After talks by Penske Automotive Group fell through, GM announced today that the Saturn brand will be discontinued with no future suitor for the division. GM states the division operation will be “wound down” over the next 10 months.

Talks with PAG ended when concerns of the supply of vehicles and parts support after the initial terms already negotiated between PAG and GM ended and future supply came into question.

I for one can’t say I’m surprised or sad. As a car guy, Saturn really never set the world on fire and never truly lived up to their potential.

If anything Saturn was a great synopsis of GM’s upside down business practices and how they got into the mess they ended up in today.

Great hype from the start, “a different type of car, a different kind of car company”, supposed new selling and marketing strategy “no haggling pricing” but it was only shored up with little innovation, “ooh plastic panels!” for what was essentially a uniquely styled but otherwise uninspired boring GM product with rough tractor-like engines and Vega like build quality.

Some of the SL1’s and SL2’s my friends were unlucky enough to own were outright POS.  >:(

As par for the course, GM put little if any new investment or update into the design of the vehicles and by the end of the first 10 years most of any of the promise and momentum of the division and car sales was just as dead as any other GM division. And as a last ditch attempt to put some flavor and interest into the division, did what they were famous for, re-badging other cars to sell under the brand. Most notably selling rebadged German Opel’s as “American” Saturn’s…

Oh well, another American car company bites the dust. Farewell Saturn, say hello to Pontiac and Oldsmobile will ya?  :P

This sux.  The last two cars I bought were Saturns.  The first in 1991 and the last in 2007.  Never had any problem with 'em either.

RIP Saturn...  :\'(

So what car, will be next?

So what car, will be next?


Well I think the Mercury Grand Marquis is going out of production after the 2010 model year.

And all these years I had been hoping that the Mercury Division would come out with a de Sade version of this fine automobile.  ;)

Saturn wasn't that popular. It seems that the American Cars are disappearing.

Gee, our old La Salle ran great...those were the days!

8)

This is BS! Why couldn't they have auctioned off Saturn and Pontiac as two independent car companies?


They did.  No takers for Saturn other than Roger Penske, who could not secure a source of car supply.

Pontiac didn't even get that far.  No takers at all.  :-\\