This is a tale of a partly crappy car experience and partly crappy dealership experience.
My first Saturn saved my life. I had a nasty roll over accident one winter on the I5/I405 interchange. I rolled multiple times down a 200 foot embankment - landed upside down - and walked away with minor scratches and bruises.
Needless to say - I marched right back to Saturn and bought another one. Thus ends any positive experiences I had with Saturn cars and employees.
The dealer set me up with a new Saturn comparable in every way to my old one - except he charged me $500 for floor mats. Since I didn't catch this little detail until after I signed the paperwork I was stuck with floor mats that should've been stitched with gold thread. OK. I'll give them that. Caveat emptor.
That car was nothing but trouble. It was brand new, and it was in the shop once a month - various problems with the fuel injection system. It even broke down while I was on vacation in San Francisco. Leaving me stranded there four days past my vacation. I was incensed.
In order to get any action under the lemon law - there has to be either 1)safety problems or 2)the same part has to go bad 3 times and then still not be right. I qualified under #2. I had one fuel injector replaced 3 times at the dealership. And I wasn't about to wait for time #4. After all, I bought a new car precisely so that I would not be at the mechanic's all the time. I also needed reliable wheels since I was part of Compass Health's crisis response team.
I repeatedly asked the dealership for a different car. They flat old said no. I wrote numerous certified letters to the dealership and headquarters, and no one ever responded.
So, I drove around with a sign in my rear window reading "Ask me why Saturn sucks." Since I had the maintenance package - Saturn did all of my oil changes - and I'd drive right in there sporting that sign. No one ever asked we what was up.
Oh, and their commercials are a farce. No one at the dealership ever offered me donuts or fresh coffee.
I traded in that stupid Saturn and took a financial hit on the trade. But I love my Nissan pick up. and I'll never buy another GM car.
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