- #33 of 42
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Re: Close the book on Saturn [pbconspiracy]
by steve_ HOST
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Oct 02, 2009 (10:25 am)
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Replying to: pbconspiracy (Oct 02, 2009 9:39 am)
On the other hand, GM won't have to compete with a Saturn that's owned by another company, as Dieselone pointed out over in Do You Favor A Government Loan To The Detroit 3?.
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- #34 of 42
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Re: Close the book on Saturn [pbconspiracy]
by dodgeman07
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Oct 02, 2009 (10:47 am)
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Replying to: pbconspiracy (Oct 02, 2009 9:39 am)
I'm sorry to see Saturn go also. The concept was, and is, a good one but their lineup was weak for too many years. They finally have a good lineup for their curtain call.
A strong case could be made for keeping Saturn and dropping Buick but the growing Chinese market likes Buick so Saturn had to go.
It's interesting to note however that the Saturn Sky and Vue will be with in 2011 as Buicks!
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- #35 of 42
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Re: Close the book on Saturn [steve_]
by michaell
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Oct 02, 2009 (11:40 am)
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Replying to: steve_ (Sep 30, 2009 5:52 pm)
The Washington Post is saying 13,000 jobs are at risk, but you have to wonder if that includes suppliers and the like.
My understanding is that the 13,000 figure is just the employees from the dealerships that will have to close. Averages out to about 35-40 people from each dealer.
Not sure that any suppliers will be affected, since Saturn didn't have any unique products - the VUE lives on as the Equinox, SRX and GMC Terrain, the Aura as the Malibu and the Outlook as the Traverse, Acadia and Enclave.
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- #36 of 42
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Re: Close the book on Saturn [hpmctorque]
by dispencer2
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Oct 02, 2009 (3:32 pm)
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Replying to: hpmctorque (Sep 30, 2009 5:42 pm)
I'd never driven a Saturn until a week ago when I rented an Aura in Baltimore. I can't understand why people couldn't tell it was owned by GM. There is a GM badge on the lower fender, the radio and other components are solidly GM. I thought I was in an Impala except that the Aura is much nicer inside than an Impala. I was really impressed -I would buy one in a heartbeat over an Impala (I had an 06 Impala). Unfortunately it has a jerky transmission - so did my Impala. My 09 Cobalt transmission is much smoother.
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- #37 of 42
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Re: Close the book on Saturn [dispencer2]
by berri
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Oct 02, 2009 (3:43 pm)
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Replying to: dispencer2 (Oct 02, 2009 3:32 pm)
I don't know if its the transmission or the computer programing, but this jointly developed Ford/GM tranny seems a bit touchy in both company's vehicles.
I never understood how this Penske thing would work out. Seems to me that having a middleman would have inevitably meant that the new Saturn would be handicapped in pricing, kind of like a mom and pop store using a wholesaler versus Wal-Mart buying direct.
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- #38 of 42
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Re: Close the book on Saturn [berri]
by steve_ HOST
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Oct 02, 2009 (4:03 pm)
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Replying to: berri (Oct 02, 2009 3:43 pm)
The middleman setup seems to have worked out nicely for Gulf States Toyota, and especially for Southeast Toyota (Southeast is a big part of JMFE, the 18th-largest privately held company in the US).
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- #39 of 42
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Re: Close the book on Saturn [steve_]
by berri
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Oct 02, 2009 (6:12 pm)
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Replying to: steve_ (Oct 02, 2009 4:03 pm)
That's because they have a monopoly on Toyota sales in those states. When I lived in their territory I didn't buy Toyota because I didn't like their attitude nor being ripped off. You could actually do better buying a Toyota out of their region and driving it back. People were fools putting up with their excess mark-ups and unnneeded dealer prep crap and options (back then at least). If they stopped shopping there, they'd end up getting better deals. Hopefully D3 keeps improving and forces Southeat to treat customers better. Besides, Toyota isn't the premium vehicle it used to be nowadays anyway.
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- #40 of 42
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Re: Close the book on Saturn [berri]
by hpmctorque
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Oct 02, 2009 (8:28 pm)
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Replying to: berri (Oct 02, 2009 3:43 pm)
The idea was that the power was in the distribution of vehicles rather than in the manufacturing.
I don't think that your mom and pop versus Wal-Mart analogy is appropriate here, given the size of the Penske Auto Group, and, I presume, future growth plans. The auto companies, and respective independent dealer networks, currently include the middleman function. As I see it, the middleman function would not have been added under the Penske plan, because it already exists.
I think Penske's plan for Saturn was okay conceptually. The deal probably unraveled for multiple reasons, including the probability that the risk-reward was too favorable to Penske.
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- #41 of 42
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Re: Close the book on Saturn [hpmctorque]
by steve_ HOST
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Oct 26, 2009 (11:36 am)
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Replying to: hpmctorque (Oct 02, 2009 8:28 pm)
I was thinking there might have been a last gasp effort to get Penske back on board but I guess not. Time to tweak the title of this discussion. 
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- #42 of 42
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Re: Close the book on Saturn [steve_]
by hpmctorque
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Oct 27, 2009 (10:20 am)
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Replying to: steve_ (Oct 26, 2009 11:36 am)
Yeah, it's time to tweak, archive or delete it.
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