Saturn :: 2000 Won't Start / Cannot Get The Key In
Dec 17, 2013
I have a 2000 Saturn LW. It's generally been a good car. Approximately 6 months ago it would not start (would not even turn over). Had it towed, starter replaced and things seemed fine. Six weeks later, same thing. Replaced the starter again (supposedly battery was checked both times and fine). Works for another month and wouldn't start again. However, this time I couldn't get the key in. They replaced the electrical (ignition?) switch. Worked for another month or so and then wouldn't crank (as usual, would not turn over at all). Had it towed and the mechanic said the wires weren't connected well. Now 3 or 4 weeks later, almost happened again, but we did get it started on the third try and drove again to the mechanic. Works for him (of course). Says if it happens again, to move the gear handle as it might be a neutral safety switch (I don't think this is it as I'm pretty sure I tried that on a prior occasion).
It does seem to have electrical issues as the inside lights for certain periods of time will flicker. It also went through a spell where it would just cut off while going about 65 with the cruise and you hit a hill. The low power light would come on and a couple of others. It took getting a new computer? put in to get that to go away.
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I have a 2000 Saturn with about 140,000 miles on it. This morning after driving a short distance (maybe 2blocks) to the local gym my car wouldn't start when I came out about an hour later. When I put the key in and give it the first turn to the "run" (think that is what it's labeled) position the dash lights headlights, ac, radio, etc all turn on fine, however when I try to turn it to "start" nothing happens. No noise, no clicking, nothing.
This is the second time this has happened to me, first time was roughly a month ago pretty much the exact same situation drove a short distance this time the car was only off for maybe 10-15 minutes and wouldn't start. However, that time when I went back to my car about 30 minutes later it started just fine, that was not the case this time.
After that first time I brought my car into the local shop to see what the problem was, the mechanic couldn't find anything wrong. Can't recall everything he said he checked (battery, starter, alternator if I recall) and said everything was good and the conclusion he came to is that I must have left a light on or something. Which I didn't, as it was in the middle of the day and my dome light is always set to off anyways and the headlights weren't on and the doors were all properly closed and what not.
Also, I had the battery and spark plugs replaced about a year ago and aside from that everything in my car seems to be working fine...
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My Saturn 2000 LS1 has an intermittent start up problem. If the ignition doesn't complete engagement, the engine shuts down. After a 12=15 minute wait, I try to start again and it engages and starts. (I think the computer has to be re-set, thus the delay)
Nothing shows up on code except "security" but no fix.
I noticed using the remote caused this problem more often. So no longer use it. Also, got a new ignition key which worked. We think it has something to do with "security" as the light comes on....intermittently. Is there a replacement part for the "security" system? Checking your site, no one else seems to have had this problem.
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My wife drives a 2000 Saturn sw2 with 175K. I am out of town currently. Last night she called me and said that the car was cutting out on the interstate. The problem only occurred at almost 3000 rpm while the car was at speeds above 70 mph. Below that it was fine. Then today she called now she said that she could barely get it to 55mph. I am returning home tomorrow and am going to try to fix this in 5 hours before she needs it again. I am going to test drive it first to see if the above statements are correct. If so I am thinking it could be a failing fuel pump. I am not sure it autozone rents a tool that can measure the pressure on the fuel rail. I am thinking that this is a fuel rather than an ignition problem. Any quick diagnosis processes that could narrow down this problem quickly?
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Over the past couple days my 5-speed 2000 Saturn SL1 has been doing something very strange. The other night around 11:30 pm I heard a big crash in my garage. I ran out to see what it was, and the car had moved forward about 4 feet, knocking down some boxes in the process. The car was in first gear, and had been off for at least 6 hours. The freaky thing is it moved forward against the grade of the garage. That’s right, the car was off, in first gear, with no one inside, and moved uphill on its own. A couple days later it did the same thing but with the emergency break on! It crashed into my parents garage door. The car managed to move up a steep driveway with the e-brake engaged. Again it moved about 4 feet.
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I have a Saturn SL2, 2000, 110k miles, automatic. When the engine is cold, reverse works. After the engine warms up, reverse stops working. It doesn't start moving from being in that gear, nor does it work when I push on the gas. Shifting from First to Second is a little rough at times.
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I have a saturn sc1 2001 and the idle is pretty high (2000rpm) what could be the problem ? i already cleaned the IAC ...
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I have a 2000 Saturn SL 1 and it takes about 20 minutes to get started and it started after the radiator was changed and I am losing coolant and I noticed a leak around the flex on the exhaust pipe could this be the starting problem?
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I have a 2000 Saturn SL1 that died while driving. The battery was tested ok! When you turn the key all the lights come on. Turn it to start and all the lights go out except the SES and security lights. I have tried a method of resetting the security system by turning the key on then briefly to start. Letting it set and repete about 3 times or so. But it does nothing for the present issue.
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I drive a 2000 Saturn S-series (SW) that has a lot of miles on it, and has been giving me consistent trouble lately--replaced the catalytic converter, transmission work, belts, coolant issues, you name it. That said, up until recently I would have referred to it as an extremely reliable car. The piles of money I've now put into it make me less likely to call it this. So, my question is twofold: a specific question and a general is-this-the-end question.
As of last night, my car has been having trouble shutting completely off. I am able to turn the key and take it out of the ignition, and the car shuts off--mostly. Something is still on (a fan, part of the engine?) and I have to turn the car on and off many times until it shuts off completely. Last night I had to drive it around the block before it would shut off. I took it to the mechanic today for a separate issue--hemorrhaging coolant--and asked them to look at the shutting off issue.
Of course, when they looked at it, my car suddenly shut off fine. They said that it probably has to do with the ignition switch, and that I'll need to take it to the dealer because my key is so old they can't recreate it from my old beaten up key from 14 years ago. (I'm not exactly sure what they have to recreate, or how an ignition switch works.) Is it time to chuck this car? Or is an ignition switch not a big deal?
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When I accelerate above 2000 RPM, a rattling noise (almost like when a kettle is sitting atop the stove and the water is boiling) comes from under the hood. The sound does not get louder as I accelerate above 2000 RPM (i.e. the sound is constant as long as the engine is above 2000 RPM). I took it to the mechanic, he said that the serpentine belt assembly needed tightening but that did nothing to eliminate the sound. I'm concerned it might be my timing chain. As soon as the engine decelerates below 2000 RPM (say when I put the car in neutral) the noise disappears. It is a 1994 Saturn SL2, manual transmission.
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I have a 2000 Saturn sl2 (automatic 85,000 miles) and recently, I can feel the momentum of the car stop for a split second. The hesitation isn't occurring when the transmission is shifting between gears but, when I'm just at a normal speed or accelerating. The fluid is new and at the right level and there's no change in the RPMs (it doesn't rev up or drop like I would expect) and no weird noises.
This is my fourth Saturn SL and I love em but, I have a feeling that this car has had a more interesting life that the carfax printout indicated. Is carfax reliable?
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I have about 170k on my Saturn Sl2, but a rebuilt engine with about 80k on it. About 1/3 of the time when I brake, i hear a strange sound that sounds like metal on metal. I think it is coming from the front, possibly from the driver side, but it's hard to tell... I thought it could be a stuck caliper (they were in rough shape anyway) but the sound came back after I replaced them. I also have changed the pads and the rotors. It sounds like a lower pitch version of the sound a leaf spring makes when you drag it across concrete.
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We have a 2000 SL1 that started having the horn go off (continuous, not intermittent beeps). The first time it happened was early in the morning, lot of moisture in the air, and it stopped when I hit the middle of the steering wheel. The second time it happened was during the night (again a lot of moisture in the air) and my son unplugged the horn.
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I just bought a 2000 Saturn SC2 that had a "service engine soon" light on. I took it to the shop to get it inspected and they reset the computer and said that I needed to drive it around 100 miles to reset the computer so it would pass MO state emissions. After driving it 160 miles only two of the required have reset. I took it on the highway at 55 MPH steady for 2 miles. Actually did around 8 miles. as the shop suggested and that did not work.
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I drive a 2000 Saturn LS1. My current problem is that every time I run the A/C for an extended period of time water soaks my driver's side front floorboard, with a little bit (but not much) making the passenger side floorboard damp. A friend who is a pretty decent mechanic told me my heater core was busted and causing the water leak, so we bypassed the heater core. The next time I ran the A/C for over two hours, the water came back. I'm 90% sure the actual cause of the water leak is my A/C drain being clogged. What can I do to fix it? Also, why does this happen only on long trips?
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My '99 Saturn SL2 has from time to time in the past year or so had brief bouts where the engine will suddenly rev up to about 2000rpms while at a stop and/or drop down to about 650rpms combined with surging and stalling while moving. The Service Engine light would typically come on in conjunction with these spells, but then a few days later, things would be back to normal and the light would go off. The episodes seem to correspond with weather that has high humidity, but not necessarily extreme heat. Once or twice when the heat was above 90, the car quit completely and wouldn't restart for several minutes, but that was last summer.
About a month ago the car, which is normally parked in a garage, spent the whole weekend outside when we had some extreme rains (in air temps only about 60s or so). Since that weekend, the car is running frequently with the issues previously described, especially the surging and stalling while driving. It will feel like the timing of the fuel is all out of whack, will shudder and run hard, and then it will suddenly correct itself and run normally. A friend has a code reader and the codes that came up are 404 and 1404, which indicate the EGR valve. We replaced that with a new one and put in 4 new spark plugs, but the problem still persists. I believe the fuel pump is in the gas tank, so from other things I've read, a vapor lock may not be the problem since the fuel is being pushed.
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I have a 2000 Saturn SL1 standard. It's been great with very little need for repairs beyond routine maintenance. In the last two weeks it has started an odd squealing that I can't pin point.
While driving along all of a sudden a squealing sound will emanate from what seems like the driver's side firewall area. Acceleration or braking does not seem to change it, nor does adjusting the speed of the hot air blower up or down.
It doesn't sound like a wheel scraping or anything like that. The best way I can describe it is it sounds like what happens if a speed-o-meter cable needs lubricated (but of course there is none of this vehicle).
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I have a 2000 Saturn SL2, about 183,00 miles on it. For about 6 months (maybe longer) the car doesn't want to reverse unless the engine is cold. When I start the car in the morning it reverses just fine but any other time throughout the day it won't. Well, it will if I give it a ton of gas and then it reverses VERY slowly.
There appears to be enough fluid in it, although I haven't changed the transmission fluid in a very long time. It's still that pink color.
I don't want to spend a whole lot of money on this car as this is just one of many problems (although probably the most severe). Will this might be fixed by getting the fluid changed or if it's a sign of a dying transmission with no hope of recovery?
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We have a 2000 Saturn SL2 (120,000 miles). Last night we drove to L.A. and back (from San Diego) , so about 250 miles round trip. For the last 45 miles or so we had the radio on quite loud. At some point in that 30-45 miles the engine developed a very loud knocking noise - like rocks being spun in a tumbler - which we noticed when we got off the free-way and turned down the radio.
This noise did not effect the way the car handled as I did not notice anything when the radio was up. We have been listening to a lot of sounds and I am concerned it could be a Rod Knock - it sounds a lot like this [URL] ... from inside the car, outside it was more of a constant pinging/thunking noise - less gravel sound.
So my quandary is this, our mechanic is not open Sundays so I cannot ask him, but when we take it to him tomorrow, do we drive it or tow it? If the rod is starting to go I do not want to inadvertently do more damage by driving it. The mechanic is 8-10 miles away. We can get their either on the freeway or through surface streets.
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My Saturn 2000 LS1 has an intermittent start up problem. If the ignition doesn't complete engagement, the engine shuts down. After a 12-15 minute wait, I try to start again, it engages and starts. (I think it has a computer and the computer has to be re-set, thus the delay and re-start)
Nothing shows up on code except "security" but no fix.
I noticed using the remote caused this problem more often. So no longer use it. Also, got a new ignition key which worked. We think it has something to do with "security" as the light comes on....intermittently. Is there a replacement part for the "security" system? A fix.? Checking your site, no one else seems to have had this problem.
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