I have a 2000 sc1 auto that has been a real good car for my fiance and I am currently driving it due to loss of job. Yeah....damn economy! Anyway, It runs and drives perfectly in drive gears but when you go to put it in reverse to back out of a driveway or parking spot ect. , it seems to take a minute to fully engage into reverse. You have to be real careful not to give it gas while its not moving or it will engage then ****** the car badly. Does anyone know what can cause this or have any suggestions on repairs?

 

I did some searching and found that this might be a common problem for some saturns. One member even suggested tightning a gear bolt or nut? Can anyone confirm this repair?

 

Yes, replace and tighten the input shaft nut to the proper torque (150 N·m (111 lb ft)). If you''re lucky, this will fix your problem.

Its behind the end cover on the drivers side of the transmission.

 

I had a 1994 SL1 that had this same problem - shifting into or out of reverse
would take a few seconds. You had to wait for the "thump" before applying
the gas.

I went to a dealer about it, and they told me that my transmission was going
and needed to be replaced. 80,000 miles later, I sold the car. (114,000 miles
total) I never did replace that transmission.

 

Most dealer repair techs have no idea what their talking about. Escpecially when it comes to the S-Series.

They wanted to charge you $2000 plus labor to replace a transmission that needed a $500 part. Even less if you bought the valvebody elsewhere and installed it yourself. They probably would of just replaced the valvebody and charged you for a transmission.

I remember back when Saturn was all about customer service.