Although they may rarely fail, is the Saturn fuel pump accessible under the rear seat like other cars... My Saturn took a sh*t last night and it seems like that's what the problem is... I just want to check to make sure it's not...

 

so i also am in the fortunate boat of " my saturn wont start".. i do believe it to be some sort of fuel problem. i heard that the fuel filter is inside the gas tank from some man at the napa auto parts store, does anyone know if this is true? do i really HAVE to take it to some repair shop?

i really hate car problems... i am definitely a stereotypical woman who knows nothing about cars... :]

 

You should have started your very own thread so as to leave the original poster with room to respond, good or bad, without attempting to take his thread away.


Anyway I think you may have more than one issue but you'll need to elaborate a little more than leave us with 'some sort of fuel problem. Does your car start, crank only, start then run poorly, run but stay at a high idle, stall, hesitate, etc.. Usually if you have greater than 100,000 miles then you'e due for a fuel filter replacement regardless of any problem as a maintenance schedule. The fuel filter is outside the gas tank and should be in the right rear tire well area; look for the fuel lines as a guide. You can replace this yourself as it isn't absolutely necessary to have a dealer do it. Check around places for prices such as Autozone or http://rockauto.com.

 

it will start, and idle highly, then when it tries to idle at a normal rpm, it will just shut off.. as if it is running out of gas...

i have a 98 sl1, and it is at about 95k miles right now..

 

"...as if it is running out of gas", does that mean the rpms drop only after warm-up, all the time, some of the time, intermittently?


A typical start-up would have a cold engine idle high around 1200 rpmfor a few minutes and gradually lower the rpm back to idle rpm of about 800 as soon as the engine warms up. Its difficult to interpret "it tries to idle at a normal rpm" when it would be better to cite the actual rpm and any eveness or uneveness in engine running characteristics. You can check for fuel pressure by depressing a fuel rail valve, same as a tire valve, by covering it with a rag and observing for a healthy spray. A better way is to put a fuel presure gauge on ths valve and measure fuel pressure, approximately35-45 psi.It could be something else altogether as you describe your problem more.Edited by: ducky

 

Hey Guys,
Ended up being fouled plugs. The plugs were old to begin with, and then they got so gas fouled that they wouldn't fire. As the wise always say...try the simple things first. Really appreciate the help.


Extra thanks to Ducky!!!


Dan