My 2008 Aura XR & 2008 Sky Red Line (Opel Vectra C & Opel GT)

I never paid much attention to Saturn except for the novelty of the "fixed price, no-haggle" selling policy and a cousin of mine who didn't have a good mechanical experience with her Saturn Ion. My parents owned Opels in Germany during the 1950's, 60's and 70's and we've always liked the aesthetics and they also held up mechanically well, too. In part, due to the Saturn Aura's kinship with Opel (Vectra), its stying as well as features, the Saturn Aura convinced me to return to GM after 30 cumulative years of Honda ownership.

My first-ever visit to a Saturn showroom was in late August 2006 because of the Aura's aforementioned kinship to the Opel Vectra and BEFORE it was voted "North American Car of the Year" (NACOTY). I was impressed beyond expectation. OnStar was also a BIG selling point in my decision and the GMS (GM employee) price and Saturn's "Cash Back" offer for my fully loaded Aura XR was outstanding. Neither Honda nor Toyota impressed me as much with their safety, features or price as compared to the Saturn Aura XR. For me, this is THE right car at the right time. Therefore, I bought the Aura XR at the end of August 2008. If my Aura holds up mechanically as well as its good looks and as well as my Hondas have, I'll probably come back to GM long-term and buy a car more frequently than every 10-15 years.

First and foremost, however, MECHANICAL RELIABILITY will always be of MAJOR concern to me. That's why we switched from GM to Honda in the first place. I took great care and pride to have our Hondas serviced at the Honda dealership and I will be gauging my new Aura's reliabiltiy against my EXCELLENT cumulative 30 year Honda service record experience (esp. since our Honda dealership is only a 1/4 mile away from the Saturn dealership).

Saturn's new line-up since 2007 has me very interested in future models. In particular, the development of a TOP-NOTCH Hybrid vehicle that serves the purpose of FUEL ECONOMY without the sacrifice of also being a family-friendly vehicle.

IMO, let the other guy make the real performance oriented cars, crossovers and SUV's. (Fuel) Economy is about "rethinking" priorities and that most often entails making a cut here and there in performance / size. Ultimately, however, "economy" is about the bottom line which is the buck left in the average person's pocket (think Toyota Prius Hybrid fuel efficiency combined with Toyota / Honda reliability and Saturn Aura size and styling).

Keep it up GM! Keep it up Saturn!