Saturn next

[Homeslice]

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.

[101lifts2]

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.

[goof2]

Originally Posted by 101lifts2

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.

[pauldun170]

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


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

:lulz:

[Destitute]

Originally Posted by goof2

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.

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.

[Cutty72]

Originally Posted by Destitute

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.

[bmblebee]

Originally Posted by Cutty72

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.

[101lifts2]

Originally Posted by goof2

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.

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.

[Homeslice]

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

[101lifts2]

Originally Posted by Homeslice

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.