Cracked Cylinder Head on 1994 SL1

[Loretta]

My SL1 has a cracked cylinder head at 73,000 miles. The repair will cost over $2000! This problem occurs often in 1994 - 1996 Saturns and the warranty was extended by Saturn because of the defect. However, my car is 10 years old and out of the extended 6 yr. warranty. Has anyone had Saturn pay for some of these costly repairs even though the car is out of warranty?

 

[blah blah]

My SL1 has a cracked cylinder head at 73,000 miles. The repair will cost over $2000! This problem occurs often in 1994 - 1996 Saturns and the warranty was extended by Saturn because of the defect. However, my car is 10 years old and out of the extended 6 yr. warranty. Has anyone had Saturn pay for some of these costly repairs even though the car is out of warranty?

Effects the cheaper SOHC engines only, not the Twincams. Stop going to the dealer for price quotes. They, as in all dealers, always charge at least twice the amount of a what a reputable shop would. (a new create motor would be just over 2 grand) If you hit the right repo auction you can buy a 96 or so SL2 Twincam for less than $2000 with about the same amount of miles.

 

[Lane]

There are a lot of SOHC heads on eBay as well.

Lane [ lane (at) evilplastic.com ]

 

[Steve]

My SL1 has a cracked cylinder head at 73,000 miles. The repair will cost over $2000! This problem occurs often in 1994 - 1996 Saturns and the warranty was extended by Saturn because of the defect. However, my car is 10 years old and out of the extended 6 yr. warranty. Has anyone had Saturn pay for some of these costly repairs even though the car is out of warranty?

Here's my experience from a previous post in this ng:

"your should warranty, researching

All is well. After my research I talked to the Service Manager the same day I first posted this message, and said that "Half" would not be enough. Then he let me speak with his manager (probably regional manager), and said that Half is not good enough. He said that, "This is what they are doing in this situation." And I said back to him, well obviously this isn't the first time it has happened, since this is what they do in this "situation", and that 50/50 is not good enough since it is a reoccuring issue, and that there is a "flaw" in the cylinders dating back to '91. I said that will all the info I found out, that I will speak to whom ever I have to, to get this resolved. He said that he would again talk to the "Saturn people", but it was unlikely that it would be free. I said "We'll see, and again I'll go above your head, and whomever else I have to directly." He said he will be in touch.

He calls me back the next morning, and said they will cover everything except for a "deductible" of $250. Whatever they want to call the $250 payment, I don't care, b/c it is a lot better than 50/50, and certainly better than the full cost ($2952). So, it pays to do your research, to stand your ground, and speak up. If I hadn't said anything, they would've taken my $2952 without blinking. The car will done this Monday, or Tuesday at the latest.

Thanks to all that replied to my post.

Ian

Similar experience, here.
To be more specific (skip to next paragraph if you don't care <grin>): the coolant low pressure light came on. I checked the coolant reservoir and it was low. I bought the appropriate coolant (with DEX cool) per the owner's manual and added about a 2 cup mixture of coolant and water. After about five days, the coolant low pressure light again came on. I added another 2 cup mixture and scheduled an appointment with my Saturn dealer service department. They found and fixed a low pressure condition but no oil in coolant or coolant in oil. Another four or five days and the low coolant light returned. Scheduled another appointment; this time they found coolant in the oil. Service Manager and I discussed and decided to do nothing further, since the recommended engine teardown and fix would likely cost in excess of $2000, probably not worth my spending for a 64,000 mile-old car. Finding this and other favorable postings in USENet, I decided to escalate. Before doing so, I advised the dealer service manager, who suggested I contact Saturn Customer Service. I did so, and within 24 hours was phoned by an Area Manager from Spring Hill offering to pay for parts if I paid for labor to fix the engine. The dealer service department did so, charging me $1025.49 ($936.00 for labor and the rest for various parts, such as the torque axis mount, not related to the cylinder head problem and about which the service manager discussed with me ahead of time). The invoice shows $960.10 in engine parts for which I was not charged. While not pleased about having to pay anything to fix an engine problem that should not have occurred so early in the engine's life, I'm much happier than if I had to pay 11 times that amount for a new car. The engine seems to be running very well.

 

[PH Pelletier]

My SL1 has a cracked cylinder head at 73,000 miles. The repair will cost over $2000! This problem occurs often in 1994 - 1996 Saturns and the warranty was extended by Saturn because of the defect. However, my car is 10 years old and out of the extended 6 yr. warranty. Has anyone had Saturn pay for some of these costly repairs even though the car is out of warranty?

My SL1 96 had this problem at 90Kmiles/7yr... total cost: 2200$CAN, but arguing with the district manager, and showing all service records from this car got them to pay 75% of the cost of a rebuilt head (around 475$CAN)...

The car is now running OK, but transformed into an oil drinking addict... 1 quart/2500Km. Not excessive, but was only 1/2 Quart/5000Km before.

 

[misterfact]

Effects the cheaper SOHC engines only, not the Twincams. Stop going to the dealer for price quotes. They, as in all dealers, always charge at least twice the amount of a what a reputable shop would. (a new create motor would be just over 2 grand) If you hit the right repo auction you can buy a 96 or so SL2 Twincam for less than $2000 with about the same amount of miles.

Sure! And don't be surprised if that one has a casting flaw and cracks also!