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:

• 

  awful first experience - 2003 Saturn ION
  By newbie - February 7 - 10:00 am

  when we bought the vehicle, it had to go back into the shop for: 4 new windows (due to the glass was scratched by the window tracks), defects in paint, interior dash was rattling, brakes were wobbleing (due to the rotors and brakes were out of surface tolerence), steering was shaky when driving at high speed. These problems were due because of the factory.

• 

  1st year out - 2003 Saturn VUE
  By Daivarie - February 7 - 10:00 am

  I wasnt even in the market for a new car when the Vue came rolling off the truck. I purchased the first one off the truck because I liked the look and the test drive of the demo. I received a great deal from the dealer as they were trying to push the Vue to get them seen on the road. I knew going into the car that I was going to have problems as do most cars in the first year of intro.Although Ive had several problems, mostly pertaining to the fuel portion of the vehicle, it has been a great car. Ill wait a year or two before trading it in for a new one, thus giving them the chance to fix the bugs.

• 

  Saturn XE V6 - 2008 Saturn Aura
  By Steve - February 5 - 10:00 am

  Bought car used-have driven 3 months 150 miles daily-rides great, especially on long trips-very comfortable- looks very good-interior finish a bit cheap, especially armrests-but that is a GM trait from 30 years ago I get 27 mpg on highway- it gets 30 mpg if I set cruise to 55 but EVERYONE passes me at that speed

• 

  my second saturn - 2004 Saturn ION
  By boarderfly - February 1 - 2:00 am

  My new ION3 is fantastic. You cannot compare it to the former S series of cars, it is infintly improved. Much more powerful, nicer ride, and cool features like restyling the dash and putting the cupholder lower than the a/c knobs so you dont spill coffee all over them!

• 

  So far so good - 2004 Saturn VUE
  By Albert - January 27 - 1:00 am

  I bought my Vue new in 2004 and now have 102,000 miles - almost exclusively highway miles. Overall, I am satisfied with the vehicle. Engine is fantastic - nice power and mileage. I have not had any significant maintenance expenses until recently. My biggest complaint are the brakes - really bad front pulsations that require the rotors to be refinished every 12K miles. Just replaced front stab bar links (very creaky) and right rear wheel bearing/hub assembly - it was producing very loud road noise. I plan on keeping this vehicle as long as I can and so far it has been a nice car. I just wish I knew of a better front brake combination than OEM parts.

• 

  great SUV but weird transmission - 2007 Saturn Outlook
  By azlan - January 24 - 8:50 am

  we bought this car over the CX-9 and Veracruz mainly for space (3 active teenagers and 11 yr-old). Gas mileage was also a consideration. Did homework, tested, and waited for right time to buy. So far, its been two years, we have no regrets. Its the best 7 plus seater weve ever owned. Excellent comfort, took the car all the way to Florida and back from Pittsburgh, no problems. The only minus is transmission. Its a little worse than a turbo-charged car - could complete a laundry cycle before it downshifts. But kinda got used to it by now. Also the gas mileage is not all that it advertises to be. A little advise - buy with fewest accessories as possible then you can avoid pain in malfunction

• 

  Mixed blessing - 2006 Saturn Relay
  By Scott Nelson - January 22 - 2:46 pm

  Our Saturn Relay has been a great vehicle to drive and carry the crew around in. Good acceleration and handling for a large vehicle. The trim needs a lot of work! Exterior trim is peeling off, door trim and plastic mouldings behind the sliding doors peel off when the door opens. Interior trim around both front doors is broken, and fell off, what a pain.

• 

  Good, inexpensive SUV - 2003 Saturn VUE
  By Zillafire37 - January 21 - 10:00 am

  After comparing SUVs in the 20K range for a while, I settled on buying her the Vue. The interior isnt the best, but it works, is comfortable, and most importantly, is big for the price. The optional CD sound system is terrific. Spirited driving can be rewarded IF and only IF the driver is smooth with imputs to the throttle. The CVT does not respond very well to abrupt throttle changes, but is very acceptable for reasonable driving.

• 

  Saturn Ion - 2004 Saturn ION
  By fredm - January 21 - 10:00 am

  Runs very well. Developes noises. Squeaks when backing up. Engine noisey even after first and second checkups. Car height is much better than previous vehicles.

• 

  Not sure yet! - 2007 Saturn ION
  By AJ - January 18 - 1:26 pm

  I bought this car used. It is close to 3 years old. Love it but the gas mileage is not as good as I thought it would be. I do love the comfort as I dont drive far to work and I did have a 2000 Saturn SC1 that I loved but I decided that I would like an automatic as the 2000 was a manual. I actually miss my SC1!!! Probably because the gas mileage was much better,but there are interior issues also. Like the cup holders-they stink! I normally have a large bottle of water, and I had to resort to buying one of those cheap cup holders you have to wedge between your window. I guess I know why the previous owner traded this car in with not even 16,000 miles on it.