fun things is putting it up/down at the light of if you're stick in traffic on the highway

 

[Topweasel]

He could have an extended warranty from GM. My '09 cobalt ss is covered bumper-to-bumper until July of 2014 (or 60K miles). I don't know how much it cost new, but I transferred it from the original owner for a $50 fee

What's the limit on owners on the extended warranty and does trading it in to a dealer count as an additional warranty? If the owner didn't transfer the warranty to the dealership they won't be able to transfer it to QB right?

Just wondering. Without information I would assume standard warranty. I mean in the end most of the time even if it wasn't expensive most people write off extended warranties as a waste and just a plot by companies and dealers to get more money out of your pocket. So it would require not only someone that can afford to add more to their car but not be against they idea of the warranty as well.

 

[Topweasel]

Like I assumed it was because they hate autos. lol, I'm not young, have no speeding tickets, and no points on my record. I called elsewhere and obvious found a much better rate. Freeway quoted me $67, which honestly sounds wtf no way on the opposite end of the spectrum from what my insurance company said. I'm about to drive to the office and sit down and see what the catch is, I fully expected to pay $150'ish a month for this car, maybe I'm way off though.

Tjhe $503 quote just blew me away, I'd pitty anyone who that was a good rate for.

You haven't been uninsured for period of time yet have you? The last time I got a quote like that it was for not having an insurance record. 67 Sounds way to cheap for full coverage on an coupe convertible (and depending on how well they track models, a sped up redline).

What you might be seeing is if its a small insurance agency and not one of the big 4. That they just have certain value spots for certain types of cars and your Sky isn't being treated any differently than a Corvette.

 

[GoodRevrnd]

IDK about using an insurance company who's slogan is "Freeway: It's that thing you're speeding on." lol...

Since you're in CA I always found Mercury to have decent rates without being cut-rate.

 

[SpongeBob]

What's the limit on owners on the extended warranty and does trading it in to a dealer count as an additional warranty? If the owner didn't transfer the warranty to the dealership they won't be able to transfer it to QB right?

Just wondering. Without information I would assume standard warranty. I mean in the end most of the time even if it wasn't expensive most people write off extended warranties as a waste and just a plot by companies and dealers to get more money out of your pocket. So it would require not only someone that can afford to add more to their car but not be against they idea of the warranty as well.

Don't know, just was making the point that it was possible to still have a warranty based on my own experience with a 2009 GM vehicle. I agree, I would have never purchased the extended warranty myself, but for $50 to transfer it was a no brainer.

 

[Topweasel]

Don't know, just was making the point that it was possible to still have a warranty based on my own experience with a 2009 GM vehicle. I agree, I would have never purchased the extended warranty myself, but for $50 to transfer it was a no brainer.

It's pointless anyways I suggested it probably didn't have warranty (and technically an extended isn't the same as a factory warranty, even OEM's use insurance agencies for this and the rules and how they cover it are completely different during the extra years), someone responded about GM still handling warranty work for Saturns and that tons of Opel stuff are available. I was just going overboard in suggesting that if someone paid attention to dates and original warranty, rather then contending that GM was still standing behind the Saturn name, they would see that my statement was correct. Your post just added onto to because it was just hypothetical and included a random stranger buying stuff originally that most people in here and for most of the US have been told not to get since the 70's.

Doesn't help that that I never said there was no warranty left, just suggested that it was highly unlikely.

 

[Dumac]

Like I assumed it was because they hate autos. lol, I'm not young, have no speeding tickets, and no points on my record. I called elsewhere and obvious found a much better rate. Freeway quoted me $67, which honestly sounds wtf no way on the opposite end of the spectrum from what my insurance company said. I'm about to drive to the office and sit down and see what the catch is, I fully expected to pay $150'ish a month for this car, maybe I'm way off though.

Tjhe $503 quote just blew me away, I'd pitty anyone who that was a good rate for.

Damn. I got $96 for 100/300/100 on my FR-S. I wouldn't even buy the car if it was going to cost $503 per month.

Hopefully you can find someone more reasonable.

 

[RU482]

Saturns, for whatever reason, quote high on insurance. I quoted a 09 Aura vs an 09 G6, equally equipped, the aura was ~30% more.

 

[QueBert]

Ended up getting insurance for $87 a month, I was expecting to pay $120-150'ish so I'm thrilled. Loving the car, I still like the FRS a lot, but I'm seeing tons of them everywhere. Seems like next to nobody knows what car this is. I've been getting about 20 questions about it a day. It doesn't hurt that females are approaching me thinking it's some super expensive car lol.

drives great, gets pretty good mpg, but who knew that gunning it from every red light to get that turbo feel would guzzle gas? I'm getting like 15mpg right now. Coming from a slow ass car I can't help but floor it when a light turns green Pretty crazy you don't have to put 91 in it, I might on my next fill up just to see if there's a noticeable difference. a pic:

 

[JCH13]

Are you sure the quote for $503 wasn't for 6mo? Because that would sound about right for a standard policy term, and is very close to $87/mo.

Also, definitely try 91 or 93. I see improved fuel economy just using 93 instead of 91, but obviously the effects will depend on how 'smart' your car is.

 

[QueBert]

Are you sure the quote for $503 wasn't for 6mo? Because that would sound about right for a standard policy term, and is very close to $87/mo.

Also, definitely try 91 or 93. I see improved fuel economy just using 93 instead of 91, but obviously the effects will depend on how 'smart' your car is.

100% positive, the 1st number she told me was the yearly, and she said something like $5700, you save a bit if you prepay a year lol. Monthly it would have been 503. The broker I went to looked up rates and showed me his screen, Infinity for him was coming up at 430. He was stunned himself. Looking at whatever program they use to compare rates, it's crazy how much they vary. I saw about 50 and the prices were all over the place.

 

[JCH13]

100% positive, the 1st number she told me was the yearly, and she said something like $5700, you save a bit if you prepay a year lol. Monthly it would have been 503. The broker I went to looked up rates and showed me his screen, Infinity for him was coming up at 430. He was stunned himself. Looking at whatever program they use to compare rates, it's crazy how much they vary. I saw about 50 and the prices were all over the place.

That is psychotic!

 

[Topweasel]

Ended up getting insurance for $87 a month, I was expecting to pay $120-150'ish so I'm thrilled. Loving the car, I still like the FRS a lot, but I'm seeing tons of them everywhere. Seems like next to nobody knows what car this is. I've been getting about 20 questions about it a day. It doesn't hurt that females are approaching me thinking it's some super expensive car lol.

drives great, gets pretty good mpg, but who knew that gunning it from every red light to get that turbo feel would guzzle gas? I'm getting like 15mpg right now. Coming from a slow ass car I can't help but floor it when a light turns green Pretty crazy you don't have to put 91 in it, I might on my next fill up just to see if there's a noticeable difference. a pic:

In the future if you still have FR-S fever take a look at the BR-Z. Same car with a Suburu badge. Lots less of them rolling around and it's within 1-2k of the FR-S. Would be closer if your looking at the used market later. Not as different in looks as lets say the Solstice and the Sky. But the BR-Z does stand out on it's own.

For the second part I am seeing that more an more. Basically the tune the engine for 87 to keep fuel costs down and increase mileage. But since its a FI car, you probably could see anywhere from 5-10hp in performance benifits. My manual for my 2.0T in my fusion actually tells me that while it tuned for reg, to feel free to throw some premium in, and just move back to reg a bit if I develop some nock. Which again makes sense but you would figure just to be on the safe side they would say throw in reg and be done with it and let the community decide whether they wanted to throw in premium.

 

[Vdubchaos]

700hp would be almost undrivable. It's a 2.0L turbo 4 that produced 260hp in stock trim. 700hp would have to be bored/stroked with basically everything replaced and a real race tune probably running race gas. ZZPerformance has a 710hp LNF powered car running 44psi of boost and they don't even get their best times in that spec probably due to massive driveability issues.

They have LS1/LS5 swaps available for Sky....probably much better choice

 

[rommelrommel]

I would tend to agree :O

Although a LS1 is not much gain over mild work/tuning of the 4 banger.

I would think a built LS3 or possibly a LSA would be a better choice.