Washington Post: 2007 Saturn Aura XE

[ChevyRules]

Saw this pretty good review from the Post. It's pretty positive.

Here along the winding back roads of Fauquier County was evidence of General Motors Corp.'s renewed vigor.

It was a ride-and-drive exhibition of 2007-model cars and trucks, one of which, the mid-size Saturn Aura XE sedan, is the subject of this week's review.

Products make or break a company. The vehicles brought to the village of Hume for examination by East Coast automotive journalists prove that GM, once broken, is on the mend.

The base Saturn Aura XE is a case in point. Please note the word "base."

Previously, GM relied on its top-of-the-line models to make a good impression at media show-and-tell events. That made sense, because the company's base cars and trucks in the 1980s and most of the 1990s constituted rental-car fare, generally unremarkable and unworthy of media or consumer attention.

That was the old GM, which had mastered the art of rationalizing the lackluster quality and marginal appeal of its new-vehicle entries by focusing on price -- a kind of buy-one-get-one-free product development and marketing approach that ultimately served neither the company nor its consumers well.

The new GM is eager to let its products speak for themselves -- so much so that the company has abandoned its neurotic habit of surrounding its engineers and designers with public relations executives and other spin artists at new-vehicle introductions.

More at link. Need to register to see it.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...092200571.html

[stevecmh]

wow the Post like something American.. Crazy

[coaster.n3rd]

The link provided allowed me to read the whole article. I did not have to register.

GM executives interviewed here said that their objective is to give consumers much more than they expect from a car in the $20,000 to $30,000 price range. They say they want to "over deliver" in terms of product attributes.

That is a good objective.

[Havasavana]

Originally Posted by stevecmh

wow the Post like something American.. Crazy

GM has no better friend in the media than Warren Brown. IIR he owns at least one himself.

[VivienM]

Originally Posted by stevecmh

wow the Post like something American.. Crazy

Warren Brown is one of the few openminded auto journalists out there... He WILL give everything a fair chance, no matter what the logo on the hood says.

[Evo69]

Yeah Ive read Warren Brown articles and they are straight up traditional auto journalism.

I recommend reading his past articles and any future ones.

[ZvetteGuy]

Originally Posted by stevecmh

wow the Post like something American.. Crazy

American... I thought that the Aura was drawing more upon the Opel brand and it's image... coming across more like European... it's not a bad thing in my opinion... but, surely not exactly American 'cept for the Saturn badge... overall, that car sounds like it is going to do very well in the market...

[ChevroletRevived]

Beautiful! Just beautiful. VERY positive. Truely impressive that this car gets such great reviews. Just take a look at a few of these quotes:

Even in base form with cloth seats, a 224-horsepower V-6, and a four-speed automatic transmission, the front-wheel-drive Aura sedan is a no-apologies car. It compares well with similarly equipped Honda Accord, Nissan Altima and Volkswagen Passat sedans.
In the premium mid-size sedan segment, the upscale Aura XR, with supple leather seats, a 252-horsepower V-6 and a six-speed automatic transmission, gives the front-wheel-drive versions of the Audi A4 and Volvo S60 sedans a very good run for the money.
Fit and finish on the base Aura XE are impeccable. Gaps between exterior panels are barely noticeable. All interior materials, including the seat fabric, are first-rate. Driver-seat comfort is excellent, as good as, if not better than, that of substantially more costly cars. In short, the Aura XE's passenger cabin is a winner, a visually stunning knockout

[appman]

That was a great review, espically from a liberal newspaper.

[69Firebird400]

Originally Posted by ChevroletRevived

Beautiful! Just beautiful. VERY positive. Truely impressive that this car gets such great reviews. Just take a look at a few of these quotes:

Agreed - extremely positive. It was heartening to hear. Particularly his comment about the flawless interior fit and finish, which had me a little concerned for a while from some of the stuff I had read about other cars. Even more impressive is that he's talking about the low-$20,000s XE base model. (Although I did note that it's an XR with multispoke wheels in the file photos in the paper).

Nice job, GM. Now don't rest on your laurels, and keep improving an already good car to blow away the competition. And please give this car the marketing resources it needs to compete against some very solid competition from Ford, Honda, Toyota, and Hyundai past its launch year.

[the prix]

I don't believe I've ever heard the word's "impeccable fit and finish" and GM in the same sentence. Way to go GM!!

[AdmiralViscen]

Originally Posted by ZvetteGuy

American... I thought that the Aura was drawing more upon the Opel brand and it's image... coming across more like European... it's not a bad thing in my opinion... but, surely not exactly American 'cept for the Saturn badge... overall, that car sounds like it is going to do very well in the market...

...and the drivetrain, interior, and the entire G6-based platform.

[adaca]

I just sat inside an Aura XR that had interior panels by the center tunnel that bulged out because they weren't fitting. The fake wood trim looks faked. You sure won't mistake it for a car costing $30K or more. Likewise for a Sky that I sat inside.

I'm a little put off by the fact that the same parts bin steering wheel which appears in my C6 didn't come with the thumb contours, and felt a little skinnier (perhaps psychological on this one).

Overall, I won't say I'm particular impressed with the fit-and-finish. The Aura doesn't go beyond the norm in my mind for its class.

Haven't driven in one, so will reserve on that. The very flat seatbacks are extremely disconcerting from a performance driving perspective.

[01cavalier]

The last part of the article is a good dose of reality. People should have been able to expect cars like this from GM...and that GM is only meeting expectations. The Aura is a great car, but some things are still missing when it comes to features, options and powertrains. It should still easily do very well.

[ChevroletRevived]

Originally Posted by 69Firebird400

Agreed - extremely positive. It was heartening to hear. Particularly his comment about the flawless interior fit and finish, which had me a little concerned for a while from some of the stuff I had read about other cars. Even more impressive is that he's talking about the low-$20,000s XE base model. (Although I did note that it's an XR with multispoke wheels in the file photos in the paper).

Nice job, GM. Now don't rest on your laurels, and keep improving an already good car to blow away the competition. And please give this car the marketing resources it needs to compete against some very solid competition from Ford, Honda, Toyota, and Hyundai past its launch year.

You're right. That's very impressive indeed. And I completely agree with you; this car needs to be marketed. Heavily. Then, it'll sell. But, it needs to be noticed and recognized. And, coupled with it's head turning styling/great reviews, I think advertising will be very effective.