Well, even though some of us might be struggling, it's refreshing to see that GM is still honouring the 5yr/60,000 warranty from Saturn --

Case in point .... for the last couple of weeks, the '09 Aura I bought for my wife (unbeknownest to me) has been consuming radiator fluid at a prodigious rate. My wife asked me to go buy a gallon of pre-mix for her car. I thought we had a jug on the garage shelf, only to be told that she "used that last week".

Careful looking around showed no external leaks. Oil was clear (although it was time for an oil change). No stains on the garage floor. Car runs smoothly, with no hesitation and the plugs are good. I drove the vehicle to the GM dealership in Mobile (55 miles) and had no problems with overheating.

The service manager listened to my tale of woe, and turned his ex-Saturn tech loose on it. The report is either (1) blown head gasket, or (2) tiny crack in head, allowing coolant into the exhaust side of the system. Fortunately, I'm still covered by the 5/60 plan, so all work is "on their nickel".

Should have a solid diagnosis tomorrow, and I'll add it here ..............

 

Here's the update --

As mentioned above, the dealership crew has had my car since last week, searching for the reason why I'm losing coolant. The verdict --> cracked head.

The dealership service manager has ordered a COMPLETE new engine for the car (which should arrive late Tuesday). That means I should be back on the road Thursday ... barring any other last minute problems.

Why a totally new engine? I dunno, except that there's a GM service bulletin out directing the total engine replacement if an interior water leak develops (an issue?) Sounds like they (Saturn/GM) may have received a number of poor castings from the foundry, and are gonna backcharge them for time/material in an effort to recoup funds.

Bottom line, I end up with a totally new engine and gotta do a break-in cycle in my driving. Oh well, better it happened now, than another 15,000 miles down the road ---

 

And that is a good thing!

 

Here's closure on this thread --

Picked the car up today ... final cost to me was $21.01 (to replace the gas cap). New engine is in, and working fine. Dealer tech informed me the motor is already 'run-in', so a cycle of break-in driving is not necessary. The engine picks up the balance of the vehicle powertrain warranty, which is 7yr/100,000miles rather than the 5yr/60,000 that I reported earlier in the thread.

Tried to talk them outa the old engine (for cash) but no luck. They're shipping it back to GM, where it'll be torn down, examined, etc. Apparently a pissing contest between the foundry that made the engine castings, and the company the builds/assembles the motors -- each one claiming the other is to blame. In either case, GM is gonna collect from somebody (not me)

 

You know, GM actually has a track recored of some phenominal warrenty coverage. I had a similar expriance with a Diesl Eldorado, not worth repeating at the time. But, it still is amazing that they can build something that actually needs that kind of coverage rather than getting it right the first time.

 

that and they probably have a glut of assembled Aura engines to use up

 

Re-reading this thread and letting my mind wander and re-thinking, yes I have had some phenomenal warrantee responses from GM but then again I am beginning to remember;
50,000 mile Vega I-4’s
Piles of Corvair engines
Stacks of 2.8 liter, v-6’s
The Diesel Debacles
4.0 V8 Caddies.
Chevy V8 engine mounts
hidden warrantees
They are in many cases sad and some how stupid
but the funniest (read also the stupidest)
The overheating problems with the Iron Duke I4 in the back of the Fiero’s. I had one of those. It was a fun car and despite the bad press (thinking about it, much like the Saturn) I enjoyed the car but one of the “Fixes” was a big ugly plaque that was to be affixed to the center of the dashboard visible to all concerned that said something to the affect that if you did not keep the radiator full of water (a problem due to the design of the rear engine car) it would over heat and catch on fire.
You betcha, I took it and stuck it right to the dash board!!!!!
I wish I had that stupid plaque. It was a monument to idiocy that prevailed and apparently still does to GM that has lead to the loss of Pontiac, Oldsmobile and Saturn along with jobs, reputation and market place.
No wonder Kia’s have become popular.

 

Ocean .................hows the engine & repair work holding up?

 

SW2cam --

Engine and repair work are holding up just fine. In fact, this engine runs quieter than the original. Did find an alignment problem with the AURA after I got it back (driver's side camber was out), apparently had been for some time. Had the alignment work done, and slapped a set of BridgeStone Srerenity tyres on it -- sweet riding. Mileage is slightly up from original, but I need to get a couple of tankfulls more before I crow about that. All-in-all. a good job. Had the work done by GM dealership in Mobile - one that had absorbed a lot of the Saturn techs. Totally professional

 

On a related subject, drove by the X-Saturn dealership now VW, the we fix Saturns sign is gone, but the Chevy Dealership next door that announced they would and still has a big Banner up, infact a couple now, saying that they do.
Interesting because all reference to Oldsmobile and Pontiac (and hummer) anywhere is gone.