RIP Pontiac, killed off right when they were going back to their roots

Before everyone had a Camry or an Accord, in the 80's they all had the Cutlass supreme..

Saturn S series is the greatest little known secret in economical commuter cars. I love mine, simple to work on, comfortable, all around dirt cheap to own and gets 38mpg.

My dad bought a 1997 Saturn SL2 manual and it was the car I came home from the hospital in and 18 years later it was my first car and it still ran amazing no issues at all it was really reliable car

I see sooooo many Grand Prix's on the road, I would imagine they are the 3.8.

I bought my 1996 Saturn SC2 used in 2000 with 29K miles on it. I still have it, and still drive it. Freaking love that car.

Saturn was such a good idea. We had 3 or 4 S series cars when I was a kid.

I miss Pontiac. I owned several Pontiac Bonnevilles. The 3.8 V6 was great. One had series 2 and the other had a series 3. Only issues I had on the series 3 was replacing the water pump....twice. but it was a very easy and cheap water pump to replace.

When my father first came to the us in the 80’s his first purchase was a bronze 1985 Pontiac trans am firebird and a Big Mac 😆. It had this big gorgeous bird on the hood. I been trying to track it down for years now and im starting to loose hope. It got in a minor accident and he sold it to his friend who fixed it up and sold it. Unfortunately I was too late I was gonna surprise my dad once I found it but he passed last year. Anyway I’m gonna try to buy one and make it exactly the same as his.

Still see a lot of Pontiacs on the road, hope to continue seeing them. They’re special compared to new boring cars

Saturn will always have a place in my heart. My first car was a silver, first generation, 4 door, twin cam. I loved it! It was so fun to drive. The automated seatbelts were annoying is the only bad thing I remember. A few cars later, and I have a 2008 Saturn Vue now. It only had one previous owner. I love it too.

I had the best luck with a 2002 Saturn SL2. I put on almost 200K miles. It never broke down or left me stranded. Always started even in the coldest Chicago winters

I own a 2004 Saturn Ion coupe, standard, bought it new, about to roll over 200k, replaced clutch at 178k and fuel lines, that is the only major work I have done on it. Most reliable car I have owned, has never broke down on me.

I love Saturns. I worked for them for half a dozen years and they were great cars. They really only ever had problems when they started borrowing parts from other makes. The Ecotec was a decent motor but Saturn decided to introduce a first gen CVT in the VUE it was horrendous. Constant rebuild and breakdowns. They were so bad that they had more than 20 TSBs for the same issue at the same time. Saturn then issued and extended warranty on all CVTs. They then redeemed themselves with the introduction of the Honda 3.5 and it's 5 speed automatic in the VUE. The previous 3.0 V6 also found in the L-Series was Saab based and was decent but was subject to many oil cooler failures that required intake removal and 6+ book hours to complete. By far, the best were the first gen S-Series cars. Minimal options besides power windows/steering/seats/locks made them simple to work on and a breeze to troubleshoot. Thanks for touching the car brand close to my hear Wizard!

The early Saturn's were really good little cars. They had excellent build quality and even had their own engines and the body panels were innovative as was the dealer network. As usual, GM couldnt avoid ruining a good thing and instead of bringing the other GMs up to Saturn's level, they instead drug Saturn down into the corporate GM cesspool.

Some of my favorite cars that I've ever owned has been an Oldsmobile. I've owned a 85' Cutlass, 2000 Intrigue, and a 96' Aurora. I enjoyed driving all of them! Man I miss Oldsmobile ☹️

Car to buy: Ones that have Buick 3800 or LS variant Not to buy: Quad Four

As an ex-mechanic, Saturns were so easy to work on, and were very reliable.

My very first car was a 04 Pontiac grand am and I loved that thing, I still have It but it was reliable, it looked rly good honestly and even though there might be problems here and there, like all cars have, it was such a reliable and surprisingly fast car, if u like modding cars like I do these are cool cars you can work on for cheap, RIP Pontiac!!!! 🕊️🕊️

You’re mistaken big time about the GTO interior. Best seats in a GM car!

Drove a Grand Prix GXP from a rental place in Utah. That thing was amazing. The rental guy was almost giddy handing me the keys, excited for me, lol.

Grand prix with a 3.8 where aswome cars

My friend had a 2004 Grand Prix 3.8 with almost 450k miles. Was a great car until someone pulled out in front of him at 40mph. Totaled but still runs and moves. Did have the transmission rebuilt at around 350k.

I loved Pontiac. My first car was a beater 1969 Firebird--fun!. I had an '82 Pontiac Grand Prix LJ--I really enjoyed that car. My 2001 3.5L "Short Star" equipped Oldsmobile Intrigue was my favorite car ever. It had nearly every option. It had comfortable leather seats, and a smooth ride. I had to give it up after 10 years and 225,000 miles due to cooling system issues. I'd buy a 3800 equipped Intrigue any day if I found one in good shape, as it wouldn't have the cooling issues the 3500 had.

Car Wizard: You mentioned the Olds Cutlass was a full frame until 1982, when it was actually full frame until 1988, the last rwd olds cutlass. In the fall of 1988 the front wheel drive cutlass supreme debuted which was unibody. The Cutlass Calais released in 1985 was also unibody, sister to the Grand Am and Buick Somerset/Skylark.

That's true on the older saturn. A friend of mine used older saturns for a courier business. The lowest mileage one he had was over 200k. One over 350k.

Just bought a 2003 Saturn VUE V6 AWD for $400 that the timing belt broke on. I found one at the U-pull yard without a broken belt and grabbed a set of cylinder heads. I just got all the parts to put it all together, including the GM timing belt tools. I’m hoping to get a decent running car out of it. My wife had an SL2 Saturn and it was great till the transmission went out. But then a couple hundred bucks later it was on the road again. Thanks for a great video!

One of the first cars I ever drove was my mom's 1996 Saturn SL2. Loved that car. Bought a 2002 SL2 brand new off the showroom floor, Oct. 27, 2001. 14 months to the day later some kid turned left in front of me and he totaled it, completely. The whole front of the car was in a mass of pieces on the side of the road. I walked away with a small scratch on my ring finger and what amounted to a carpet burn on my elbow. That was it. Along with Mercedes, Saab, and Volvo, Saturn was one of the safest cars ever made. I'd buy another one.

Legend has it: the Car Wizard once had a staring contest with the sun and he won.

Great video, thanks, I bought a Saturn SL1 for next to nothing, you made me feel better. Funny thing is it's sort of easy to work on. The 2001 owner's manual actually shows you how to change the oil and transmission fluid and how to turn off the "Service Needed" light; truly a customer friendly approach

I disagree on the newer Grand Prix's being a "not to buy" I had a 2004 Pontiac Grand prix GTP and it was very reliable. I traded it in with 160,000 miles and only 3 issues in 6 years.

I had a 97 Saturn SC1. It was a great car man. I just had a 93 GMC k1500 prior to that so getting 30-35 mpg out of it was fantastic. She would burn some oil so I'd have to top it off here and there, but it was still such a great car. The weird little quirks it had were fine. I paid 1300 for it, drove it for 3-4 years and sold it for 1400 still running great, only about 150k on it. Love Saturn s series

Grand Prix’s are good cars. Any W body GM with the 3.8 will run forever.

Another advocate for the GTO here. I've owned my 6 speed 06 for 9 years now. Great car, Very reliable. And i disagree on the interior, i've found it to hold up well and be very comfortable. Parts availability and cost can be tough though for anything unrelated to the engine or transmission since they were low production volume and australian built

I had an SL1 Saturn and got 40mi/gal easy. It was an amazing car. The look of the car today would still stand up to the era. You can't make money on things that don't break down often.

I had a '93 Saturn SC with the twin cam engine around '05-06. That was a great little car. The interior rattled like crazy, but the fuel mileage was fantastic especially on the highway. 35+. For a cheap economical care it was close to perfect. The styling aged well too.

Oldsmobile’s 215 is different to Buick’s, almost identical block but different heads. Buick has vertical heads with almost hemispherical combustion chambers. Oldsmobile has Rocket style heads and 6 head bolts per cylinder instead of 5. Rover executives were visiting Mercury Marine to sell diesel engines where they saw a recently discontinued aluminum V8 being adapted for boat use, and immediately decided to buy the Buick design. Oldsmobile’s 215 powered Jetfire was the first turbocharged car ever made, a couple months before the Corvair. Repco of Australia used Olds 215 blocks with custom overhead cam heads. It won the Formula 1 championship in 1966.

See the S series is a great car. when I got my 01 sw2, it drove nice and I was getting a great winter beater and helping out a high school girl with money. Problem is, the whole family beat the car up and the dif pin fairy hit me 5k into ownership. The whole time I had a L series with around 250k. That car is still my daily and the S was sold to a friend and back on the road again. Saturn was a great company, and GM ruined it.

I bought a 1996 Saturn SL new in May of '96 with stick shift and it will be 27 years old in May and is still going strong with 89K miles. The dark red paint and upholstery look new. I love this car which gets 30 mpg in town and 40 on the highway.

I’ve got a 2000 Saturn SL(base model, manual transmission, roll up windows, no power steering) that I bought used in 2002. 18 years later, I’m still driving it and it has 250K miles. Great car!! At about 230K miles, head gasket failed in the most elegant way possible, just a bit of coolant leaked from front of the engine. I replaced it myself, along with timing chain(& tensioner) and oil pump. Car once again ran like a champ!! Cheap to drive, easy to work on, and cheap to fix. I’m gonna drive it ‘til it blows up or can no longer be fixed; cheers!!

One of your mechanics enter and was like -why is my boss talking to a camera?

We have a Vue with the Honda 3.5 V6, dead reliable!

Thanks, CW. We especially appreciate your content while staying at home for weeks on end.

My first car was a 93 S series wagon. When my grandpa passed away the car was passed down to me. Had about 275k on it when I started driving and I rode it over 350k. Probably spent less than 1000 dollars on repairs throughout the years I drove it. It honestly was a great little car it definitely hurt taking it to the junkyard. Always makes me happy when i see an old s series on the road. Reminds me of my Grandpa and how much he loved that car

The Bonneville, and GTO were Pontiac's swan songs.

Come on Wizard, Grand Am is the exact same car as the Alero.

Love my Saturn SL2's (first I had was t-boned so I bought another), ultra ultra reliable little cars that are light on gas that are extremely easy to work on. I think there's only a couple sensors and fuel injection parts that are shared with other GM's but that's about it. Oh and the same door chime that I've heard in a couple older Oldsmobile and Cadillac models (not the standard GM chime that everything has these days)

I really appreciate what you're dong. Thank you. It helps a lot.

Thanks..G'Day from Australia...Love your videos. Yes, our Holden Commodore (Holden WAS a GM Subsidery until recently in Late 2017) used the 3.6litre V6 after previously using the bullet proof 3.8 V6 (they also used the LS as a V8 option) RIP Holden! ...a big shock to all Australians when they closed down.

I am sad oldsmobile, Pontiac, and Saturn went out of business. I had a 1995 Oldsmobile Cutlass Sierra I bought from my Pastor I loved it!

Thanks Wizard and team. Your soothing sounds have been helping me fall asleep during this tough time. Keep it up.

Great vid! I had a '99 Saturn SL2 that I used for landscaping after I lost a half ton truck in a flood. The SL2 had a standard transmission. I pulled an 8' x 4.5' trailer with it all over a Texas city, up steep hills, etc... I got 40 mpg on the interstate too driving 65 mph and trying to drive it softly (not loaded down). I did have a collision with a suburban, and you could hardly tell, except for some white paint left on the front quarter panel from the suburban. I even had slightly taller tires on it and went off road some. I think is was a 1.9 ltr Subaru engine that powered it.

What makes the grand am so much worse than the alero? Both are the same platform with the same engine options. Is the interior quality better on the alero or what?

My brother sent this 2 me. We love PONTIAC. Base 2004 Grand Prix has 300K on it and still going strong. 3.8 engine low friction. Beautiful thing

Glad you remembered about the Saturn Relay!

Love these videos! Lots of good memories riding around in Saturns as a kid. Definitely will be interesting to see who all survives this one. So many ads trying to keep customers airing, and lots of good deals to be had right now!

This is genuinely good content that helps people. Informative and based on solid experience. People looking for a reliable affordable car can actually get a good advice from this series

My favorite car back in “the day” 1972 Pontiac LeMans bought it in72 when I got out of the Navy

Ironically my grandmother had a 2007 Saturn Outlook XR she bought when new, and surprisingly we never had any issues with it. My grandmother did make sure she took care of it. It had about 120,000 miles and my mom and her traded it in for a 2010 Honda Accord EX-L not too long before my grandmother passed away. It was still running even then. Last I saw via a vin check I did when I found old papers on it, it’s currently in Texas and still goin. Maybe we were lucky. I love these videos and keep it up.

I loved my 2006 Pontiac Grand Prix

Great video! Thanks for the distraction. I had a 1994 Saturn Sc2. Excellent car.

Pontiac SSEi

I own an 04 gto and as for the interior I love it man

Saturns have been bought in my family since the SW series back in 1999. Parents bought the SW ( I can't remember if it was the SW1 or SW2,) my brother got ahold of it, and then I bought it off of him when I needed a second car. It ran pretty well. Sure it burned about a quart of oil a month, ran a little rough in its last few years, and the A/C compressor seized up one day (which completely stopped the engine at idle, that was a fun experience to figure out 100 miles from home!) but it was a good reliable car. Up until a friend totaled it being careless in a roundabout. My parents also own a Saturn Vue that's still with them and (so far as I know) hasn't had any major issues to it. Though not my first car, I own a 2007 Ion 2 I bought new and it's still with me to this day (147,000 miles later.) I've had no problems outside of the sway bar bushings needing replacing every 6 years, a CV axle giving out (but that's my fault for getting a cheap replacement when it started knocking, having the new one knocking a month later, and waiting a bit too long to properly replace it,) and a fuel injector clogging due to bad fuel while hauling a small U-haul trailer 600 miles. I've driven that car all over the eastern half of the USA and one or two states west of the Mississippi. I'd love to take that car to all the mainland states and even Alaska before it dies. Either way I plan on running that thing until either the engine or transmission explodes (and that's assuming I can't get a low milage replacement or rebuild it myself,) and I've been keeping up with general maintenance so hopefully that won't happen for another 150,000-300,000 miles. I'm quite sad that the Saturn brand ended, since I won't be able to get a new Saturn when this one finally bites the dust.

My college car was a 1995 Saturn SL2. I loved that car, especially because of the polymer body panels that you mentioned. It ran forever, also. I was sad when I had to give it up.

WWWWIIIIIIIIzzzaarddd.... SSAAAAAABBBB wiiizzard.... SAAB!!!

Thanks for endorsing the GTO. I love my '05 even thought the seat stitching is disintegrating. Just got it out for spring but can only drive it to the grocery store for now. So sad.

Thank you car wizard and mrs wizard for your continued dedication and support you give us in trying times . your a real kool and inteligente mechanic. You Rock dude! 🔧🎸

My 2004 Pontiac Vibe was the most solid car I’ve ever owned. Although that’s probably because it was a Toyota Matrix with a Pontiac label on it. Put almost 300,000 miles on it with zero problems.

Thank you for not being a supercar chump. Real vehicles!

Thanks for the good and useful information Car Wizard.

Great videos. I really enjoy the buy this not that series. Keep it up! We love watching 'em!!

Thank you wizard, keeping me from going stir crazy and teaching me goid tips,keep up the good work wizard. You and Mrs. Wizard stay safe and healthy

He said supercharged Pontiac V-6 engines were very fast? The strongest one had considerably less power than a Honda or Toyota minivan of 10 years ago.

Very cool video! It's truly sad that these great car companies couldn't manage to stick it out. My first car back in 94, was a 78 Cutlass Supreme Brougham, which I absolutely love and still have today. It may not have the latest whiz bang electronics, but with PS, PB, cruise, tilt, PW, PDL, power trunk, 6 way power pillow top seat, factory power moon roof (astroroof), and with an added alarm sys. for keyless entry it's every thing I could ask for. Now that I've finally completed the restoration, I find myself driving it again, over any of my newer vehicles.

Thanks so much for the great videos.Much appreciated from NewBrunswick Canada!

So in a previous video you recommended the buick LeSabre with a 3.8 you do realize the Grand Prix has the same 3.8 and the same automatic transmission as the LeSabre....

Our '95 SL DOHC with over 200k mi was great until someone hit us. Thx for the good memories!

The 2004-2007 Vue with the V6 is a great SUV. Honda engine and transmission. If you change the transmission oil at regular intervals they last a long time. Easy to change yourself, has a drain plug.

Love your videos wizard and think you do a great job! I only have a couple things to add and that would be weak valve seals on the S Series 1.9 that they tend to use a lot of oil.. To the point customers at my shop would bring them in for oil changes when the low oil pressure light started coming on after 1500 miles from their last change and explaining to them to check the oil once a week and add when necessary and for the L67 that came in the grand Prix GTP yes the car wasn't very good between the interior and rust up here in the northern states but I have the L67 supercharged 3800 in my 99 Monte Carlo and that's the 3rd body that's been in with it's original 4t65HD and other than doing new gaskets this time around and doing new shift solenoids and pressure control solenoids just cause I had everything out and made a 2 hour job a 45 minute deal it's all been very reliable... Love what you do man... Keep up the good work... Just adding my 2 cents lol

Wizard you're seriously so amazing!!! Thank you for being awesome hope you the best seriously

You also forgot the Pontiac bonneville’s. Thought you’d recommend to buy those because they had the 3.8

The 04- 08 grand prix is actually a hidden gem same engine and trans as a late model lesabre and just as easy to work on but hes right the the generation before that had some problems

I still see tons of those Grand Prix and grand am still driving around.

I had a 94 grand prix back in the early 00s and I can confirm the damn interior fell apart and the 3.1 v6 was junk. Im always suprised to see one still running.

Great video Wizard. And interesting history too. Another brand that GM killed was Saab. Not good. Hope you and your family keep safe!

I love these videos. Very informative.

I have a 2010 final edition G6, made 3 miles away from my house. Some suspension problems, but good acceleration for a 2.4 L

I had a 1997 Saturn SL1. Ran like a champ. Had to fix a few minor things. One thing I was loving about the car was that I didn't realize my cooling fan stopped, and even attempted to hotwire it, and as long as the car was moving, the motor kept cool at its normal running temp, which was awesome. Miss that car after a friend borrowed it and wrecked it on me :( it was a great car. Keep up the content wizard. Enjoying what ever you can put out there. What's going on with Hoovies camaro?

I had a 98 grand prix gtp and loved that car

The Wizard likes the Holden commodore!

kinda surprised he didn't list the 90's to early 2000's Bonnevilles as a to buy, I hear nothing but praise for those cars.

I really miss Pontiac! Loved their cars.

Good lord the Wizard couldn't be more off about the interiors of the 04-06 GTO. The seats are hands down the most comfortable car seat I've ever sat in. Most of the dash, door panels, etc are soft touch materials. The interiors were far nicer than the Mustang interiors of the era and very comparable IMO to an E46 3 series

I still have a 2003 grand prix gtp. Drive it every day. I can do most of the work on it myself plenty of parts to find. I think they were great cars mechanically. Interior is very cheap for sure almost fragile but also easy to find stuff to replace it. I think it is a great and reliable car.

I had a 2000 Intrigue as my first car. It had plenty of power and was good looking and comfy. Interesting that you'd recommend an Alero and not a Grand Am. They were basically the same car.

I own a 3.4 V6 Grand Am still going strong today. Yes I agree the interior is cheap but it’s all on how you look after it if it lasts. My Grand Am still going strong no issues and I see lots of them driving around in my area.

I had a 2004 Pontiac Vibe which was really a Toyota Matrix which is really a Corolla wagon. I loved it. It was not the most comfortable car but it ran and had great storage. I had mine for 8 trouble free years and 110K without a problem. My son has a 2005 that is still running strong.

thank you mr wizard for getting me though these hard times

The S-Series Saturns are strange imo. I know they’re reliable cars, but their design is very strange