20 Votes

Boost it!

GM kills Saturn after Penske ends deal

topneuro submitted on 9/30/2009 Official Bell & Ross Timestamp: 6:13:10 PM

16 user comments | Category: Misc News | Source: | SOURCE: money.cnn.com

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.

com) -- Car dealership operator Penske Automotive Group announced on Wednesday that it has cancelled plans to acquire General Motors' Saturn unit. As a result, GM said it will wind down the brand and dealer network.

The announcement comes nearly four months after Penske agreed to buy the rights to the 19-year old brand from GM when the automaker was in bankruptcy.

As part of the deal, GM would have continued making Saturn's three highest-selling models: the Aura sedan, as well as the Vue and Outlook cross-over SUVs, for the rest of this year and next. Penske, which is an auto distributor and not a manufacturer, would have sold the cars on behalf of GM. Penske said it would find another third-party manufacturer to make new Saturns in 2011.



Read Article

GM kills Saturn after Penske ends deal

About the Author

topneuro

— topneuro (View Profile)


User Comments

LuxuryFan

So long Saturn, you were one of the few (former) GM brands that I actually halfway liked.

— LuxuryFan (View Profile)

Posted on 9/30/2009 7:00:34 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 4   

thstone

I am still thinking that Saturn should have been a great opprotunity for the Chinese to gain a foothold in the US market. Anyone know why they didn't jump at the Saturn deal? Will they now?

— thstone (View Profile)

Posted on 9/30/2009 7:05:13 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 3   

MSP6

Not sure GM wants to give the chinese that opportunity...

— MSP6 (View Profile)

Posted on 9/30/2009 7:46:43 PM | | Votes: 2   

Badgewhore

They didn't feel like giving us our money back yet. Saturn would've been a disaster for them as they've recently figured out that quality(not necessarily originality) is what will make or break a car company in america.

If they don't buy Saturn now they can always do it later once they get their quality up to par. Saturns not going anywhere anytime soon since no ones got any money to buy or bulldoze all those vacant lands and buildings.

— Badgewhore (View Profile)

Posted on 10/1/2009 6:14:45 AM | | Votes: 0   

rubenkincaid

Too bad Penske couldn't have further developed the import of Opel product to the States, especially since GM is getting rid of that brand as well. Penske would have turned Saturn into a strong competitor against GM.

— rubenkincaid (View Profile)

Posted on 9/30/2009 8:05:48 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

204E60

And absolutely no one will miss this brand. Does anybody on this website even know someone who owned one? The most obscure brand GM has ever marketed.

— 204E60 (View Profile)

Posted on 9/30/2009 9:17:18 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

delan

Well this sucks!

— delan (View Profile)

Posted on 9/30/2009 10:12:45 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

EL34

I think it's fantastic GM is getting rid of Saturn, Hummer and Pontiac.

They'll be lean and mean with Chevy, Caddy and Buick.

Now they need to get rid of GMC.

— EL34 (View Profile)

Posted on 9/30/2009 11:44:44 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 2   

senorgato

GM, Ford and Chrysler have been redundant for too many years. Streamlining their product line offering is the smartest thing that they can do to reduce development, marketing, advertising, and operational costs.

— senorgato (View Profile)

Posted on 10/1/2009 12:25:45 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 3   

g2ok

So long Saturn, never really knew you.

GM only needs 2 brands : Chevy + Cadillac.
They need to cancel Buick and GMC also.
Would be even better if they dropped the GM name itself.

— g2ok (View Profile)

Posted on 10/1/2009 12:55:58 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 2   

antwona2d

I disagree, GM should keep Chevy, Buick and Cadillac. But I believe that all three brands should stay within a the following markets: Chevy ~ $10K - $35K; Buick $30K - $60K; Cadillac $40K - $80K. This way the American people can associate brand with class. Buick needs to clearly compete with Acura, Infiniti, Volvo, and Lexus. Cadillac needs to clearly compete with Jaguar, Audi, Mercedes, and BMW. Ford needs a third brand to separate its bargan cars from the premium cars. Otherwise the $30 - $60K market will be loss.

— antwona2d (View Profile)

Posted on 10/1/2009 4:46:09 PM | | Votes: 1   

SpicyMikey

Smart move by Penske. What were they thinking even entertaining the idea? It's not a company, just a brand. What's that brand worth? GM would have still needed to make the cars for them at their plants. How would that have worked. Bye bye!

— SpicyMikey (View Profile)

Posted on 10/1/2009 9:14:10 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 2   

Invisible

I never understood how GM could sell "Saturn". Saturn became just another brand of GM where someone designed a badge, and they sold vehicles in a different dealership.

— Invisible (View Profile)

Posted on 10/1/2009 10:02:11 AM | | Votes: 3   

KZ258

lol my girl drives a saturn ion. god, i hate riding in that thing

— KZ258 (View Profile)

Posted on 10/1/2009 10:13:57 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 2   

HyundaiSmoke

LMAO.

Absolute Overpriced Rubbish aint it?

— HyundaiSmoke (View Profile)

Posted on 10/1/2009 4:52:25 PM | | Votes: 0   

answer

Sad that Penske got people's hopes up.

— answer (View Profile)

Posted on 10/1/2009 11:58:14 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 2   

Add your Comments

Images hosted in your AgentSpace can now be posted in the comments section using the following syntax (case matters): [img]IMAGE URL[/img]
Example: [img]http://agent001.myautospies.com/images/sample.jpg[/img]