2001 LS 300 info needed

[GeoeMan1]

Just bought a used 2001 LS-300 Saturn for my daughters. It's VERY clean with 34,000
miles. I have a few questions I would like to ask since I've never seen one before- let
alone own one.

1. Paid $4900 for it, not that it matters, but was this an ok deal? Would like to know for
future purchases.Body is perfect, tires are new Michelins
2. What is the difference between this car and lets say the LS200 etc? This is a plain
car, but very solid and sounds nice.
3. Didn't get an owners book with it, what oil to use and when to change? Filters?
4. Any known issues I should check for on this car before winter comes?
5. Is the remainder of warranty available to us? I think its 36,000 or 3 years???

Thanks all. I appreciate any and all replies.

Sincerely
Richard

 

[GeoeMan1]

Sorry, its an LS-100, not the 300

rich

 

[David & Caroline]

Ok - I am going to go cry now if you paid under $5k for an '01 L300...
thanks for the clarification!

1. Paid $4900 for it, not that it matters, but was this an ok deal? Would like to know for
future purchases.Body is perfect, tires are new Michelins

Check KBB, etc. to see about the deal - no sense worrying about it now,
since you have already pulled the trigger, so to speak. That's probably
good about the tires - not sure what came on the L100, but the L300 came
with Firestone Affinity HP's, and they are less than stellar tires. There
is a broad spectrum of Michelins out there - some are good, some are not -
for reviews on what you have, www.tirerack.com is usually a pretty good
source (for owners reviews, anyway - so they are all somewhat subjective)

2. What is the difference between this car and lets say the LS200 etc? This is a plain
car, but very solid and sounds nice.

The big differences between the L100 and L300 are the engine, suspension,
brakes, and other cosmetic things (soundsystem, etc.). The L200 came with
the same engine as the L100, along with other cosmetic changes (I can't
recall, but the L100/200 might have rear drums, while the L300 has all
discs). Overall, the L100 is a nice car for what it costs - we looked at
the whole range before we bought ours, but were won over by the increased
power and crisper handling of the L300. Good job getting the 2001 - the
first year of the car (2000) only had a 13.2gal gas tank...

3. Didn't get an owners book with it, what oil to use and when to change?

Filters?

For oil, I use Mobil-1 5w30 in mine - probably anything 5W30 will be fine.
For filters, the Saturns are a little odd - you buy the filter element - the
can is part of the engine (that was weird to me, anyway) - I just use the
OEM filters (picked up a dozen on eBay for a song - before that, I bought
them from the dealer, or picked up a purolator from a local parts shop)

4. Any known issues I should check for on this car before winter comes?

I would load test the battery and check (maybe flush and refill) the coolant
system, check the brake pads/rotors for wear, etc. - all the normal stuff
(most of which you probably did before picking up the car)

5. Is the remainder of warranty available to us? I think its 36,000 or 3

years???

Yup - check with Saturn to see when the original purchase date was - you
have the balance of the warranty. (we actually got our warranty extended
for free from Saturn to a 5/60k)

 

[GeoeMan1]

Ok - I am going to go cry now if you paid under $5k for an '01 L300...
thanks for the clarification!


Check KBB, etc. to see about the deal - no sense worrying about it now,
since you have already pulled the trigger, so to speak.

Keely Blue book says $6900, but I think that is way too high.Heck, Corola's are less than
that.


That's probably

good about the tires - not sure what came on the L100, but the L300 came
with Firestone Affinity HP's, and they are less than stellar tires. There
is a broad spectrum of Michelins out there - some are good, some are not -
for reviews on what you have, www.tirerack.com is usually a pretty good
source (for owners reviews, anyway - so they are all somewhat subjective)

That link is really helpful. I may buy tires for my trucks there. I also stand corrected,
the tires are Firestone :-( but they ride ok and are new.

The big differences between the L100 and L300 are the engine, suspension,
brakes, and other cosmetic things (soundsystem, etc.). The L200 came with
the same engine as the L100, along with other cosmetic changes (I can't
recall, but the L100/200 might have rear drums, while the L300 has all
discs). Overall, the L100 is a nice car for what it costs - we looked at
the whole range before we bought ours, but were won over by the increased
power and crisper handling of the L300. Good job getting the 2001 - the
first year of the car (2000) only had a 13.2gal gas tank...

Since this is the kids car, I wish I could have gotten the 200 instead, but those other
accessories aren't that important.

What is important is the mileagee. My kids are HAPPY!!! Their getting close to 28 MPG
combined! We will know for sure next week

Filters?

For oil, I use Mobil-1 5w30 in mine - probably anything 5W30 will be fine.
For filters, the Saturns are a little odd - you buy the filter element - the
can is part of the engine (that was weird to me, anyway) - I just use the
OEM filters (picked up a dozen on eBay for a song - before that, I bought
them from the dealer, or picked up a purolator from a local parts shop)

Wow, this is interesting. I assumed that all cars used the replacement filters where you
through everything away. I bet this makes a mess.

I would load test the battery and check (maybe flush and refill) the coolant
system, check the brake pads/rotors for wear, etc. - all the normal stuff
(most of which you probably did before picking up the car)

years???

Yup - check with Saturn to see when the original purchase date was - you
have the balance of the warranty. (we actually got our warranty extended
for free from Saturn to a 5/60k)

Well, the warranty is now over, the purchase date from the original owner was Oct 18,
2000. :-((((( What a bummer!!! Still a great car though.

Thanks for the kind reply. I'm getting a set of plugs, a bunch of filters, a transmission
filter, Trans oil, and Amsol synthetic. This car should last for years !!

Being new to Saturn, I was amazed that the body panels are replaceable because they are
plastic. Another nice feature is there was a new scratch on the car but the plastic
doesn't show it as a big white streak, its colored deep within the plastic, pretty cool.

Thanks again

Richard

Richard

 

[David & Caroline]

Keely Blue book says $6900, but I think that is way too high.Heck,
Corola's are less than

that.

I agree - in general Kelly's has been overly optimistic when estimating the
value of a car - however, it's good to look at if you want to think you got
an awesome deal!

Wow, this is interesting. I assumed that all cars used the replacement filters where you
through everything away. I bet this makes a mess.

It's not so bad - you loosen the cap, let the oil drain out, then remove the
cap and the filter element is attached to it - pull the old one off, wipe
everything clean, snap on the new one, and you are more or less done. The
oil filter is oriented differently on the 4-banger, though - IIRC it's on
the front left side of the engine and it pointed up, so maybe removing and
replacing is pretty easy (don't even have to get under the car). One thing
to check - the drain plug for the oil pan in the L300 takes a Torx T-45 bit
to remove it - they are readily available, but most people don't have them
lying around (I know I didn't...)
comes?

Forgot one thing - there is a recall on a large number of the 4-cylinder
engines (ignition coil, I think - there have been fires...) - might want to
check with the dealer to see if your car is impacted, and if so have them
fix it.

Thanks for the kind reply. I'm getting a set of plugs, a bunch of filters, a transmission
filter, Trans oil, and Amsol synthetic. This car should last for years !!

If the transmission is the same as the L300, it is supposed to not require
service for a long, long time (there isn't even a dipstick to check the
trans. fluid!)

Being new to Saturn, I was amazed that the body panels are replaceable because they are
plastic. Another nice feature is there was a new scratch on the car but the plastic
doesn't show it as a big white streak, its colored deep within the

plastic, pretty cool.

The paint is definitely not all the way through the panel - the body panels
are ABS plastic, and are black in color (we got doored pretty hard shortly
after we got the car - right on the crease on the lower half of the door -
removed the paint and cut into the plastic in a 1" by 1/4" section... on the
bright side, the door panel won't rust... we also got a ding on the one of
the only non-plastic panels on the car (rear quarter panel) about 3 days
after we got the car... )