Ready to RelaunchIt seems like I've been waiting years for this concept to be transformed
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| Hopes were set high from the very beginning when Saturn showed its Opel-like Aura Sedan Concept. (Photo: General Motors of Canada) |
into a production car, but here it is and it appears as good as I had dared to hope. It might not look quite as flashy as the concept, but those chrome 20-inch wheels were a little much anyway. What we have now is a genuine European sedan, designed in Russelsheim, Germany as the latest Opel Vectra, now to be badged a Saturn and named Aura, following Saturn's ethereal name game.
While its design is European, the salespeople will all still be genuine Saturn folks, focusing on strong customer relations in order to retain customers they somehow managed to hold onto while trying to purvey one of the weakest product portfolios the industry had to offer, a lineup that was marketed almost solely on the fact that the brand's vehicles had plastic body panels that wouldn't dent. How they pulled that off is impressive, but nevertheless a mystery to me.
But
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| Cars like the Sky and Aura will be shifting focus away from Saturn's less than glorious past. (Photo: General Motors of Canada) |
the Aura, and the Sky that will precede it into showrooms this spring, represent the rebirth of a brand the likes that we haven't seen since Cadillac's CTS came onto the scene in all its cool, faceted Art & Science glory, single-handedly rejuvenating what was GM's rather tired and listless luxury division. While Cadillac has yet to dethrone the imports, there is no denying that it's firmly back on the radar of premium buyers with stellar design followed by aggressive and stimulating performance.
Is this what we can expect from new Saturn entries? Judging by the many glowing reviews of Pontiac's new Solstice (the Sky's mechanical twin), Saturn products that benefit from European design and GM's global arsenal of engineers should be ready to challenge the interior quality and sporting prowess delivered by imports Saturn was originally designed to compete against, but came to market rather short on.
So what does the Aura have going for it? In terms of styling it has the
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| The production Aura's proportions have more or less remained the same, albeit with a slight tweak. It's a nice looking machine. (Photo: General Motors of Canada) |
new Saturn (long-time Opel) face with big, cats-eye headlamps framing the thick, chrome crossbar supporting Saturn's cursive red "S" above a wide grille opening and lower valance air intake. The peaked bumper visually leads the eyes up along the hood's centre crease as well as other creases highlighting the flanks of the hood, the car's shoulders and, most prominently, the wheel arches (which wrap around stylish 14-spoke 18-inch alloys). Those creases create continuity right through to the trunk line and rear bumper. The taillights are picked out in chrome and feature LED lamps, but what I like most is the way the outline seems to cross over into the chrome crossbar that lines the bottom lip of the trunk lid. The whole car seems chiseled, yet smooth, with large chunky forms tied together by sharp, purposeful detailing.
While
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| This kind of interior is unexpected and somewhat unheard of in a Saturn, but pleasing nonetheless. (Photo: General Motors of Canada) |
I can't compliment the interior as much as the dress version of the exterior (it also falls far short of the concept's rich cabin), it's a very promising look for Saturn's newfound elegance. Warm, natural leather (Morocco Brown, I believe) lines the armrests and chairs, and while the colour ties in beautifully with the wood grain accents on the door, dash and centre console, GM's standard, dull grey plastics don't do the rest of the interior justice. Hopefully one of Saturn's options includes an alternate backdrop colour choice (like that seen on the lining of the A-pillar), but I'm not holding my breath.
