Rental Impressions: 2008 Saturn VUE XR

[AndrewGS]

Houston recently had it's Auto Show and my family and I were there looking at all the compact and midsize CUVs in hopes to find the perfect new car for my mother to replace her aging, failing Durango. The real standout in the sea of models available was the Saturn VUE Green Line BAS Hybrid. It's just roomy enough, looks fantastic, uses great materials, has near flawless fit and finish, a rear center armrest (big plus!), gets amazing fuel economy for it's class and starts at under $25,000. "Perfect", we thought.

So, monday evening I rented a white, 2008 VUE XR FWD from the local Avis in hopes to seal the deal. On the short ride home I was impressed with the power of the 3.6L, the smooth, controlled ride and tight, accurate steering. Upon arriving home and reading through the manual I was dissapointed to find the lack of a DIC, lost in the transition from European to North American specification. Another, more significant transition change would soon become apparent.

With my parents in charge of the keys we set off for dinner, dad getting first shot behind the wheel. Before we even left the neighborhood my father was very uncomfortable due to the widened center stack. His knee was pushed hard against the side of the center stack and his foot was twisted to the right to reach the throttle, this was unapparent while sitting in one at the Auto Show and I didn't notice it on the short trip home. By the time we reached our destination it was apparent that he would never be behind the wheel of another VUE until the center stack was redesigned. As another small dissapointment, I noticed the rear window switches were not lit, something I thought all GM products over the last ten years have had.

After dinner my mom took the wheel. She is shorter than my father and I and she had no issues with the center stack nor the throttle position. She found the seats comfortable, as we all did, bit they are a little harder than perfect would be. After about thirty minutes of driving around town and a stretch on the highway, she headed back home impressed.

When we got home I took the keys back and headed for the city to get some more time in the driver's seat. The issue I thought my father had overstated became quite apparent after about fifteen minutes of driving. My right leg began to hurt from pushing along the side of the center stack with my foot reaching for the throttle. After about an hour I became quite uncomfortable and headed home. Otherwise it was a great drive as I was impressed with the great sounding stereo, near-perfect ride and handling and generous power.

In the end, the VUE has been stricken from our short list of vehicles. If it weren't for my father and I not being able to drive it comfortably, a VUE GL would have had a home in our driveway. We're quite dissapointed too because the rest of the VUE is so good.

[montrealvue]

I was impressed with the Vue XR as well when I had one as a loaner a couple weeks back. The two things I was most disappointed with were fuel economy and driver comfort. Fuel economy in mixed driving was around 15 mpg., not as good as the previous V6 but I realize the '08 Vue is as heavy as a block of lead.

The base of the driver seat was short and uneven. I am not sure why the front of the seat has a bulge of padding while the back has very little. Basically your butt falls into this void. Maybe if I was 250 lbs I wouldn't notice, I'm only 150 lbs and 5'9". I sat in a XR with leather last week and found the leather doesn't allow you to sink into the seat like the upholstered seat did. Maybe that would be more comfortable for you? I felt like you did after a couple days in the car, it just wasn't comfortable enough to enjoy in the long term.

[emh]

Originally Posted by montrealvue

Fuel economy in mixed driving was around 15 mpg., not as good as the previous V6 but I realize the '08 Vue is as heavy as a block of lead.

I never understood why a FWD Vue is heavier than a RWD SRX. To be fair, I guess the SRX can afford to use more lighter weight alloys etc.

[AndrewGS]

Originally Posted by emh

I never understood why a FWD Vue is heavier than a RWD SRX. To be fair, I guess the SRX can afford to use more lighter weight alloys etc.

It feels incredibly tight and gets great safety ratings, that probably contributes to it's 4,076lb. heft. It hides it's weight well as far as performance goes, but at 3,825lbs. even the 2.4L needs lots of liquids. I also think that the 3.6L HF V6 is about as thirsty as a small block in any car.

[montrealvue]

Originally Posted by AndrewGS

It feels incredibly tight and gets great safety ratings, that probably contributes to it's 4,076lb. heft. It hides it's weight well as far as performance goes, but at 3,825lbs. even the 2.4L needs lots of liquids. I also think that the 3.6L HF V6 is about as thirsty as a small block in any car.

Hopefully the 3.6L DI engine will end up in the Vue, by the looks of it that engine would give more power and the same fuel economy as the 2.4L mill...