Overview & Reviews

The Saturn brand, which was part of General Motors, has been discontinued as of the 2009 model year. Though popular in its early years, Saturn suffered from poor sales and was shuttered as part of GM's bankruptcy reorganization.

Despite its sad end, Saturn started with a bright future. After losing market share to Japanese imports during the '80s, General Motors launched Saturn, a new division that began selling small, low-priced cars in 1990. The division promoted itself as "different," with Saturn dealers offering no-haggle pricing and friendly customer service.

Saturn made its debut with the S Series line of vehicles. Available in sedan, coupe and wagon configurations, these Saturns differentiated themselves from other GM products with all-new platforms and flexible plastic panels meant to resist denting. Additionally, the brand was granted its own plant, with all Saturns being built at a dedicated facility in Spring Hill, Tennessee. These first Saturns weren't exactly built to burn rubber; they were powered by engines that offered from 85-124 horsepower. The payoff, though, was that these were among the most fuel-efficient vehicles of their day, offering up to 40 miles per gallon (when equipped with a manual transmission).

Just after the brand's conception, GM boasted that Saturn vehicles would benefit from rapid evolution, but in the early years, this wasn't the case. The brand's vehicles saw only one redesign in their first decade of existence. The revamp took place in the mid-'90s, and for the most part, it was only skin deep. Exteriors were spruced up and interior room saw a slight increase.

The Saturn brand enjoyed some success in its earliest years, fueled by buyers who were in love with its unique approach to customer relations that included "no-haggle" pricing. By the turn of the century, though, the novelty had worn off. With dated platforms and a limited range of products, the marque was neglected by GM, and disappointing sales figures showed that buyers had taken note and chosen to spend their dollars elsewhere.

GM responded by ramping up its commitment to the Saturn brand. In 2000, it rolled out the L Series; sharing a platform and an engine with the Opel Vectra (one of GM's European products) the sedan was the opening salvo in GM's ultimately futile fight to resuscitate the struggling brand. An SUV, the Vue, was unveiled, as was a minivan, the Relay. The S Series was replaced by the lamentable Ion, which was available as a sedan and a coupe. GM also added a hybrid to the lineup, with the introduction of the Saturn Vue Green Line.

Later, Saturn included the sporty Sky roadster, the midsize Aura sedan, the compact second-generation Vue crossover and the full-size Outlook crossover. For a brief period, there was also the European-sourced Astra compact hatchback.

Despite the increase in product quality, however, the Saturn brand effectively collapsed in 2009. As part of GM's bankruptcy proceedings, Saturn was offered up for sale. Initially, it was believed that the Penske Corporation would take over Saturn. But the deal fell through at the last minute, thereby spelling the final end for GM's import-fighting experiment.

User Reviews:

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  About the car - 2006 Saturn VUE
  By Jake - December 25 - 9:26 pm

  It is probably the best car I’ve had so far. I just hit 280,000 miles on it today and it is still going as good as it did 5 years ago. Probably one of the best cars I’ve had ever and I got it when it came out and I’ve only had to replace the starter and alternator on it 2 years ago at different times.

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  2009 Sky Redline Collectible - 2009 Saturn Sky
  By Mark S - October 12 - 6:29 pm

  Not only is the 2009 Saturn Sky Redline a blast to drive, it’s also turning out to be a great investment. The 2009 was the last year of the Sky sold to the public. It had modern features like Bluetooth that earlier versions did not have. There are very few 2009 Redlines out there, and they have become quite sought after. If you can find one it’s the best of both worlds….great to drive on sunny days, and a great investment as well. Turning out to be a fun hedge against inflation…..

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  Nice car for the money - 2005 Saturn ION
  By gary wagner - December 24 - 8:43 am

  Leased for $110 per month from GM and its a vary nice car. Fun to drive with plenty of power. Basic no power windows but has air and automatic.

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  Grand Cherokee vs Saturn view - 2005 Saturn VUE
  By Dennis Hyrkas - December 23 - 8:46 am

  Was amazed with the acceleration for a 4 cylinder. High RPM during acceleration sounds like a souped up go cart. Steering takes a little bit of getting use to. Handles much better than the Jeep Grand Cherokee. Traded my Jeep for the VUE, glad I did.

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  Two Differing VUEs - 2003 Saturn VUE
  By Hot Turtle - December 22 - 10:00 am

  Drove an AWD and it sounded like it. The ride was rumbly, and truckish. Then drove the FWD with the V6. Completely different vehicle. Nice ride, quieter. Went with the V6, FWD, leather appointments, and got an excellent, high quality "station wagon". Excellent safety features, much better interior, and versitility. Best of all, 0% financing for 60 months, no payments until 2003! All this and Saturns outstanding dealerships. Delighted.

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  Saturn...never again... - 2005 Saturn ION
  By CAB - December 15 - 5:10 pm

  I have had my Saturn ION 3 for a while and have had many problems from the tires, brakes, interior ceiling, sunroof...I can keep going. The car is nice to look at but I will not buy another one. The customer service also was not what I expected. Overall not a good car and not a good feel. I really wanted to buy the VUE, something really big will have to happen to change my mind.

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  Happy so far - 2007 Saturn VUE
  By Jim - December 9 - 5:33 pm

  Purchased the 07 instead of a new 06 since they were only about $2k apart. It struggles with the 4 cyl but that was expected since we went that way for the gas mileage. Right now we get about 23 mpg. Pretty good for a small SUV. The ride is nice, space is good, looks fabulous.

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  100K mile test Astra XE 5-door AT 2008 - 2008 Saturn Astra
  By rook119 - November 25 - 11:40 am

  Price new: $13,500 - bought winter 08 when the economony blew up and GM was giving cars away. The car was made in Belgium, with German parts and an Aisin (Japanese) transmission. So unlike other Saturn/Opels the car thankfully wasnt Americanized with things like overly spongy suspensions. So the car is manuverable and a blast to toss around. I think its still arguably the best looking subcompact on the market. Its really the best affordable European car on the market still today. Really if you can get this car at about 75K miles and about $6-7K I would highly recommend it.

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  satisfied - 2005 Saturn ION
  By ron nelson - November 23 - 4:00 pm

  excellent on the highway, great in the local streets....i love the exterior design....the interior seating is a little uncomfortable, but its very good for bad backs....the saturn handles curves and turns exceptionally well, gas mileage is great.

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  I enjoy my Saturn Ion 3 - 2004 Saturn ION
  By Morrowfield - November 22 - 2:16 am

  This car was purchase with 19,000 miles. It has leather interior and XM Satellite radio which I have not activated yet. It is my nicest car to date, but the black color requires weekly hand washes and detailing, as well as waxing or the dirt shows! I hope the car remains reliable in the next 5 years! I will keep my fingers crossed, for now I am very happy with my purchase! Also had a good buying experience. Its a good alternative to Civic, which I know from experience requires lots of maintenance over the life of the car.