1996 SC2 Problems, Help?

Hi all,

I was gonna just go to the Saturn dealership like my old man told me to but I thought I'd try some knowledgeable people first who weren't out to get money from me...Anyways, I bought my SC2 3 weeks ago, it has its asthetic problems here and there that I can fix without a hassle and it has the chronic "Check Engine" light...what bugs me is: the dipstick is next to worthless, it always looks like there is NO oil...I got the oil changed last weekend cause I was driving out of town (300 miles round trip) and when I got back, maybe cause of the strain of the long trip, my oil light has been flickering when I hit my brakes or take turns a little fast, so I checked me dipstick, hoping it would show me something...it didn't, BUT it WAS covered in nasty black oil...which was odd because I JUST changed the oil last week...I know my air filter's good and my radiator is brand new, she runs just fine but this worries me...Any ideas? Thanks.

well, saturns do tend to burn oil, saturn claims 1qt/2000miles is normal. but i have seen some that burn a quart every 250 miles. sounds like yours is even burning more. the on and off oil pressure light tells me the oil is so low that whenever the force of turning/braking pushes the oil agaist the oil pan's wall, the pick-up tube isn't geting any oil. put some oil in there right away, and carry a extra quart or two with you until the problem is fixed. there are some ways to reverse the burning oil problem, but normally once it goes below 1 qt/1000miles, a rebuild is nessacary.

http://www.saturnfans.com/forums/showthread.php3?s=&threadid=23676
this is the MMO soak. best tool us saturn owners have. you can also use seafoam, GM top engine cleaner or GM piston and ring cleaner in place of the mmo, i would even try several soaks, one or more with each cleaner.

also be sure the PCV is the OEM peice, the ones you buy at part stores or indeptent shop can cause burning oil. these are the only two that will work right - http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=26072&;

after that curing oil burning gets hard.

for the SES, you will need to go to the dealership or some parts store will read codes. if you get the code i can tell you what it means.

If you have an autozone near by have them check the code. As far as the oil burning. Sierra is right. The only thing I will add is check around your valve cover for traces of oil. Especially on the drivers side, and around the back towards the firewall.