2000 - 2004 Saturn L-Series Pre-Owned

What about reliability? Again, it didn't match the Honda or Toyota, but not much does. Instead Saturn owners experienced industry

While owners experienced industry average dependability, Saturn enjoyed one of J. D. Power & Associates top owner satisfaction indexes. (Photo: General Motors of Canada)

average dependability, with few complaining. Actually, the brand continued to have one of J. D. Power & Associates top owner satisfaction indexes, which either means Saturn buyers didn't expect much and were thrilled with what they received, or that they actually did experience better than average service when reliability issue cropped up, and no doubt were still feeling all warm and fuzzy over the brand's acclaimed new car buying experience.

As far as recalls go, the L-Series had its fair share. Its first model year saw three individual incidents, starting with a potentially dangerous defective fuel tank shutoff valve, followed up by a rear seatbelt assembly non-compliance issue. Affecting some model year 2000 through 2003 cars was an ignition control module problem that could have made it idle roughly. A small number of 2001 L-Series cars may have been missing or incorporate an improperly seated transaxle shift cable retainer clip, while an even smaller number of 2003 cars had a

Saturn will soon get an L-Series replacement, but don't expect it to be similar to the outgoing midsize model. (Photo: General Motors of Canada)

malfunctioning windshield wiper motor. That's it. Of course, any affected car should have been repaired already.

Thinking back to the week I tested an L200, I noticed how few L-Series cars were on the road. No doubt this scenario led to its demise earlier this year. Saturn will soon get an L-Series replacement, but it is expected to be a much different car pointing the brand further upscale, above its Chevrolet and Pontiac sibling nameplates. Most likely the polymer panels will be history, which is a shame. Saturn has built up a unique buying proposition on this very feature, and now the cars will be more or less the same as other General Motors cars, other than styling and trim. Until the new midsize model comes along, the best place to find a used L-Series will be at a Saturn dealer. The fact is that most people who own Saturns tend to trade them for more Saturns, a good sign all on its own.