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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  Saturn Vue Delivers - 2009 Saturn VUE
  By Fred Saunders - June 28 - 4:43 am

  The Vue is fun to drive. I recently took it up mountains with three passengers. The V-6 with the manual mode shift made the drive easy work and fun. The car has excellent control to hug the curves and ample power to negotiate the inclines.The features including On-Star Directions and Connections and the satellite radio added to the driving pleasure. The fuel economy is still somewhat disappointing, but the car is not yet broken in. I would not hesitate to recommend either the 4 cylinder or V-6. Fred Saunders

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  Its a Looker - 2007 Saturn Sky
  By Alan Mc - June 28 - 2:20 am

  The Sky Redline has plenty of power, the handling is super. It is a little rough riding, on bumpy roads, but with the top down on a smooth road, it cant be beat. The style makes heads turn and wonder, its a Saturn. Yes it is and I am very happy.

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  2004 Saturn VUE Redline - 2004 Saturn VUE
  By HeyTodd - June 27 - 7:46 am

  This is a wonderful vehicle - It has plenty of room for the whole family, and more than enough horsepower to get us where were going.

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  outlook transmission failure - 2008 Saturn Outlook
  By jerry194 - June 26 - 12:24 pm

  Over all car is "okay". Transmission has serious problems. Had to be rebuilt at 58k miles, control module replaced at 111k, speed sensor at 115k, and now looking at another rebuild at 141k. Vehicle is unreliable and I would defiantly not recommend it. GM quality is long gone, never buy another.

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  Ion-1 - 2005 Saturn ION
  By Jason - June 26 - 6:16 am

  Bought this car new in May 2005 and had one problem with the transmission but havent had any other problems since. Im up to 47,000 miles now. A decent car overall. I average 32mpg driving conservatively and about 27mpg with no regard to fuel efficiency driving. The car has some zip if you need it. Nice thing about the plastic panels is that the car looks the same as I bought it new and I rarely go to the car wash. And replacing the panels is cheap if I have to.

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  Nice but needs improvement - 2006 Saturn VUE
  By S Grathwohl - June 25 - 10:46 am

  Have small problems such as windshield washer fluid leakage. Antifreeze leakage. Rear brakes need to be turned at 20,000 miles. Rattle noise from engine compartment. Rubber moulding around rear doors becomes detached easily. Larger problem with replacement of trans-axle at 21,000 miles. Vehicle rides hard and expect to replace struts and shocks by 25,000 miles.

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  My Third Saturn - 2003 Saturn ION
  By cjf - June 25 - 10:00 am

  I have had 3 Saturns in 8 years. My experience with these cars have been excellent. The milage has been very good and I have never had any kind of problem mechanical or otherwise with them. My experience buying them has been a pleasure no hassle of any kind no pressure salesmanship. I love my new ION 3 it is roomy, has all the bells and whistles and my in city gas mileage is 26 miles to the gallon on the road it is 38-39. It is also the only car that can be called American.

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  Fast and Solid - 2006 Saturn VUE
  By James - June 24 - 3:20 am

  We have had out Vue for just over 6 months and love it. It has a great engine and transmission. You can cruise effortlessly at highway speeds and haul a 3000 lb trailer without much effort. It has plenty of room inside, but is not too big on the outside. The exterior styling is nice, but the interior is really slick looking. We ahve had no problems so far. I definitely recommend this vehicle.

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  Love it! - 2009 Saturn Aura
  By Lawstudent09 - June 22 - 5:16 pm

  I have only owned this car (used) for a little over a month, but I love it! I have had NO problems with it at all. I went from having a Saturn L100 to this car, If GM wasnt scrapping Saturn I would buy another one. I love the design, the inside is awesome. I have plenty of room as the driver and so do my children in the back seat. This car is WORTH the money! I get great gas mileage, and the engine is amazing, very quite. Very smooth ride The safety ratings make it even better.

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  Your best choice - 2002 Saturn VUE
  By Gail - June 20 - 9:30 pm

  Clearly your best choice for a medium size suv. The most features of anyone,Saturn reliability, and great service. Also you dont have to worry about this company selling a vehicle that was not thoroughly tested for safety and defects(unlike that other car maker-you know that one that begins with F and is a four letter word).