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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  Very Pleased! - 2008 Saturn VUE
  By CCR2008 - May 8 - 4:33 pm

  I love my VUE! I wanted cargo room and good mpg so I went for the 4 cylinder instead of the six. After a grand total of 476.5 miles driven, the combined mpg was 27.09. As others have noted, I also felt the drag with the engine shifting and hill climbing, but I let the engine do itÂ’s thing and didnÂ’t try to compensate during the first 500 miles. After reaching 200+ miles, the transition was noticeably smoother and with very little or no drag. Compared to the other small/midsized SUVs I looked at, the VueÂ’s value, good looks, and competitive fuel economy made my choice easy. The exterior is very attractive with clean, classic lines.

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  Very nice vehicle - 2004 Saturn VUE
  By Ron - May 8 - 9:13 am

  This is my second Saturn and I have had very good luck with both of them. Nothing fancy but comfortable, reliable and economical. The VUE handles very well and can be towed on all fours behind an RV with the Honda engine. I would buy another without hesitation.

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  Drive it, youll buy it - 2007 Saturn Aura
  By PDP - May 8 - 7:50 am

  If price, performance, and standard features are important to you, you owe it to yourself to drive an Aura. Youd have to spend around $45,000 to get anywhere near what you get as standard equipment on this American made car for around $25,000. I recommend the XR-the XE is around $1500 cheaper but at this price, go for the gold. If you are considering a Toyota, VW, or Honda, check this car before you make a mistake. The Aura puts them to shame. And Ive owned one of each. If you think you can get a 6 cyl. engine,leather interior, sun roof, OnStar,8 speaker sound system,rear seat radio,18" alloy wheels,remote engine start and power everything for less, go for it.

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  New Saturn VUE is a blast! - 2004 Saturn VUE
  By KentWaller - May 7 - 2:00 am

  Very fun to drive! Nice contemporary leather interior and powerful enough to get us up to our mountain home. The steering system seems great to me - in fact the first thing I noticed was how easy it was to steer. Very easy and pleasant to drive overall.

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  It Had Some Potential... - 2008 Saturn Aura
  By CC - May 6 - 11:40 pm

  Ive had this car for close to a year and Im ready to get rid of it. The powertrain seems solid and it has plenty of horsepower, but the torque steer gets out of control when you step on the throttle. It rides nice and smooth with minimal road noise. Its loaded with every feature you could ever need. However, I just cant get past the cheap plastic interior. It creaks every time I accelerate and there are rattles everywhere. It detracts from what might otherwise be an enjoyable driving experience. I had to have the door lock fixed by the dealer, the intermittent wiper function works inconsistently, and the steering wheel vibrates and squeals when making tight turns.

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  Great Car! - 2008 Saturn Astra
  By Suz - May 6 - 10:16 am

  I bought this in April 2008 to replace my 1998 SW2 which had 120K+ (I gave the old one to a friend, still running strong!). My Astra is a delight - still wish it had a center armrest. My MPG has improved to well over 32 MPG hwy. I LOVE my Astra, and wish I had a chance to drive it more (but, since I only live a mile from work, Im not complaining). Have made a couple of trips from NW Chgo suburbs to a friend in rural Winamac IN, and the Astra is a champ. I NEVER get tired of driving it! Oh, and did I mention: I *love* my Astra!! Rock On!

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  It never let me down! - 2005 Saturn VUE
  By Twistedsister - May 4 - 2:00 am

  I purchased my 2005 Saturn new in July 2005. I loved it until the day it died this past October in a car accident. I loved this car. I average 25K a year on my vehicle, so it had 125000 miles on it. I changed to synthetic oil around 95K and increased my mpg to 30 on highway, 26 or so in city. I loved this car. It always started, drove well, loved the convenience of the trunk/back seats that lie down flat. Went through two sets of tires and had rotors turned at 110K. I never had it in the shop for repairs other than maintenance issues. I loved this car. My only complaint was the road noise/ weather stripping was bad. It allowed dust to come in and it was a bit noisy.

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  Poor remote start - 2008 Saturn Outlook
  By rfrieden - May 3 - 7:00 pm

  Weve had the Outlook for less than one month. I love driving it! (I traded in a minivan.) I had to have brake and windshield wiper fluid added already but I think it is because the levels werent checked when I bought the SUV. It is fun to zip around in and feels so much sportier than my minivan. No longer a minivan driver, forever a soccer mom!

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  Happy with my Relay - 2005 Saturn Relay
  By Love my Relay - May 2 - 4:16 pm

  We purchased our Saturn with only 11000 miles on it from the dealer. It has a smooth ride and is very comfortable. My 4 kids have loved the dvd player and the option to listen to their music and play video games. It comes with a normal plug outlet, very cool! This has come in handy for video games and for vacuming the van. The only problems I have had with the Relay is with the traction stability control system (had it fixed 2X now) and I feel the rotors are cheap. My Relay shakes going down the mountain roads. I was told they have shaved the rotors as much as they can so they will need to be replaced at my next brake job.

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  Enjoying My Vue - 2004 Saturn VUE
  By VueAWDv6 - May 1 - 2:00 am

  This vehicle has been fun to drive and made snow not a worry. I found that this car handles great in all weather and with the V6 it has the power that I wouldnÂ’t expect out of an SUV. The options that where standard on the V6 made this and easy purchase and I didnÂ’t walk away feeling I had any regrets. I would recommend this car to all those people looking for a little of everything.