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Should I get rid of this car?
Delzhand
Registered User, Transition Team regular
Registered User, Transition Team regular
I've got a 2007 Saturn Aura XE with almost 130k miles on it. Mechanically it's fairly reliable, but it's got a boatload of other issues:
1) Driver's side headlight doesn't work. We've had both the bulb and connector replaced, but it died a few months later. One mechanic told me the previous owner installed some ghetto aftermarket adapter or something for brighter headlights (who tricks out a Saturn, so it's not a simple matter of just swapping out the bulb.
2) Third taillight - the one in the rear window - is out. It went out before and one shop wanted like $300 to fix it. I wiggled the wires around a bit and it came back on, but it's out again.
3) Front catalytic converter needs to be replaced. I've been told it's more cost efficient labor-wise to replace them both at the same time, and that when one goes the other isn't usually far behind. With the check-engine light permanently on, I'm not sure how to divine when that might be, but at the same time I don't want to replace an expensive part that doesn't need to be replaced. This issue is important because NC requires inspections, and I suspect a bad converter might fail it.
4) Sometimes when turning the turn signal doesn't return to normal position automatically. Easy enough to just give it a flick.
NC Inspections are probably due soon, and that's forcing my hand a little bit. We owe 4800 on it, so it's a little underwater. Sale price estimates are between 3000 and 3500. We could cover the difference, but that would cut into the down payment we'd have available for a replacement.
But given that in the next few months I could be more or less forced to spend 500-1000 on repairs, I'm trying to decide if I should offload it to a dealership and accelerate the process of getting a replacement. While just getting the repairs done is probably the smart money, it's definitely up there in miles, and I'd be extremely upset if I got the repairs done, passed inspection, and then started having transmission problems.
I'm not looking for a decisive "sell/keep", just trying to get some other viewpoints and figure out if there are any other factors I should take into account.
1) Driver's side headlight doesn't work. We've had both the bulb and connector replaced, but it died a few months later. One mechanic told me the previous owner installed some ghetto aftermarket adapter or something for brighter headlights (who tricks out a Saturn, so it's not a simple matter of just swapping out the bulb.
2) Third taillight - the one in the rear window - is out. It went out before and one shop wanted like $300 to fix it. I wiggled the wires around a bit and it came back on, but it's out again.
3) Front catalytic converter needs to be replaced. I've been told it's more cost efficient labor-wise to replace them both at the same time, and that when one goes the other isn't usually far behind. With the check-engine light permanently on, I'm not sure how to divine when that might be, but at the same time I don't want to replace an expensive part that doesn't need to be replaced. This issue is important because NC requires inspections, and I suspect a bad converter might fail it.
4) Sometimes when turning the turn signal doesn't return to normal position automatically. Easy enough to just give it a flick.
NC Inspections are probably due soon, and that's forcing my hand a little bit. We owe 4800 on it, so it's a little underwater. Sale price estimates are between 3000 and 3500. We could cover the difference, but that would cut into the down payment we'd have available for a replacement.
But given that in the next few months I could be more or less forced to spend 500-1000 on repairs, I'm trying to decide if I should offload it to a dealership and accelerate the process of getting a replacement. While just getting the repairs done is probably the smart money, it's definitely up there in miles, and I'd be extremely upset if I got the repairs done, passed inspection, and then started having transmission problems.
I'm not looking for a decisive "sell/keep", just trying to get some other viewpoints and figure out if there are any other factors I should take into account.
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A 130k mile saturn with a laundry list of service issues is destined for either the scrap heap, or the lowest tier of "buy here/pay here" dealerships.
Get rid of it and get a car that doesn't break. Saturns break like a motherfucker
we also talk about other random shit and clown upon each other
Do your NC inspections require you to pass an emissions standard? That should be the only reason the catalytic converters would fail your inspection...
how long have you owned the car?? what's your interest rate?
woah woah
anecdote incoming .... I own two saturns and have had friends and family owning a combined 6 more of various models.
not one single issue. ever. My 2004 Ion has 170k miles on it with nothing but standard upkeep. The 2007 VUE has about 70k miles on it with no problems outside of standard stuff like oil changes, etc.
That's not too crazy for one of those ones that sits right under the rear windshield. Comparatively hard to get to and a lot more expensive than a normal bulb. At 130K you might be looking at a lot more than just a catalytic converter replacement and some electrical work in the near future though. Is there anything funky about the transmission or the engine? If those are both fine you might want to hang on to it-- my parents' Saturn was a workhorse that lasted for ages.
Still, if you know what work you need to do. Call around and ask how much would you charge to do x.
If you're underwater on the car and could sell it and only cut into a potential down payment then I would recommend using the potential down payment to have whatever work you can't do yourself done maybe even pay off some extra payments so if problems persist you're in a better position? That's how I would handle it.
"What we play is life."
- Louis Armstrong
Those Gentlemen Gamers
I'm not averse to doing my own repairs. The most complicated thing I've done is replace a radiator in a Kia though, so any chance of my replacing my own catalytic are out. I also don't have a good way to get under the car. I can maybe fix the headlight myself but the front bumper assembly is a nightmare in this car.
Talked on the phone to a mechanic I trust, he said in NC if the check engine light is on it's an automatic fail for inspection. I wonder how hard the auto dealership lobby fought for that one.
I guess I'm leaning towards keeping it. If I can accelerate paying it off, not having a car payment would be pretty nice. The interest rate on the loan is only 3.15, so it's not too onerous.
Swapping out a radiator is a much bigger job than swapping out a catalytic converter. On a car like yours, the cat shouldn't require more than 4-6 bolts to remove and replace. Put it up on ramps, undo said bolts at each end of the cat pipe, fit new cat pipe, do up bolts. If you're terribly unlucky there might be an electrical plug you have to unscrew and then put into the new pipe.
Some WD40 and a pair of 9/16ths spanners should do the trick.
https://www.google.com/search?q=saturn+aura+catalytic+converter&espv=2&es_sm=94&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=H7xOU7vfEsObyAS31YCICw&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAg&biw=1366&bih=656
I've got a pair of ramps though, so maybe I can put it up on those and at least take a look.
That's going to be more complicated than a radiator replacement. Not to say it can't be done, but it's not a simple repair. Standard labor guide times are between 2-3 hours per converter.
There are other options to getting that light shut off as well though. It's possible on some vehicles to program the rear oxygen sensors to be ignored (they are the sensors that identify when the catalytic converters are going bad). They also make aftermarket equipment that can generate a false good signal for the rear oxygen sensors. It won't fix the failing cats, but it will make the vehicle's computer think that every thing is good, and shut the light off. You should ask if they can get someone in to do the re-programming (my personal recommendation).
Given that the majority of this car's depreciation is past it, I think you'd be better off repairing it, IMHO.
http://www.autoanything.com/exhausts-mufflers/61A4168A0A0.aspx
I've got a local mechanic who would probably be okay with putting on parts I bought myself. This way I have the part warranty info. Plus I guess old converters are worth money, and I think the one I'm taking off is probably worth 40-80 bucks, so all in all this could be a lot worse.
There's three bolts on the manifold flange, the oxygen sensor just after the converter, and (presumably) the three bolts on the flange from the converter pipe to the exhaust pipe. There is probably also a support bracket under the motor somewhere, just like that guy in the video's Honda Odyssey had, a mechanic should be able to swap it out quite quickly. Especially with air tools to undo everything. The deal with factory quoted service times is that the actual job takes much less time than they quote. Do you really think it takes 3.5 hours to do a basic service on a passenger car? It takes about an hour, maybe an hour and a half if you take it easy and are thorough. The rest is just pure profit on the labour charges.
Regardless, this thread is for advise on whether or not Delzhand fixes the car. I'm putting my voice in for repairing the car.