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Saturn Aura New Owner Reports

240 messages,  Last post on Sep 05, 2011 at 9:44 AM

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What is this discussion about? Saturn Aura, Sedan

Messages Page 1 of 24

#1 of 240 Saturn Aura New Owner Reports by KarenS HOST

Feb 21, 2007 (9:03 am)

Do you have a new Aura in your driveway? What are your initial thoughts?

#2 of 240 Saturn XE by bdubsee

Feb 24, 2007 (4:30 am)

I am proud to say that I now have a Saturn XE in my driveway. It's Midnight Blue with the gray interior. Has Preferred and Convenience Packages as well as the premium floor mats. I leased my car on Wednesday, 2/21/07. My initial thoughts are wow. The styling is a knock-out and, with the dark blue, the car is very sophisticated looking. I previously had a 2005 Malibu Maxx (a platform-mate of the Aura, built in the same factory). I LOVED the layout of the car but had to constantly apologize for the exterior of the car and poorly executed interior bits. Not so with the Aura. This car has been thoughtfully finished and everything feels done to the highest level.
 
Likes: Amber ambient lighting, comfortable bolstered seats, beautiful gauges, sophisticated Audi-like styling, excellent buying experience, large trunk, cargo nets on side of trunk, tambor door over cupholders, chunky and comfortable steering wheel, OnStar, A lot of car for the money, it suits me exaclty.
 
Dislikes: There is no handle or indent for closing the trunk lid without touching the exterior paint, I should have gotten the leather interior as cloth doesn't match the style of the exterior, the nearest dealership is 15 miles aways (in Central Florida that equals an hour round-trip of just driving).
 
Finally, the Saturn buying experience was incredible. Like many of you, I had heard about the Saturn way but I thought it was more marketing hype than reality. I was wrong. The experience was pleasant from beginning to end. Even the dreaded F&I office was pleasant. I am now slightly embarassed about how combative I was with the sales associate and F&I manager - behavior that I developed over the last 3 purchases that my wife and I have made in the last 4 years. I would recommend a Saturn for the buying experience alone - the excellent new products are a bonus.

#3 of 240 OUS by ous

Feb 25, 2007 (4:56 pm)

I got mine two days ago. An XE, loaded. Techno Gray. I love the leather interior, very comfortable and supports well. I have owned Chevy/Olds cars, vans and SUVs in the past. My last vehicle was a 2002 Trailblazer with 95,000 trouble free miles. I was worried about giving up so much utility on the switch from a SUV to a sedan but did it hoping my gas mileage would improve enough to make me forget the trade-off. I did a 600 mile round trip just for fun and only got 28mpg on dry roads so my fears might have been justified. My SUV got around 22mpg in the same road and circumstances. And with the small gas tank on the Aura, I stopped for fuel as often as the SUV. Bummer. EVERYTHING else on the Aura feels great. Fit, finish, road noise, handling and braking are excellent.

#4 of 240 Re: Saturn Aura New Owner Reports [KarenS] by dehg7019

Mar 01, 2007 (8:54 am)

Replying to: KarenS (Feb 21, 2007 9:03 am)
I'm proud owner of '07 Aura XR - black with brown leather and every option. Car has just under 4,000 mi. Am experiencing strange noise at first start-up of day if temperature is below 60 degrees. Sounds like jet engine whine. Seems to come through speaker system, is affected by radio on/off, turn signal on/off, and even opening of door. This lasts for a few minutes and goes away. Dealer service department called Saturn engineer and was told it was the electric power steering. Illogical to me since the noise is in the passenger compartment; not the engine compartment. They offered no solution.
ANYONE HAD THIS PROBLEM? OR HAVE A SOLUTION?

#5 of 240 Saturn XR- Ocean Mist by donnerwetter

Mar 02, 2007 (3:33 pm)

I've had my new XR for about 2 weeks now (Ocean Mist w/Black Leather) and have been loving it so far.
 
Pros: -Interior is gorgeous with understatement reminiscent of Lexus
         - Car is insanely quiet, even at 80MPH
         - Great road feel, very little body roll in hard cornering.
         - Nice sound from factory stereo/speakers
         - Integrated phone with OnStar
 I'm happy GM has finally decided to become competitive!
 
Cons: -Design of front air dam... I somehow managed to break the front air dam on some ice backing out of my driveway. Upon reading some forums, I found out that this is a fairly common occurance, even in the XRs with the 18" wheels. It's an easy fix ($145 installed at the dealership) but I anticipate having to make a few more visits for this flaw.
           -Torque Steer. FWD with a powerful engine, whaddya going to do?
           -Bit of groaning in the steering wheel when you go hard over in either direction. Dealer indicated that this is not abnormal for this model

#6 of 240 Re: Saturn Aura New Owner Reports [dehg7019] by white6

Mar 03, 2007 (8:06 am)

Replying to: dehg7019 (Mar 01, 2007 8:54 am)
FWIW, Saturn's own literature states that the Aura uses hydraulic power steering, not electric power steering.

#7 of 240 Re: Saturn Aura New Owner Reports [dehg7019] by trauppius

Mar 08, 2007 (5:26 am)

Replying to: dehg7019 (Mar 01, 2007 8:54 am)
The power steering pump thing is a red herring as the XR uses a hydraulic power steering pump instead of the GM Magnasteer as used on the Malibu and G6. This does not sound like a normal (i.e. just ignore it, they ALL do that) type of thing. Something is going on here.
  
I am an aerospace systems engineer with an electrical/electronics background and it my first impression is that you are hearing some form of acoustic resonance artifact resulting from some form out-of-spec performance by the alternator/regulator. This would explain the change in tonal character as you vary the electrical load (lights, radio, etc.).
  
I suggest you ask your Saturn guy to listen carefully in and around the alternator when the car is cool/cold. As the engine bay and electrical loading on the alternator raise the temperature the sound probably fades away.
  
If the problem cannot be isolated perhaps you can take some comfort in the 3 year/100K bumber-to-bumber warranty. If the conditions worsens, and it may be an indication of a developing failure, then it will be GM/Saturn's problem to resolve to your satisfaction. You may also want to contact the Saturn regional Customer Center and see if they have heard of anything like your problem. Auras are fairly new and the maintenance patterns/problems/legends are just beginning to take shape.
  
P.S. I have been enjoying my XR for about 4 months now, now problems so far

#8 of 240 You convinced me Aura over Chevy by phaetondriver

Mar 12, 2007 (7:08 pm)

I was all ready to buy an Impala LTZ. I figured the size and 3.9 L V-6 (233 HP???) was enough for an old hot rodder like me. Then I read this forum. Researched the Aura(s). I found it was the same size as the Malibu, Lexus ES330, Camry, Accord, etc. Then I say the Power train specs, the 4 or 6(?) speed choices. I read about the 3.6 DOHC 24 Valve VVT All Aluminum V6. The Corvette designed paddle shifters and 4 way tilt wheel. And on and on and on went the added or better features on the Aura XR.
One driver of 3-4 miles and I opened the checkbook.
This is the closest thing to an infinity or lexus you can get for under $30 grand.
Thanks to all that write to this forum, I almost bought a Chevy.

#9 of 240 Help me please by salesguru

Mar 13, 2007 (11:53 am)

Does anyone know what the "I" stands for located on the gear shift plate???

#10 of 240 Re: Help me please [salesguru] by phaetondriver

Mar 13, 2007 (5:28 pm)

Replying to: salesguru (Mar 13, 2007 11:53 am)
According to my owners manual (Aura 2007 Pg 120) The I is for "Intermediate" Read as second and third gear. The manual says if you are driving in a hilly area and the transmission needs to shift up and down to compensate for engine loading.
The I position will allow the transmission to operate in a more efficient gear.
With the XR, you have to shift to M and shift the car manually to get the most efficient operation.
Hope this helped
 
Rich
Aura XR owner for 3 days

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