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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  So far we love our VUE! - 2005 Saturn VUE
  By Saturn Vue - June 24 - 10:10 am

  We have only had the vehicle for a couple of months, but I think it is fun to drive and easy to handle. Its better on fuel than our mini-van was. The storage space is at a minimum, but I love the shopping compartment. So far, we are very pleased.

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  2004 Saturn Vue 4cyl - 2004 Saturn VUE
  By Phil - June 24 - 9:46 am

  Very poor design, cheap cheap cheap! Bad acceleration, paint chips off dash/radio covering, Break problems, premature tire wear, steering column issues, and CD player issues.

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  Saturn VUE - 2005 Saturn VUE
  By Wendy - June 22 - 3:20 pm

  My Saturn VUE is really easy to wheel around town and in crowed busy parking lots.So the size is perfect, not too big, yet big enough that everyone has leg and moving around room inside. I do think Saturn could do more to make the car more comfortable instead of so plain. Mechanically, my VUE has been wonderful with no major problems. Also, my dealership has worked really well with me. My son spilled chocolate milk on the backseat floor, and when they could not get the stain out, they replaced the carpet for me. You can rate a Saturn VUE mechanical, looks and dealerships as excellent!

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  New car - 2003 Saturn ION
  By leaura - June 22 - 10:00 am

  This is great car for a great price. I have owned a saturn before and had minimal problems with it. On top of all this the customer service is wonderful, its so nice to be dealt with in a proper manor.

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  Very happy with my Ion, but..... - 2003 Saturn ION
  By drivingmyion - June 22 - 10:00 am

  Great vehicle for the money. Got a great deal with the financing and college grad incentives. Very peppy little car with more storage room than you would think just looking at it. However, it has been in the shop for repairs a lot more than I would think a new car should be. 3 times in two months for warranty service. And needs to go in again soon.

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  Love our Vue - 2003 Saturn VUE
  By Duke and Nan - June 22 - 10:00 am

  We went from a Full size GM Pick up truck to this little SUV. Many of the Features are what attracted us like the dent proof panels, gas mileage and the overall looks of the vehicle. Plus when we found out that it was a GM vehicle we were even more pleased. Many people stop and ask us if we like our car and we always have had great things to say.

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  Mechanical nightmare - 2007 Saturn ION
  By otis23 - June 22 - 8:44 am

  After buying the car used 2007 in mid 2011, the head cracked 10 months later for no apparent reason, spewing oil everywhere to a tune of over $2K. Now the front end shakes and vibrates periodically like the car is falling apart, and sounds like a helicopter under the hood at other times. Time to dump it.

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  Much better than the minivan - 2007 Saturn Outlook
  By Husker - June 20 - 11:00 pm

  We purchased the Outlook XR AWD as a replacement for a Town & Country minivan. The Saturn has been very reliable, is extremely comfortable (even for adults in the 3rd row) and gets good mileage for its size. Were very happy with the purchase.

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  Have an 06 Quad coupe......... - 2006 Saturn ION
  By dartyvagrant - June 19 - 3:09 pm

  This has been a fairly good vehicle. The anti-theft system is always a cloud over our heads. Never know when its going to engage and have to be reset. Wife driving-39-41 MPG, my driving at 80-85 MPH down to 32 MPG. The rear suspension is a joke! The same beam axle as the Citation of years ago. NOT independant rear suspension, ride in cramped rear seat not good. Front seats A-OK. A Chevrolet Cobalt in drag, and more money. The local Chevrolet dealer has performed all the campaigns (ign switch, power steering motor).

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  $1000 In repairs - 2007 Saturn Outlook
  By penson - June 18 - 3:11 am

  Bought it new in May 2007. Happy to to trade it in. From day 1, loud tire noise due to poorly designed or def tires and they lasted only 40k miles....before the tire replacement the AC went out...a leak in one of the hoses (after the warranty expired) Cost: $300 to repair. The road noise went away after the tires were replaced. Had decent feul eco for size but dissapoointed in quality.