Saturn next
 

The future of Saturn is becoming distressingly clear: sell or be 'phased out'. The ailing Detroit carmaker confirmed in its most recent viability plan that it accelerate the demise of the brand to the end of this year, with either a sale or cessation of business marking the end of General Motors' involvement with Saturn. Earlier this month we heard about a new investment group by the name of Telesto Ventures reportedly planning to buy Saturn outright and source its own models from several overseas suppliers, though the accelerated time table may make that difficult to achieve.

GM manager Jill Lajdziak revealed to Automotive News that the struggling Detroit 3 carmaker is trying to find a new vehicle supplier for Saturn by September 1. The announcement was also made to Saturn dealers, who at this point are still confused and uncertain as to the direction the brand will take. Beginning next month, Saturn executives and GM higher-ups will listen to different proposals and choose the best deal for both companies. The bottom line is clear, however, with GM saying in its latest viability plan, "If a sale of Saturn does not occur, we intend to phase out the Saturn brand by the end of 2009."

Some of the proposals coming in would alter Saturn's retail operations dramatically. One of the most popular is the previously mentioned Telesto option. Under this proposal, the overseas models sourced by Telesto would not be branded as Saturns, but would rather be sold under various brand names. A Telesto spokesman explained that the Saturn brand would become "similar to a Best Buy model in that customers deal with Best Buy because of the customer experience not because they are the only place to buy a Samsung or a Sony TV".

Presumably there will also be foreign carmakers vying for the brand itself - creating brand recognition in the crowded U.S. market is difficult for foreign start-ups, and having the Saturn brand as a launching pad may seem very attractive to certain manufacturers.

A somewhat mysterious coalition of Saturn's dealer-run Franchise Operations Team and an unknown partner - possibly Telesto - has also revealed plans to take over Saturn if the brand is abandoned by GM. Only time will tell what result is final, but with 2009 nearing its midpoint it won't be long.

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cars made out of coke bottles: fail.

I am on my 2nd Saturn. I like the 40 mpg both of my Saturns have gotten

Woah 40mph? Easy there speed demon.

That isn't really a big surprise. There has been a lot of talk about GM selling Opel. If that were to happen Saturn wouldn't have any cars left anyway.

:bonk:

didnt ya know? saturns begin falling apart past 40mph.

good riddance to oversize coke bottles.

Fixed it...thanks for the catch...I have no complaints with either the '01 or the '06 Saturns we have driven

Saturn sales reps made a killing in the 90's......People came in thinking "no haggle" was the best thing since sliced bread. Like as if that means it's a good deal. Fact is the dealerships got better profit off those cars than probably any other small car at the time. "No haggle" just made it quicker & easier. This dealer I was working at was making an average of $1600-1800 gross on each one.

I worked for Saturn as a student and engineer from 1994 to 2002. Hands down the best company I've worked for. The dealers and the corporation were treated highly by each other, instead of the OEM fucking the dealer. Each employee was so happy to work there it was almost sick..lol. Many UAW workers were fed up from the GM bullshit in the 80s...these were the guys that wanted to transfer to Spring Hill, TN. The union was always willing to help and let the engineers work on anything they wanted. They cleaned the plant when it was shut down and helped each other out. Something I've never ever seen in any company before.

Saturn was team oriented in everything...we did 2-3 team building events every month and monies were allocated for them.

Jill Lajdziak I think came in 2000 and said Saturn would be a 100 year car company. About 80 years short.

Saturn died long ago IMO...when GM took it over in 1998 and killed their brand by giving vehicles to Olds instead. The ION was the last "Saturn" IMO.

All that is fine but it skips over something important, the cars. I only drove one, the coupe that they started with. It was still relatively new and didn't have a bunch of miles, but the thing still sucked. The worst was the NVH from the engine. Trying to merge on to the highway the damn thing sounded like it had dropped a valve or something. Added with the other issues the car had it just wasn't a good car. It could have been just that one car since, as I said, I never drove another one.

http://rumors.automobilemag.com/6534...les/index.html


bye bye saturn...bye bye 25% of hybrid sales

:lulz:

My experience was similar. After driving two Saturns that belonged to family members they were no longer in consideration. Cheap interior, noisy ride, harsh engine, unresponsive throttle and steering to name a few. It's a shame they didn't offer a better product at a competitive price.

saturn of old was a great vehicle for it's niche. Small, economical, long lasting, no frills car.
It was cheaper and as good if not better than the cavalier/escort/civic that it ran against. Of course I'm talking about the S series and Ion. When they went "conventional" with their cars, it was all just someone elses shit rebadged.

We had an '01 S 1 in 4 door. Bought it as commuter car for 100 mile daily commute. It was getting over 42 mpg at 55 mph. We now have an '06 Ion. It averages only about 37, but it has passed 40 mpg a few times.

Saturns are very reliable and very easy to service. The actual NVH was something to be desired, but I really think people didn't care. People wanted an import fighter that was cheap, different, reliable and a dealer network that treated them like a king. Many many other car dealerships had tried to duplicate what Saturn did in the 90s, but very few have come close. There just was sense of pride in the company and the dealer body like no other in the U.S. For years after Saturn's introduction, people would honk their horns as they passed each other on the road. How many (0) other car owners did this? NONE.

The legacy of Saturn will live on longer than the quality of their cars. Honestly, most people in the company cared more about the vision than anything else.

Saturn failed because GM didn't give it any new models for 10 years...and the fact that Saturn strayed from its core roots....cheap American made cars with a dealer that treats their customer as king.

I remember the auto trannies going bad......People would say nothing would happen when shifted into reverse. This dealer tried using a bottle of Wynn's additive first....lol. We would also charge $500 for a "protection pack" of scotchgaurd, paint sealant, and dash treatment.......Give them some papers claiming a 5-yr warranty against fade. And people would pay it. Took the detailers less than 15 min to do......lmao

IIRC the PCM would not apply full transmission line pressure until the trans. fluid temp was over a certain temp. I think they had a recalibration.

I took an Ion down to Indy 2 years ago for the race. Packed full of coolers, bags, tents etc. Back seat and trunk were stuffed full, me and comonboys inside, and running an average of about 70 mph, and we got 38 mpg. Not the most comfortable car in the world, but I would definatly get one as a commuter.

Depending on the warranty coverage, that could be worth it.
THe product I sold you got all that plus an undercoat, it cost $659.
Granted, it was a lifetime warranty as long as it was reapplied (free of charge) every 5 years.
Great coverage too, any stains on the interior, that portion was replaced and treated free of charge.
Paint loose it's shine, product reapplied free of charge. If that didn't fix the problem, the panel would be repainted or replaced, again, no charge.
That's worth it in my book, if you intend on keeping the vehicle.

symbolloic of GM's treatment of Saturn throughout the years

http://jalopnik.com/5235675/saturn-r...er-30000-miles