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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  Best of all worlds - 2003 Saturn VUE
  By entendrentendre - January 29 - 10:00 am

  Ive only had this car for about 7 weeks, but so far so good. This car hit the mark on size,comfort, features, performance,safety and price. Plus you cannot beat the Saturn sales experience! This is a station wagon with out the frump factor! The 5 spd is a blast to drive and is very smooth. Ive owned mostly manuals in my nearly 25 years of driving. The four is very strong and smooth and loves to rev! I have not noticed any performance degrade when loaded with passengers and cargo. The mileage is good as well upper 20s in mixed driving. Idles so smooth and quite I have to check the tach at stop signs and lights to be certain I have not stalled.

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  good little car - 2003 Saturn ION
  By rquest - January 28 - 4:52 pm

  Overall its a very good car and my wife and I can attest to the "accordion" style safety frame that protects all occupants in the cabin. For years we suffered with the ignition and spent countless hours waiting for the alarm to "reset" so that we could once again attempt to start the vehicle. But the thing that makes you the most upset is that the mechanics at the Saturn dealer act like they had never heard of this problem before. It was like Christmas day when GM was forced to make the ignition/key problem a recall and fortunately for us it took care of all of the starting problems and we could once again not have to worry about leaving the house 15 minutes early for fear of the car not starting. But now its started having a problem with the enginge light" coming on in relation with the evac system. First we replaced the gas cap, ($15) then the purge solenoid and the vent control, ($197.) after that didnt work, we are currently dropping the gas tank replacing the pressure solenoid another ($237) I dont know if this is GMs fault or simply that American auto makers can not manufacture good electrical components because my Jeep Grand Cherokee needed several solenoids and eventually a new PCM and my new Cadillac SRX is having issues with its computer and traction control system. (Fortunately the Cad is under warranty) When it comes to the end of the day the Ion has been a pretty good car, a little bumpy and rickety but actually is not any worse than my new Cad when it comes to the electronics. I dont understand how anyone could say they hate this car or that it is a piece of junk? These people must just think that all you do to a car is put gas in it and go! LOL Vehicles need your love and attention, take care of your car and it will take care of you.

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  Good Stuff very few problems - 2006 Saturn ION
  By Sean - January 28 - 8:03 am

  Its very reliable I feel really safe in my car even though its got plastic side panels. I dont know about the autos trans. but the manual is a blast! very comfortable gets advertised MPG even at almost 100,000 miles! Saturn has done good with the ion! Handles great! Its quiet inside the car. Very few problems Excellent buy!

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  They say I just have buyers remorse - 2007 Saturn ION
  By madcustomer - January 28 - 2:56 am

  This car is & always has been a serious junk. Multiple problems: shifter (possibly clutch) problems, floor heater never worked, doesnt get cool enough for tx summers, horrendous gas mileage, climate control panel gets extremely hot when controls used, screeches when it starts, rattles when idling, major power loss in fifth gear! You cant jump on an interstate in this heap! Warranty you say? No Im just a stupid woman & need to get my foot out of it to shift it. But Ive met several owners with the same issue! Other other warranty work can be done, if I let them dump me out of the service van & left overnight with no transportation.

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  Surprisingly Good - 2008 Saturn Aura
  By Happy Aura Guy - January 27 - 12:33 pm

  I bought this vehicle under GMs 0% financing offer. Even without the incentive financing, this is an excellent automobile! My concern about the four cylinder engine was unfounded as it is peppy enough. The exterior and interior fit and finish are superb, vehicle is very solid and fairly quiet. Standard radio is excellent, especially with XM. Transmission shifts very smoothly, brakes are powerful. A lot of vehicle for the money.

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  starts great then peters out - 2004 Saturn ION
  By bbilly - January 24 - 11:36 pm

  bought this car brand new back in 04 and ran without any problems till 2009 right when the viecle was paid off. it only has 55000 miles and had to replace ecm computer module and cat conververter but the car just feels like its going to fall apart and the engine sound like a engine that has 150,000 miles on it. because of this quality issues I will not buy another domestic vehicle again. i just hope it runs for another 3 to 5 years.

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  Best medium SUV made...period... - 2003 Saturn VUE
  By Flazund - January 24 - 10:00 am

  Everything abot this vehicle has been stellar. Best of all, with V6 and AWD I still get 25 mpg hwy! Reliability, comfort, handling, economy, everything excellent. Also, one of the roomiest of its class. Dealing with the dealership and service department is not the normal take a number and wait process. will probably never go back to the tradition way of buying cars and service. Other manufacturers need to take a lesson from Saturn!!!

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  Beautiful piece of machinery - 2008 Saturn VUE
  By Alex - January 24 - 1:23 am

  A very nice and responsive car with 6 speed auto and 3.6 L smooth GM engine. Styling is good and turns peoples heads for sure. Two disadvantages though -- rough ride and engine noise starting from 2.5-3,000 RPM.

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  1st SUV - Glad I Bought It. - 2008 Saturn VUE
  By Den G from NJ - January 22 - 5:00 am

  A used 2008 with 15,000 miles - it was beyond a bargain. Traded my 05 Acura TL for this, my first SUV so I was used to good handling and performance. I have to say that its much more quiet and comfortable than my old TL. Ride is very smooth, handles much better than other SUVs Ive driven, and Im not disappointed with the power. Styling is better than soccer-mom type SUVs and honestly reminds me of a Lexus RX, and not a GM product. Interior instruments are simple and uncomplicated, but not cheap looking. The car had some issues when I bought it and theyve all been repaired by my local Saturn dealer. The dealership was awesome and the service experience compares to that of Acura.

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  Very satisfied with our choice - 2007 Saturn Outlook
  By MM in Coral Springs - January 22 - 12:46 am

  Were very happy with our choice, the Outlook XR. Spacious, solidly built, attractive, this crossover has it all. Our XR has all the options we were looking for about $35K, except for the DVD and Nav. The only disappointment has been the gas mileage. Living in South Florida we continuosly have the A/C on and have averaged around 15 miles per gal.