With the pending closure of the ImSaturn social networking site, Saturn has been working closely with me to facilitate a transfer of the most popular "social groups" from the ImSaturn site to SaturnFans.com. The remaining folks at Saturn have a sincere interest in making sure Saturn owners continue to have a place to talk about their cars. As a result, I'm happy to announce the creation of the new "ImSaturn Groups" section here at SaturnFans.com. Now more than ever, it's important for Saturn owners to have a place to share their experiences and get help. The new groups were built to closely mimic the group configuration at ImSaturn. You'll still be able to post photos, as well as send and receive messages from other members. You can also create your own social group!

From Saturn: On October 19, 2009, we sent a letter with the news that the sale of Saturn could not be finalized and as a result, the Saturn brand will be phased out over the next year. Reading letters you sent in, as well as the thoughts that were posted on saturn.com has been an emotional and uplifting journey.

Well, we're back! After the site crashed over the weekend, I decided to use the downtime to move SaturnFans.com to its new home. I had planned to do it back in Decemeber, but between the holidays, the SF Publisher being down, and other parts of the site needing maintenance, moving the site was not a priority. The good news is that over the weekend I was able to repair the database and fix the publisher. All of the articles published between December 8th and the end of the year will be restored from a backup later this week. Unfortunately, several batches of files transfered to the new site were corrupt, so the move has been postponed.

It is with tempered excitement that I officially announce the start of SaturnFest 2009. The format for this year's event will be diferent from in the past. The familiar 5-day schedule has been expanded to 31 days, and the over-the-top celebration will be more reflective and subdued. Personally, I am still finding it hard to prepare a "celebration" so close to the brand's untimely death. Couple that with reports published almost on a daily basis about more retail facilities closing — leaving thousands of folks out of work during the holidays — really saddens me.

With General Motors' unfortunate decision to shutdown Saturn, the need for venues that enable owners and fans to communicate is greater than ever. In an effort to foster that communication across as many mediums as possible, SaturnFans.com can be followed via Twitter, RSS, ImSaturn, and now there's a fan page on Facebook. It's another place for Saturn owners — past and present — to socialize, share experiences, and offer support to each other in the wake of Saturn's untimely closing.

Today was supposed to be the first day of SaturnFans.com's week-long SaturnFest celebration. Just like in the past, it was going to be a happy time, with this year's virtual gathering of owners from around the world (I've received e-mails from as far away as Taiwan) cheering Roger Penske's acquistion of Saturn. But, alas, with GM's decision to suddenly begin the process of shutdowning the brand at the end of September, preparation for the online festival screeched to a halt as news of the impending closure dominated this site's front page.

Of all the letters I have written this past year, this one is the most difficult. I want to begin by thanking all of you for your support over this last year. Your loyalty to Saturn motivated my team to work very hard to try to find a way for this brand to continue. The many e-mails, calls and personal notes provided the inspiration to all of us at Saturn. By now I'm sure you have heard that the sale of Saturn to the Penske Automotive Group could not be finalized. As a result, the Saturn brand will now be phased out over time.

For the second time this month, SaturnFans.com has been knocked offline due to the surge of Saturn owners and enthusiasts flocking to the Web to read more about GM's decision to shutdown the Saturn brand. This time damage was much more extensive. While the primary site database has been reconstructed, there is still some work that needs to be done.

The server crash caused extensive damage to the database; it took a lot of time to troubleshoot and reconstruct. After working on this for two long nights, everything should be back to normal now. I apologize for the inconvenience. If you notice anything still acting strange, please send me an alert.

SaturnFans.com is currently looking for musicians who want to showcase their talents at the upcoming SaturnFest virtual homecoming celebration. SaturnFest '09 will take place online October 26th through the 30th on the computer-generated grassy fields of the Saturnalia Fairgrounds. Among the events previously announced will be a nighttime concert, which is where you come in.