Who Made Saturn Cars And Why Was The Brand Discontinued?
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Though new automobile brands seem to be popping up all over the place these days, back in the 1980s, that was not such a common occurrence. Sure, certain imports from the Asian continent were gaining traction in the U.S. market, but when it came to American brands, they largely existed under the banner of one of the traditional “Big Three” automakers, General Motors, Ford, or Chrysler. As such, it seemed only fitting that, in the mid-1980s, one of those factions was indeed behind the creation of a new American auto brand — one with sights set on competing with the increasingly popular Asian builds.
That brand was dubbed Saturn by its makers, who began showcasing the shingle’s more compact, fuel-efficient prototypes as early as 1984. The “Big Three” automaker behind Saturn was, of course, General Motors. And over the ensuing two decades, Saturn would go on to be one of the bigger success stories among GM’s holdings, which, over the years, has included some of the more notable names in automotive history. By the 1990s and 2000s, the brand’s lineup would grow to include everything from compact sedans to SUVs and even a few legit sports cars.
But if you’re familiar with GM’s current slate of automobile brands, you know that Saturn is no longer on the list. In fact, it hasn’t been on the list since 2010, when GM pulled the plug on the entire Saturn brand. Here’s why GM killed the once popular Saturn line.
Financial strain ultimately doomed GM’s Saturn lineup
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If you’re a student of history, you likely noted the timing of Saturn’s demise, with the major U.S. automakers on the wrong side of the country’s financial downswing between 2008 and 2010. The auto industry was not, of course, alone in those struggles, as the entire country was struggling to survive a financial crisis largely spurred by decades’ worth of dodgy dealings in the housing sector. Like the other American majors, General Motors was on the verge of going under entirely at the height of the crisis, with the automaker even filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in ’09 after claiming losses of almost $82 billion.
Along with Ford and Chrysler, GM only survived by partaking in a massive 2008 bailout payment from the United States government. But even that bailout money may not have been enough for GM to survive, as the outfit also had to make drastic cuts to its operations in order to get back on its feet and stay there. Those cuts indeed included shuttering operations on the entire Saturn line, as well as other iconic brands like Pontiac, Hummer and Saab.
While many consumers were likely sad to see Saturn go the way of the Dodo, quality control issues and a lack of design innovations had already led to the brand struggling to hold its own in the U.S. marketplace even before the onset of the financial crisis. Though GM tried to sell the brand prior to discontinuing it, a potential deal to save Saturn in 2009 ultimately fell through, with the axe officially falling shortly thereafter.
