The system saves fuel by providing an electric power assist during acceleration; shutting off the engine at idle; early fuel cut-off during deceleration and capturing electrical energy through regenerative braking. The 2008 Vue was first shown last November at the Greater Los Angeles International Auto Show, as an uplevel XR model.

At the show, Saturn also announced it will offer a version of the Vue Green Line with GM’s new two-mode hybrid system, in the third quarter of 2008 . This system will provide a 45-percent improvement in fuel economy compared to its non-hybrid counterpart.

Saturn had previously decided to make a plug-in version of the Green Line to so that they would have the upper hand on the economy performance of SUV’s on the market. A release date for the Green Line hasn’t been chosen yet, but we have heard that it is definitely coming. We are hoping that it will be available next year.

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In the 2008 Vue, the plastic sides and cavernous panel gaps are gone, replaced by stylish sheetmetal. Inside, we’re happy to note that interior quality incorporated into the Vue in recent years hasn’t been lost in the transition. Under the hood, buyers get a choice of the top-of-the-line 3.6-liter, 257-hp, 248-lb-ft V6, a 3.5-liter, 222-hp, 219-lb-ft V6, or a base 2.4-liter, 169-hp, 161-lb-ft inline four. The four comes with a four-speed automatic transmission, while the V6s are mated to a six-speed automatic. The performance Red Line version (with the 3.6-liter V6) arrives this fall, followed by two Green Line hybrid options by year end.

Steering is nimble and sharp and properly weighted (Saturn opted for hydraulic steering assist in V6 models, while the four-cylinder Vues get the latest version of electrically assisted steering that we universally despise; we’ll give you our take when we get a chance to test it). The ride, while compliant and devoid of harshness, avoided wallowing through the corners or diving into hard stops. There could be a little more power from the V6, but it seemed smooth enough. Build quality and fit and finish were excellent.

There’s a $3,000 price hike for the base four-cylinder model, which starts at $21,395. (But that now includes standard automatic transmission, stability control, head-curtain airbags, antilock brakes, collapsible pedals and 16-inch alloy wheels.) Our biggest complaints centered on some of the little things that we might have never noticed in the Vue’s lesser predecessor.

The shifter mechanism scraped like someone had poured sand into the center console, and the brake pedal stop emitted a distinctive metallic click each time the pedal was released. We also think some of the plastic parts, like the gas cap lid and the cupholders, may not be strong enough to last. Redundant electric lock switches on all doors would be helpful, especially in a family vehicle where passengers tend to come and go with regularity.

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So what is the European Astra like, then? Pretty darn good, actually. At its European launch in 2004 it was praised for its sporty and funky styling and, with the exception of federal bumpers and Saturn grille, its basic appearance won’t be altered for American consumption. Fortunately for Saturn, the three-door hatchback (known in Europe as the GTC) has been styled to resemble a rakish coupe (it’s still a roomy five-seater, though), helping it to poach sales from the new Focus Coupe and Scion tC, while the five-door hatchback is slightly more conservatively styled to make it more appealing to family buyers.

Opel has also just unveiled a new four-door Astra sedan for Eastern Europe (they prefer sedans out East) and you can be sure that will make its way Stateside before long also, though Saturn declines to comment on that. The Astra wagon and hardtop convertible won’t be offered in the U.S. As you might expect from a GM product, the interior isn’t quite as exciting as the exterior and what little glitz the Euro-Astra has will probably have to be pulled to keep costs down. Even so, the Astra will remain as spacious as ever and will offer a great driving position and excellent visibility, too.

Mechanically, the Astra isn’t as sophisticated as its main rivals in Europe, with its basic torsion beam rear suspension, but the good news is engineers have worked wonders with it and in terms of ride and handling it’s not disgraced by the agile and refined European-model Focus and Golf. This bodes well or American customers too, because Saturn wants to keep that sporty European feel to help it win over younger buyers.

The Saturn Astra’s engines are likely to be versions of GM’s global Ecotec four. The U.S. engine is a 140-hp 1.8-liter Ecotec engine, which proved adequately powerful if somewhat lacking in smoothness at high revs. A five-speed manual will be standard on all Saturn Astras, with a four-speed automatic offered as an option. Opel, like most European carmakers, is shifting towards smaller, turbocharged engines in a bid to lower emissions and fuel consumption without affecting performance, so the company’s excellent 180-hp, 1.6-liter turbo is likely to be the pick of the revised European Astra range, which goes on sale in February.

Meanwhile, American enthusiasts are no doubt be hoping that the Astra Red Line will be little more than a re-badged version of the howling-mad, 240-hp, 2.0-liter turbo Astra OPC (Opel Performance Center). The Red Line coupe will probably use most of the OPC’s bodywork and chassis tweaks, but whether it will get the 260-hp, 2.0-liter turbo GM stuffs in the Solstice, remains up for conjecture.

The Astra’s chassis simply isn’t sophisticated enough to cope with all that power and torque and as a result, the OPC is a surprisingly frustrating and uninspiring car to drive. Turn off the stability control and you’ll find that when you’re not quenching torque-steer and wheel-spin, you’re doing battle with oversteer and understeer as it bounces and skips its way over uneven surfaces. Leave the traction control on and the dashboard lights light up like Vegas at night, especially if there’s a hint of moisture on the road.

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Ion’s steering has been re-calibrated for improved road feel at speed. Both of the available automatic transmissions have been refined as well. And Saturn has injected some real excitement into the Ion for 2004, with the uniquely trimmed Special Edition sedan, and the supercharged Red Line coupe.

Dent-deflecting and rust-resistant plastic body panels add to the Ion’s appeal. Acceleration is good for its price class, ride and handling about average. In interior comfort and refinement, Saturn still has a way to go.

But experience has shown that people choose Saturns as much for the hassle-free buying experience as the for car’s actual character and performance. In fact, Saturn ranks at or near the top in J. D. Power and Associates Sales Satisfaction Index surveys, putting it in the same league as Lexus and Infiniti in terms of satisfaction with the sales experience. The 2004 Saturn Ion is available as a four-door sedan, or as an innovative coupe with two reverse-opening auxiliary rear doors.

Saturn calls the coupe a Quad Coupe. Picture the door arrangement on an extended-cab pickup, but with a lot more style. The sedan is offered in three trim levels. The coupe is available in the upper two levels. Saturn does things a little differently from other car manufacturers, so instead of assigning arbitrary letter combinations to each trim level, Saturn calls them simply Ion 1, Ion 2, and Ion 3.

All Saturn Ion models (except the high-performance Red Line) are powered by the same 2.2-liter four-cylinder engine, rated 140 horsepower. A five-speed manual transmission is standard. Automatic transmissions are available ($900-$980), but Saturn installs different units in the sedan and the coupe.

Sedans use a five-speed automatic, which is unusual in this price range. Coupes use a continuously variable transmission (VTi, Saturn calls it) that uses pulleys and belts instead of gears to maximize smoothness and efficiency.

Two additional variations debut for 2004. The Special Edition sedan comes only in black, with machined 16-inch alloy wheels and a chrome exhaust tip. Inside, the Special Edition is trimmed in perforated neutral leather with ebony accents. Additional standard equipment includes an automatic-dimming mirror, compass, outside temperature gauge, map lights, and unique floor-mat embroidery.

The Red Line coupe, available late in the model year, boasts 200 horsepower from a supercharged and intercooled 2.0-liter engine. A heavy-duty five-speed manual gearbox from Getrag, four-wheel disc brakes with ABS, and a recalibrated suspension on 215/45 tires and 17-inch wheels are designed to manage the additional power. The Ion Red Line is distinguished by its lowered (by 10mm) ride height, unique front and rear fascias, side sills, rear wing, and sport seats.

Anti-lock brakes (ABS) with traction control ($400) are available on all other Saturns, and we recommend them highly for their ability to help you maintain control in a panic situation and avoid an accident. Head curtain air bags ($395) that protect both front and rear-seat passengers in a side impact are an unusual option in this price class, and we recommend them as well.[NewCar]

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And hauling their gear will be easy with the Saturn’s big cargo bay. The Outlook easily grabs bragging rights in cargo space, a benefit of its long wheelbase, significantly longer than that of the Pacifica, Freestyle, and Pilot.

Indeed, the Outlook offers a cavernous 117 cubic feet of cargo space with the second and third rows of seats folded flat, and an equally impressive 20 cubic feet behind an upright third seat. The competition’s best with all seats folded is the Pacifica’s 93 cubic feet. With the third seat up, the best the others have to offer is the Pilot’s 16 cubic feet.

Stylistically, the Outlook breaks with Saturn tradition inside and out. And this is a good thing. Dominating the front end is a substantial bright-finish bar that fills the upper portion of the grille, a fixture repeated on the sporty new Saturn Sky sports car and the handsome new Aura sedan. Saturn hopes to make this bright design cue an iconic signature for its brand. Centered in the bar is the Saturn logo. Notches in the tops of the front fenders hold projector-beam headlights, with HID lights optional.

Thankfully, the Outlook’s flanks and glasshouse have been spared the awkward lines of the Saturn Vue, instead following more traditional SUV lines. Gentle flares outline the wheel wells, which are filled with blackwall tires on standard 18-inch or optional 19-inch alloy wheels. A mild bulge lines the lower door panels. The beltline runs straight back from the base of the windshield to wrap around the visually pillarless rear glass.

Inside, in place of earlier Saturns’ piecemeal, layered-look dash, with elements piled one on top of another, the Outlook’s fully integrated dash sweeps smoothly from door to door, its three levels flowing cleanly into the door panels. The XR will have a wood grain inset that carries through the rear door panels. Depth-wise, the center stack stays true to the Saturn motif, bulging slightly from the dash plane and ending above the center console.

The screen for what will be an optional navigation system blends well in the vertical panel also housing the climate control head. Analog instruments look to be well organized. The Smart-Slide second-row seat flips the seat bottom up against the seatback and slides forward to facilitate access to the third-row seats. Cloth upholstery is standard, leather optional.

Powering the Outlook are variations on the 3.6-liter V6 that started life doing double duty in the Cadillac CTS and STS and that will also be available in the all-new, 2007 Saturn Aura sedan. The engine in the up-level Outlook XR will make 267 horsepower and 247 pound-feet of torque, benefitting from variable valve timing and dual exhausts.

In the base XE, the same engine with a more-restrictive, single exhaust is slightly less powerful but should offer higher fuel economy, with 17/25 city/highway miles per gallon for the XE, while the more powerful XR earns estimates of 16/24 mpg. Both models come with a six-speed automatic transmission and will be offered in front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive.

The Outlook’s 200.7-inch overall length (from bumper to bumper) initially might seem to slot it into the mid-size SUV class with the likes of the Chevrolet Tahoe, Dodge Durango and Ford Explorer, along with some imports. But while many of those cast roughly the same size shadow as the Outlook, the Outlook rides on a different platform, what’s called a unibody (or unit-body) instead of the body-on-frame platform more common to trucks and that underpins those others.

While a unibody chassis, which incorporates support in the internal body structure, cannot deliver towing capacity equivalent to a body-on-frame truck, it’s generally several hundred pounds lighter, significantly stiffer, offers a lower step-in height and delivers a much more car-like ride and handling.

So, while the Outlook is rated to tow 4500 pounds versus the Tahoe’s 7700-pound rating, the Outlook will ride and handle better and get better gas mileage. Indeed, Saturn hopes the Outlook will draw buyers looking for the spaciousness and utility of an SUV but with more comfort and better mileage.

The Outlook will come with a full safety package, with front seat-mounted side airbags and full-coverage side curtain airbags included as standard equipment, antilock brakes, plus all the usual mandated safety features. Scheduled to arrive in dealer showrooms in the fall of 2006, the Outlook will be built in Lansing, Michigan. We’re guessing it’ll start somewhere around $26,000, with upper level models starting around $28,000, but we don’t really know.[NewCarTestDrive]

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The Sky takes up where the Solstice’s clean, orbicular shape leaves off. Extra design trinkets include forward-canted side vents, faux hood vents, multiple grille openings with dashes of chrome, and a rear undertray with incorporated backup light. The headlights and the taillights are busied with proliferating lenses — the Sky has projector-beam headlamps, the Solstice doesn’t — and chrome spears. The lonely “Sky” badge adrift on the rump looks like an afterthought.

If the Solstice strikes you as too unorthodox, too unembellished and original to be a GM design, the Sky is happy to restore your sense of normality.

Saturn intends the Sky to rise above the Solstice (don’t worry, the next cars, the Galileo and the Kepler, will explain everything), in that the Sky’s base price of $23,690 is $3200 higher than the stripper Solstice’s. The extra nip gets you air conditioning, ABS, cruise, power everything (except the top, which is manual in all Kappas), keyless entry, floor mats, an alarm, and OnStar for a year. Taken together these options cost $3355 on the Solstice, which also doesn’t have the Sky’s fancy swabs of “piano black” interior trim to spruce up what is otherwise a concerto in hard plastic.

The Sky has other differences. The exhaust is slightly quieter, the top insulated with another layer of acoustic material. A more Stay-Puft ride results from a longer suspension travel and shorter jounce bumpers. The refinement is turned up a notch over the Solstice, and it’s noticeable. Over pavement holes the Sky’s suspension lets the body down with softer landings. Lumps aren’t as obtrusive. Dig into the throttle, and the burring from the DOHC 16-valve 2.4-liter four is more muted, its 6900-rpm redline less of a raspy thrash than in the Solstice. GM’s Ecotec swings a big stroke and will never be confused with a zingy sports-car engine. In the Sky, the harshness is better hidden.

At 2940 pounds, our phone-book-yellow Sky was 63 pounds more massive than our last Solstice tester and 515 pounds more portly than our last Mazda MX-5. No shocker then that the Sky demanded 7.3 seconds to make 60 mph and wouldn’t be bullied to its 88-mph quarter-mile in less than 15.9 seconds.

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Unlike the concept, these 2008 Saturn Vue prototypes use a four-door configuration to keep them practical while still incorporating some of the Antera’s less dramatic styling cues. The windshields are more upright for better visibility although the shape of the A-pillars is still very similar to the GTC. All the numerous vents and portholes used on the show vehicle are gone, however, so the Saturn version will have more conventional styling up front.

Earlier spy photos revealed a grille with at least some of the details shown on the Opel concept. These prototypes are similar with two horizontal slats sitting just below a spot for the emblem in the center. The complex headlight cluster isn’t quite as detailed as the LED units on the concept, another predictable cost-cutting move on the way to production.

Saturn downsized this generation of the Vue in anticipation of the larger 2007 Saturn Outlook coming this fall. Unlike the current model that straddles the compact and midsize SUV designations, the 2008 Saturn Vue will be planted firmly in the compact category. This means a four-cylinder engine for base models and a larger V6 on the upper trim levels.

Current models use a Honda-built 3.5-liter V6 with 250 horsepower, but expect to see a version of GM’s 3.6-liter V6 under the hood of these Saturns. That engine delivers a healthy 265 hp in the Outlook, but it may get detuned for use in the standard Vue to keep the models from competing with each other.  The earliest you’re likely to see the finished version of the 2008 Saturn Vue is in November at the Los Angeles auto show.

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To that end, GM is reinventing Saturn, while still maintaining its no-hassle, no-haggle pricing. Clearly aimed at import-intenders who would normally shop for an Accord, Camry, or Passat, the Aura is representative of this new direction. There will also be an Aura Greenline offered later in 2007 that will use a mild-hybrid powerplant similar to the one found in the Vue Greenline.

There are two trim levels for the Aura. The XE is the base model, with a revised version of GM’s OHV V6 that displaces 3510 cc and produces 224 horsepower at 5,800 rpm and 220 ft-lbs. at 4,000 rpm, which finds its way to the ground via a 4-speed automatic transmission. The XE is supposed to start around $20,595. The Aura XR, meanwhile, is the top of the line model, receiving motivation from a 3.6-liter DOHC V6 that produces 252 horsepower at 6,400 rpm and 251 ft-lbs. at 3,200 rpm. It is paired with GM’s new six-speed automatic transmission. The XR also has an optional Morocco Brown interior trim that adds brown leather to the seating surfaces with matching trim on the doors, which definitely lends character to the interior space. Pricing for the XR will start just under $25,000.

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Intentions were clear from the beginning that Saturn was meant to fight off competition from Asian manufacturers like Toyota and Honda. But, for whatever reason, the product lineup was never good enough. That is until now.

The all new Saturn Aura has the looks, the interior and the powertrain options to really contend in the crowded mid-sized sedan segment. It will be tough since people can choose from: the Accord, Camry, Ford Fusion and new Chrysler Sebring, just to name a few.

Dealer showrooms will start filling up with Auras this fall. At the beginning of production, there will be two trim levels offered. They are: Base (XE) starting at $20,595 and the up-level car (XR) starting at $24,595. The base car comes with a 3.5L V6 and a 4-speed automatic. The motor is rated at 224 horsepower and 220 lb-ft of torque. The XR model comes with a more sophisticated 3.6L overhead cam, aluminum block engine and a 6-speed automatic. The 3.6L V6 is rated at 252 horsepower and 251 lb-ft of torque.

Almost every other aspect of the sedan has been well thought out, the interior is nicely done, and the suspension feels like it’s been barrowed from its Opel brethren. Also on the horizon is a 4-cylinder Hybrid Aura as well. It looks like Saturn has finally arrived in the sedan segment.

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All 2007 Aura’s have V6 engines and automatic transmission. XEs have 224 hp and a 4-speed. XRs have 252 hp and a 6-speed with steering wheel paddles for manual operation. ABS and traction control are standard on all. XRs add an antiskid system, which is unavailable on XE. Front side airbags and curtain side airbags are standard, as are OnStar assistance and automatic climate control. Optional are power-adjustable pedals and a “panoramic” sunroof with a tilt-up front section and three rear-sliding panels.

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