NHTSA Complaint #768837 — 1995 SATURN SC1

EXCESSIVE OIL CONSUMPTION BEGAN AT APPROXIMATELY 70,000 MILES. ENGINE WAS WELL MAINTAINED BUT DEALER BLAMED US FOR POOR MAINTENENCE. JOB WAS PERFORMED AT 88,684 MILES, AND DEALER COVERED HALF OF THE EXPENSE. HOWEVER, CAR CURRENTLY HAS APPROXIMATELY 105,000 MILES, AND EXCESSIVE OIL CONSUMPITON HAS RETURNED. DEALER IS CURRENTLY INVESTIGATING PROBLEM. I HAVE ALL MAINTENANCE RECORDS, INCLUDING OIL CHANGES, FOR VEHICLE PROVING CAR HAS BEEN PROPERLY MAINTAINED THEREFORE OIL CONSUMPTION IS A RESULT OF EITHER POOR DESIGN OR INCOMPETENT WORK DURING RING JOB. CAR WAS PURCHASED AT A SATURN DEALER AS CERTIFIED USED IN 1999. I JUST OBTAINED AN OFFICIAL SERVICE BULLETIN (#94-T-59) ALERTING ALL SATURN DEALERS OF EXCESSIVE OIL CONSUMPTION. DOCUMENT WAS DATED DECEMBER 1994, FIVE YEARS PRIOR TO THE PURCHASE OF THE VEHICLE. AT THE TIME OF PURCHASE, NO INFORMATION ON THIS PROBLEM WAS RELAYED TO US, AND THIS COULD HAVE AFFECTED OUR DECISION TO BUY THE VEHICLE. FURTHERMORE, PRIOR TO THE RING JOB ON THE VEHICLE, THE CAR WAS RETURNED TO THE DEALER SEVERAL TIMES FOR THE OIL CONSUMPTION PROBLEM, AND NO MENTION OF THE SERVICE BULLETIN WAS GIVEN, AND NO COMPRESSION TEST WAS PERFORMED ON THE ENGINE. WHILE UNDER THE EXTENDED WARRANTY CONTRACT. ONCE THE CONTRACT HAD EXPIRED, A COMPRESSION TEST WAS PERFORMED, AND OF COURSE, WE NEEDED A RING JOB. BY PAYING FOR HALF OF THE ORIGINAL RING JOB, THIS DEALER IS PRACTICALLY ADMITTING THAT SATURN IS PARTIALLY AT FAULT FOR THIS PROBLEM. AFTER BROWSING THE INTERNET, I HAVE FOUND THAT MY PROBLEM IS NOT AN ISOLATED INCIDENT, BUT RATHER, LITERALLY THOUSANDS OF SATURN OWNERS ARE EXPERIENCING THE SAME PROBLEM AND ALL ARE RECEIVING THE FOLLOWING EXPLANATIONS: 1.) OWNERS ARE AT FAULT FOR POOR MAINTENANCE. 2.) IT IS NORMAL FOR A SATURN VEHICLE TO BURN 1 QUART OF OIL EVERY 2000 MILES. IF THIS MANY PEOPLE TREAT THERE CARS POORLY, WHY DON'T OTHER VEHICLE MANUFACTURERS EXPERIENCE THIS LEVEL OF OIL CONSUMPTION? PLEASE INVESTIGATE. DT