|
Editors Note: This article originally appeared in the November 1997 issue of Motor Trend magazine. It is reprinted here with permission.  The whimsy of enthusiasm is frustrating when you’re trying to spot the next trend and build a business to exploit it. Saturn Performance Systems (SPS) of Dayton, Ohio, is gambling that GM’s plastic and iconoclastic small cars will be the next big thing, and this ‘96 SL2 sedan is its opening bet.
The 1.9-liter DOHC 16-valve four-cylinder Saturn "Power Module" in the SL2 leaves Spring Hill, Tennessee, with 124 horsepower at its crankshaft. To that, SPS packs on a ceramic-coated Hotshot Powerstack intake system capped with a K&N conical filter, a JG Engine Dynamics oversize throttle body, Nology Hotwires ignition wires, Beru Silverstone spark Plugs, a Hotshot exhaust header, and SPS’ own cat-back exhaust system. That all amounts to, SPS claims, a bump up to between 145 and 150 total horsepower. Under the SL2’s hood, the engine looks bare as if stripped for racing. It has a primal appeal, the same appeal a freshly forged sledgehammer might have. And once the engine settles to a raspy, eager idle, that raucous charm isn’t diminished. Accelerate through the five manually selected gears and that rasp becomes a shriek. If you saved up for your Saturn by switching to cheaper granola, you’ll despise it. Carrera gas-charged shocks work with H&R springs to bring the chassis down 1.5 inches and both the front and rear anti-roll bars, while the stock diameter, have been stiffened. In addition, the front shock towers are tied together with an adjustable brace. These are conventional suspension modifications for small cars, but rather rare on a Saturn. Externally (excluding the noise), the most obvious additions are the P205/50ZR16 Toyo Proxes tires on a tasty set of 16-inch Forgeline LS wheels. those wheels mount to hubs that also carry front disc brakes cross-drilled by Stillen and clamped by Carbotech kelate-metallic pads. The standard rear drums get shoes made of the same kelate-metallic material. The rear wing is, in fact, a standard Saturn part but looks surprisingly aggressive on the lowered car. SPS’ modifications turn the normally benign SL2 into a tiny terror. The ride is very stiff, the traction vast, and the sound overwhelming. Get past the exhaust noise, and the engine modifications are worthwhile. The SPS SL2 zipped to 60 in just 7.5 seconds and conquered the quarter mile in 15.8 at 88.2 mph. That’s 0.7 second quicker in the quarter than the last DOHC Saturn MT tested-and right there with such little car legends as the old beloved Nissan Sentra SE-R. The 68.5-mph slalom and 0.88g skidpad were as we expected. The car’s oversteer at the limit as opposed to the usual understeer was surprising. Saturn owners are exceptionally loyal and consistently rate their cars highly in surveys. The question is whether those same owners are ready to make their cars faster. And louder. |
