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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  Almost a great SUV, But... - 2007 Saturn Outlook
  By Ryan - June 9 - 7:30 am

  Complaints first, Biggest problem with GM vehicles is there lack of respect for our lungs. NO CABIN FILTER, common guys. All the imports have them, you could at least make a Hepa grade filter to show up the imports. Do you think we are stupid? Gas Mileage average 16-17 all the time, city highway does not matter. I regularly maintenance every 5K and also had trans soft upgrade twice, does not help mileage. Other than that the SUV still looks good, has a comfortable ride and lots of space. Great family car and I could almost like it a real lot. I am very upset about the NON-CABIN FILTER! I like my lungs a whole whole lot and nothing is more important than your health. Listen up GM!

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  The Right Choice - 2005 Saturn VUE
  By Billy - June 5 - 9:10 am

  We had test-driven several different cars ranging from the Scion XB to the Mini Cooper. Mini Cooper didnt have much cargo room and was a little more than we were looking to spend; Scion was great with fuel mileage and price but lacked cruise control and had a weak engine and not as much cargo as the VUE. The VUE answered all of our questions and met all our criteria for a new car: price, fuel economy, reliability, cargo space, striking visually. Friendly, knowledgeable, non-pushy salespeople was a definite bonus. Great car buying experience.

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  Beyond Expectations - 2006 Saturn VUE
  By Jerre - June 2 - 7:33 am

  We purchased a Saturn VUE in December of 2005 and have driven it about 1500 miles. It has been exciting to drive with the Honda V-6 engine and is very comfortable for a 250# man to drive and sit for long periods of time. The mileage is amazing, it gets 22 mpg in town and about 28mpg on the road at 65 miles per hour with the cruise control on. The back seats are a little tricky to put up and down, you have to be a little patient with the back seat lever. One great little add is the Organizer that pops up to form two plastic bins to put your groceries into. We love this SUV and it suits our lifestyle to a tee. We owned a bigger Ford SUV for 10 years and we like this one better.

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  2nd VUE, So far, so good. - 2003 Saturn VUE
  By phirn - May 28 - 1:06 pm

  This is our 2nd VUE. First (02 4cyl, 5 spd) was plagued with problems. Transmission, suspension, and A/C failures. Traded up to 03 V-6, AWD. Stuck with Saturn because we knew they had a good product. Drove several Saturn loaner cars for a week or two at a time while our VUE was being "serviced", and they all performed flawlessly. No serious problems with this VUE, only minor service needed. My wife is very comfortable driving it. Likes the good visibility and handling. Feels very safe in it, and also when our teenage daughters are driving it. The stock Bridgestone tires are great for about 20K, and then they go to trash. Roof rack is great when traveling.

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  Needs more power - 2006 Saturn VUE
  By Vue - May 12 - 9:06 pm

  I love the VUE overall but it needs more power. Its a four cylinder. I should have bought a six cylinder. Its even worse when running the air conditioning. Plus the gas mileage is not that good when running the air conditioning.

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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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  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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  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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  2005 Red Line VUE - 2005 Saturn VUE
  By Dave Tucker - April 20 - 2:43 pm

  We bought the VUE in January and have had no problems. This is the Red Line, so it is loaded. We have 18 inch wheels on it, and 6 speaker sound. Power moonroof. The six cylinder engine is supplied by Honda, along with the drive train. For the size of the car and 250 horses, it gets up and moves! Saturn customer service has been excellent since the purchase. We can call them with any questions regarding the car, and they are actually there to give real time answers. Bottom line, we are happy campers!

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  Not bad, but not for the long run - 2002 Saturn VUE
  By Joe - April 20 - 10:00 am

  I broke one of my cardinal rules and bought a new vehicle in its first model year. Ive paid for that. Weve had the standard 02 Vue problems (AC condensation ruining the carpet on the passenger side, rear wiper fluid everywhere but on the glass) and a few new ones (inaccurate fuel gauge-Shell gas?) but overall it has been fairly reliable. Its just too small for more than 4 people, whether they are infants or adults. Havent tested the legedary Saturn safety features (and hope I dont have too) but cant help feeling I paid too much for what I got.