[morpheus256]

well yesterday i was rearended. i was sitting there stopped in traffic, and a 18yr old driving a 2000 prelude hit me doing ~60km/hr. his front end is pretty much screwed( upside down V hood, no headlights no markers, no more rad, ac system, fenders are pushed in, etc etc) . my 87 4cly mustang has a few scratches and the metal bumper is dented
before this all happened i was thinking of buying a new car spacificly the rl since my dealer still has 2 04's left on the lot for a pretty good price. pending the insurance Bull plop on tuesday (i was pushed into the person who was also stopped in front of me) i was wanting to go out and buy the RL. the prelude guy has already clamed full responsibility which seems like it will guarantee me being in the clear.

my main consern about the RL is this, what is the build quality and reliability like so far.
ive read about alot of the TSB's like the backwords coolent pump, bumper rubbing etc, and the pcm recalls. however the one thing that scares me the most is the clutch horror stories. ive been driving a standard since i was 16 so this wouldnt be my first 5spd. what im wondering mostly about with the clutch is it inferior quality build?

im also curious about what you think of yours (somehow remain unbaised )

theres lots of other things that i know i should be asking but cannot think of right now so ill fill those spots in as it comes back to me.

and for those wondering, im doing alright, felt fine yesterday, definitly feeling the signs of whiplash today....

thanks for the responces

 

[shanek]

I havn't had a problem with my clutch yet. I have 7000 miles this is the first manual ive owened. ummm. The only problems ive had besides for the recalls were the seal on the passenger side window went bad and the car pulled to the left but they were all fixed and saturn was great about it. I live 30 miles from the dealership and they filled my gas tank whenever i had to bring it in. The car is very fun to drive..Very good safety rating.... I am basically in love with it. The only problem is there isn't much after market support yet but it is starting to pick up.

 

[Icon]

Red Line Ion Pros & Cons

Greetings, Morpheus!

I've had my Ion for just over 2 months and I'm loving every minute of the driving experience. I haven't had any reliability problems (not that I'm expecting any), and the the only build quailty issue that I've noticed is the somewhat larger gaps needed for the plastic body panel.

Some Pros and Cons:

Positives:
-Acceleration (0-60mph in 6.3s with 200 ft.lbs. of torque)
-Tight handling (track-tuned at Nuerburging)
-Excellent brakes if I get in trouble (60-0mph in 119ft)
-Seats that hold me in through corners (Recaro)
-Four door functionality (with rear suicide doors) with two door style
-Cavernous trunk (largest in class)
-Dent resistant panels you can take a baseball bat to
-Excellent Sales & Service
-Good Incentives
-Having a different ride from nearly everyone else

Negatives:
-Could use More aftermarket support
-Would like to be able to Swap the fuel and tachometer gauges in centre mounted pod (evidently it was an obscuration concern)

I hope that you don't encounter any Insurance Claim delays. Happy Shopping & Get Better Soon!

 

[morpheus256]

ok good to know the "problems" are pretty much non excistant.
basicly the way my insurance company works orso ive been told, is that they will asess the damage to my car, im only expecting them to give me 1000$ max out of it. its the medical things where im expecting a nice settlement, pain and suffering and such but my biggest concern was my insurance premiums, although ive been told not to worry at all since
a. it was out of my control
b. they would have to prove the laws of physics dont work
c. he already fessed up to being an idiot on the road.

one thing im definitly going to love about the car now is those recaro. they felt great before, and im sure they will feel even better now with the way my neck and back hurt.

being my first new car purchase since im only 20, i need something to last me a while, without paying for toyota quality.

 

[Sp00ner]

The biggest issues that I've seen are the fit and finish issues. It's not a luxury sports coupe or anything, that's for sure. The seats are nice, the amenities inside are pretty average, and there are some rattles. The TSBs are just that, in some cases they sound worse than they are, and in some cases they are worse than they sound. All in all I'm pleased. I've had one serious issue with the car, and it was part of a recall for a bad sensor. Fixed that up, haven't had a single problem since...

 

[Tbone2]

Mine runs great. This is my first manual xmission car and i've rolled on 12k miles without any clutch issues whatsoever.

The interior is nothing special and even a little cheap, but the seats help make up for that. Their "advanced" audio system is good but not great. Definitely the best bone-stock system i've heard in a compact-class car.

The value in the RL is tremendous, but its still an Ion. You WILL get busted on for driving a Saturn, just FYI.

 

[morpheus256]

You WILL get busted on for driving a Saturn, just FYI.

sorry, i dont understand quite what you mean

 

[Icon]

sorry, i dont understand quite what you mean

I believe that the statement refers to the incredulity that you may receive in having a car that is both a Saturn and Performance vehicle.

 

[morpheus256]

oooh lol, yeah i just re-read it and got it.
well thats one thing i love, is its ever so sleeperish, expecially in these parts

 

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Toyota Recall

being my first new car purchase since im only 20, i need something to last me a while, without paying for toyota quality.

I'm not sure that Toyota quality is perfect. Toyota just recalled 880,000 vehicles for front suspension ball joints collapsing without warning . I guess every manufacturer has their problems and its best to ignore a corpration's "hype" when making your evaluation. The moral of the story, I would imagine, is to try different things and to give each vehicle a fair shake.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/BUSINESS/05/18/toyota.recall.reut/index.html

 

[zfactor]

as said the fit and finish could be a lot better other than that no problems yet

 

[morpheus256]

yeah i just read about the toyota thing, just proves that everyone has a weak spot in terms of producing garbage parts.
after speaking with a fellow at work here, he's been rearended 5 times, icbc offered him 500$ once, after speaking with the lawyer, they gave him 15k after lawyer fees were paid. looks like i know what resort ill be taking....

 

[Icon]

yeah i just read about the toyota thing, just proves that everyone has a weak spot in terms of producing garbage parts.
after speaking with a fellow at work here, he's been rearended 5 times, icbc offered him 500$ once, after speaking with the lawyer, they gave him 15k after lawyer fees were paid. looks like i know what resort ill be taking....

Morpheus 2^8,
Wow... Rear-ended 5 times you say? I guess you can turn to him for advice on getting over the whiplash. Good luck with your Insurance company!

 

[morpheus256]

well, his advice on that was getting as much money out of icbc as humanly posable, definitly gonna consult a lwayer before my meeting on the 25th now. gonna also go see saturn today and see if i can get a bit of a pity discount

 

[goofyguy]

just remember recall and tsbs are not your problem. These are ways that Saturn are trying to make this a better car. How many people can buy a car then 2 months later have a better car?

 

[morpheus256]

true never thought of it from that aspect, now that im thinking that way, its better to get recalls to have the car bettered,then to not get any and have it fall apart

 

[dazednconfused75]

well, his advice on that was getting as much money out of icbc as humanly posable, definitly gonna consult a lwayer before my meeting on the 25th now. gonna also go see saturn today and see if i can get a bit of a pity discount

Just watch out for PI's following you around...I hear it happens sometimes.

 

[morpheus256]

yeah so have i, me being as young as i am makes me look bad, but it makes the kid behind me look far worse, its going to be a really screwed up next couple of weeks, i just home that RL they have that i want doesent go, 0% over 72 months is a very nice payment plan

 

[dazednconfused75]

Soft tissue damage to the neck (whiplash) and lower back are often red flags for insurance adjusters. They will drag their feet before you ever see a dime. I hope you have other funds to buy the RL with or at least good credit to get the 0%.

 

[morpheus256]

or maybe not....

well, unless the saturn dealership changes their attitude, i wont be buying one. suffice it to say i was left with a very sour taste in my mouth after going back a 2nd time, ill update more on this later, right now im gonna lay down, my neck and back are fuckin killing me