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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  A Headache - 2007 Saturn ION
  By genine84 - December 20 - 8:45 am

  I purchased my 2007 Level 2 in Nov 2006 new... I did not have major problems with it until about two years ago when it began leaking gas... The fuel pump was recalled, but Saturn refused to fix it... Last year, I got a letter stating that the power steering could possibly go out on the car...Well, not long after I got that letter, it did. They still refused to fix it... Other than that, it gets great mileage and is somewhat dependable @ 190k miles...

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  Problem mobile...... - 2008 Saturn Outlook
  By itchypopkin - December 8 - 6:51 am

  I have been a loyal General Motors customer but that might have to change after owning this vehicle. I really like the design of this vehicle inside and out. My main complaint is that it has major problem after major problem. The only good thing is that so far everything has been under warranty. The first thing to go was the rack and pinion at 30,000 miles. At around 35,000 miles the right strut started leaking and had to be replaced. It started leaking again at 60,000 miles, I donÂ’t know if itÂ’s bad luck for me or a design flaw. The next thing to go was the water pump at 50,000. Finally at 68,000 miles the transmission went. Thankfully it was still under warranty (with only two months to spare) and the dealership had to replace 3rd, 5th and reverse gears. Overall this has been the most unreliable vehicle I have ever owned. I would never recommend this vehicle to anybody. All owners appear to have the same main problems and I canÂ’t believe General Motors doesnÂ’t offer some type of buyback program as they did for the Vue.

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  Nice looking but thats it. - 2007 Saturn Outlook
  By Jason - December 1 - 4:13 am

  My wife loves the car but cant seem to find enough gas money. Fuel economy stinks! The layout is perfect for a family. The car has no power and is a nightmare in the snow or ice traction control is a joke! I would have rather bought a Tahoe better fuel economy and better performance!

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  Proceed with Caution - 2007 Saturn VUE
  By Buddha - November 14 - 11:46 pm

  Our relationship started out great and we always enjoyed driving the VUE. Went downhill as soon as we hit the 14,000 mark. First had a window motor needing to be replaced, then a strut mount needed to be replaced. The tech put the assembly to gether wrong and it made a load noise on every bump. After another two visits they found the spring was not seated in the assembly proper. After the 4 visit we still have a sound coming from one side of the front end.

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  Watch out for the CVT - 2005 Saturn VUE
  By ExSatrunLvr - October 17 - 9:30 am

  The outside build quality alone is shoddy. Just try pushing on any of the outside body cladding to see what I mean. The CVT transmission has gotten louder and louder as the mileage has gone up. The official response from Saturn is that this is normal operational noise but it didnt sound that way when I bought it. The hood cable has stretched 3 times now. The last time they told me it was fine was right before my warranty went up and now guess what. I cant open my hood. The general attitude from service seemed like I must be doing something to break it. Ive opened a lot of hoods on many cars and never had a problem with the cable not handling it.

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  Saturn Relay. A Lot of Problems - 2005 Saturn Relay
  By Sharon - October 14 - 11:00 am

  We have owned 3 Saturns before this one. This one is a true lemon! It has been in the shop more than it has been on the road. Had many service bulletins out already. My timing belt went the 1st year. Radio is cheap and never tunes in. Molding outside falls off all the time. Back wiper changed 3xs already. CD player hums when you hit the gas. Lights go dim and bright while driving. I can go on and on. A lemon by far.

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  Saturn USA? - 2003 Saturn VUE
  By johnyg - October 2 - 2:00 am

  I had a`95 SL1,it was great, Bought VUE took advantage of the 0.0% for 5 yrs, Than whoa!! they started offering "down payment assistance",What happened with price gaurantee,they said its the manufacture that can change the price dealers wont.Than it comes with a new power train for the V6 its a Honda,they conceeded that japanese engineering is better. Still like my FWD V6 VUE, thought it had the best style and efficiency until the new one came out. Hind-sight is 20/20.....I should have bought a used Japanese SUV! Its also loud. I put alot of faith in GM hoping they wouldnt exploit the Saturn Name, but little by little theyre chipping it away.

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  Vue 2002 - 2002 Saturn VUE
  By Tyger - September 27 - 2:00 am

  My VUE has been in the shop for warranty work 9 times in a year and a half. The SES light comes on every two months for, miraculously, never quite the same thing twice so I could not declare it a lemon. And now with less then 2 years, the paint is chipping. Plus, the dealer will not support a loaner car on my brand new SUV.

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  VUE review - 2004 Saturn VUE
  By MichEE - September 24 - 5:56 pm

  Nice thought to lure with the Honda engine and tranny. Too bad the rest of the vehicle is so poorly constructed. Issues with front end suspension components, rear end drive components and electronic interface (BCM and ECM). It is too small for 4 people and luggage. Small for a +6ft driver. The 250HP V-6 is really peppy but at 40,000 miles and +20 trips to the dealer under waranty this vehicle is history!

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  Bummer - 2008 Saturn VUE
  By JR - September 18 - 8:36 am

  Weve had many Saturns in our family, including another VUE, so we were disappointed when our 2008 started to show its cheapness. The lumbar control, visor, mirror have all fallen off. The seal for the windshield keeps coming out. If this is whats happening now at 19,000 miles, I;m nervous what will happen soon. We are looking for else. Its been a big bummer after having so many good Saturns.