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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  Comfortable and roomy but tranny is awful! - 2007 Saturn Outlook
  By eric - September 14 - 1:00 pm

  I replaced an 02 Impala with this. I love the ride and interior appointments. Sporty handling. Very comfortable on long road trips and tons of storage. I dont like the transmission, MPG, build quality. Everyone says the MPG is not what they expected based on the sticker and Im no exception. The build quality is questionable because I had the thing in at least 10 times for piddly stuff. The worst however is the transmission. Short of a major reprogramming of the shift points and general responsiveness, this transmission stinks badly- period. I fear however that if that is done, MPG will suffer even more. It hunts in 6th, and requires an act of God (a slow one) to downshift!

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  Check out the trunk space! - 2003 Saturn ION
  By Mommyh123 - September 14 - 10:00 am

  Great vehicle for the money. We have 2 small children and we all fit comfortably. The trunk is HUGE and great for groceries and everything that you have to carry. We even fit a little tikes wagon and 3 pieces of luggage in the trunk. Highly recommended.!

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  Maybe its just me - 2003 Saturn VUE
  By Ednava58 - September 14 - 10:00 am

  Service writer is great. I bought the car in December and its been in the shop at least once a month since I bought it. Dont even ask about December and January. Two main complaints, there is a knocking noise, like someone is pounding on my car near the gas tank and Saturn hasnt found a fix for it. The other complaint is sometimes while driving, its feels like my transmission is slipping, or not change gears. This is one of the problems that I keep taking my car in, they did an upgrade once, but of course it never does it when a technican is riding with you. I think I would love this VUE if it didnt have problems, I think its possessed.

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  Its Ok to Buy American Again - 2003 Saturn VUE
  By so1stros - September 14 - 10:00 am

  Just bought 2 weeks ago, this car is a lot of fun to drive. The 5 speed is great, lots of room, great (blue) color. Lots of people notice this car. Not the same old, same old SUV look, and looks like it costs thousands more. Im a Nissan/Mazda devotee, but was impressed with ratings, so Im hoping this car proves its OK to buy American again...

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  Love/Hate relationship - 2002 Saturn VUE
  By MP - September 13 - 2:36 am

  Ive had the Vue for 3 yrs and enjoyed until it started having problems at 40k miles. Handles OK in snow. Was able to get up steep hill in 2 in snow with minimal slippage. Gets 19/26 mpg. Love the layout of trunk. Unfortunately needs work now. Hubs bad and thermostat went out last year. Work cheaper to get done by someone other than dealership. Loved it and hoped to own for several years until it started breaking down at so few miles. Wish it didnt have problems.

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  This is a Saturn? - 2007 Saturn Aura
  By Ernie - September 12 - 9:43 pm

  It looks like Saturn will have a huge hit on their hands with the new Aura. From the ouside, the styling is just right, mixing traditional sedan lines with a contemporary edge. I purchased the XR model for the 3.6 V6 and 6 speed automatic. The performance is above average with very good off the line torque and smooth highway passing. If the public testdrives these cars before making a lemming-like decision to buy a Toy-onda, theres a great chance theyll buy the Aura. By the way, my maxed-out Aura cost almost 3 grand less than the V6 Camry.

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  SATURN - 2006 Saturn ION
  By walter - September 12 - 10:42 am

  Great car, i have 200k miles still goin strong and looks good doin it!!! It is a car way ahead of its time!!

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  Saturn XR AWD - 2008 Saturn Outlook
  By Chris - September 10 - 6:46 pm

  Recently purchased the Saturn Outlook XR AWD. Special ordered the Ocean Mist with Gray leather interior. Drives smoothly and very comfortable and spacious for family of five. Looked at Enclave and Acadia as well and with same options Saturn is a better deal dollar for dollar. We have the same options as the Acadia SLT-2 for $1500 less.

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  A car better than the Camary or Accord - 2008 Saturn Aura
  By BetterThanToyota - September 10 - 5:40 pm

  I purchased this vehicle this month. Far superior to any foreign label, the ride, handling and performance is superior to anything in its class. An excellent road car that exceeds its EPA fuel economy should alarm all competitors, the smooth ride reminds me of the Cadillac but has the performace of a Corvette with European stying. Forget what you have researched and go Saturn Aura. You really wont be disappointed. By the way this is 5th Saturn Ive owned and the best.

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  Awesome Ride - 2008 Saturn VUE
  By Lauren Anne - September 8 - 3:36 pm

  This SUV was everything I wanted and more in a car. The quality is outstanding. This car has an incredbily smooth drive, great turn radius, and is an all around safe SUV. I cannot imagine owning another SUV and I would highly recommend the Saturn VUE to anyone.