| Saturn Ion |
Article Index for Saturn |
Website Links For Saturn |
Information AboutSaturn Ion |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT SATURN ION | |
| compact cars | |
| front wheel drive vehicles | |
| saturn vehicles | |
| ion | |
| coupes | |
| sedans | |
| 2000s automobiles | |
The Saturn ION is a Compact Car sold by General Motors ' Saturn Brand . It uses the GM Delta Platform . The ION replaced the Saturn S-series in 2003 . 2003 The 2003 ION came standard with a 140 hp (104 kW) DOHC Ecotec I4 engine. The ION's instrument panel is mounted on the top center of the dashboard, rather than behind the steering wheel. The ION is available in sedan and coupe forms; the coupe is called a "quad coupe" due to the two smaller rear-opening " Suicide Doors " behind the front doors. A Getrag F23 5-speed manual or an Aisin AF33 5-speed Automatic Transmission are available. The 2003 and 2004 IONs were available with the VTi Continuously Variable Transmission . In 2004, Saturn introduced the high-performance Redline variant of the ION, featuring a Supercharged Engine . In 2006, the ION received exterior facelift to give it more of a family resemblance to the 2007 Saturn Aura and Saturn Sky roadster. Under the hood, the long-rumored 170 hp 2.4 L I4 engine with Variable Valve Timing became available for the ION3. 2008 The ION will be redesigned for 2008 with new styling by Opel , which will introduce the similar Opel Astra for 2010 . There will be no 2007 model. Production will move from the Saturn plant in Spring Hill , Tennessee to GM's Lordstown , Ohio plant, where it will be built alongside the Chevrolet Cobalt , a fellow Delta car. CRITICISM The ION has not reached the success or the reviews that its predecessor, the Saturn S Series , has recieved. The ION's interior design has been panned in reviews (notably the center-mounted instrument cluster, which causes the driver to take his or her eyes off the road frequently), and has suffreed from poor reliability (according to Consumer Reports , the ION is one of the lowest rated cars in term of their reliability serveys). The ION also has not lived up to sales expectations, as it has not sold even half the numbers as the Saturn S Series , and its slow sales have caused GM to halt production for 2 weeks, to allow stock to clear out. According to Autoline Detroit , the Saturn ION is one of the worst selling cars on the market, right above the Mazda B-Series pickup truck, which is currently the slowest-selling vehicle on the North American market, with dealers having over a 6 month stock. The poor acceptance of the ION, which is Saturn's core model, has put Saturn's future in jeopardy, which GM is hoping to fix by moving the brand upmarket with vehicles such as the Saturn Aura . EXTERNAL LINKS
|
|
|