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Matthew DeBord from The Big Money: Chadwick Matlin and I were trading e-mails a few days ago about Obama and Saturn. He made an excellent point: Saturn is a very Obama kind of car brand. Or was, anyway. Back when Saturn burst onto the scene—and burst is the correct word, because Saturn really was something different in the U.S. car business—it sold cars that were technologically innovative yet relatively modest in size (kind of creating a new category of downsized mid-size sedans) and sold t...

Michael O'Rourke from the San Antonio Express-News: First came the news that Pluto is no longer a planet. Now, Saturn will no longer be a car? These are strange times to be living in our universe. I never owned a Saturn. My brother had one. When he bought it my first question was, "Did they do it? Did they all come out and clap for you?" Not only did all of the Saturn employees come out to the showroom floor and clap for my brother's new purchase, but they all signed his temporary license plate ...

David Booth from the Fast Lane via MSN Autos: I also suspect that in my perfect world that Fiat would not have bought Chrysler. Come to think of it, after visiting Chrysler's research and development facilities recently, methinks that in Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne's perfect world, he too would not have bought Chrysler. According to BusinessWeek, it came as a surprise to Fiat's major domo that Chrysler's future development cupboard was bare save for a Grand Cherokee and the 300 sedan. Perhaps he ...

David F. Vogl in a letter to Automotive News: Saturn should become GM's technology leader. Make "Saturn" synonymous with "innovation." Give the Astra a clean-burning turbodiesel engine and make that same turbodiesel standard on the Aura and the Vue, with the current Two Mode gas-electric hybrid powertrain as an option. The Outlook would be sold only as high-torque diesel-electric hybrid. The Sky would be a plug-in electric with a 50-mile range and a backup generator — for less than $30,000. An...

From the Ventura County Star: Started in 1985 to compete with small, fuel-efficient Japanese imports, Saturn was meant to operate independently of the parent company — and for a while it did, building an enthusiastic customer base — almost cultlike — that it hosted for an annual reunion and picnic at its Spring Hill, Tennessee, plant. Unfortunately, the brand never made money and the plant quit making Saturns in 2007. But, to hear Saturn buffs tell it, the massive GM bureaucracy intruded m...

Jon Yanca from Car & Driver: The completion of the sale is expected to close in the third quarter of this year, pending many conditions and approvals from the U.S. Treasury, which now holds a majority stake in GM. It has been rumored that Penske has been in talks with Renault Samsung Motors to import the Korean-built vehicles under the Saturn name. Already owning the sole distribution rights in the States to the teacup-sized Smart brand, it wouldn’t be shocking to see this rumor become reality...

Katie Merx and Doron Levin from Bloomberg: Unloading Saturn is a step toward GM's goal of disposing of four of its eight US brands while reorganizing in Chapter 11. Because Bloomfield Hills, Michigan-based Penske Auto isn't a manufacturer, it will have to find a supplier of new vehicles. For GM, getting a buyer able to run a dealer network and market the vehicles "is like finally finding your puppy a good home," said Jack Nerad, an auto analyst at car-pricing service Kelley Blue Book in Irvine, ...

John Ketzenberger from IndyStar.com: Roger Penske may drive the auto industry back to the future in a Saturn if his deal for the General Motors subsidiary goes through. If Penske's gambit succeeds, the companies that control product distribution will supplant the actual manufacturers for primacy in the auto industry. The changes will take place over several years, but it could mean a wider variety of cars that get to market much faster. "With all the turmoil in the marketplace, (Penske) sees an ...

Lou Whiteman from thedeal.com: It is hard to find two people more respected throughout the auto industry than Roger Penske, a serial entrepreneur with a knack for managing turnarounds, and Jerome York, Kirk Kerkorian's right-hand man through a series of auto investments who sounded an early warning about the industry's need for radical change. Which is why it is so striking to see how drastically they disagree over the prospects for General Motors Co.'s vagabond Saturn brand. Penske is a believe...

Michelle Krebs from Edmunds Auto Observer: In a surprise move, Penske Automotive Group terminated discussions with General Motors to acquire Saturn due to its inability to secure agreements for the future supply of vehicles beyond what it had negotiated with GM. As a result, GM will wind down Saturn much as it is doing now with its Pontiac division. In a statement issued by the Penske Group late Wednesday, on the eve of the expected close of the deal, the auto retailing group cited "concerns di...

From the Detroit News: Detroit tycoon Roger Penske has terminated a deal with General Motors for the Saturn brand after Penske's prospective provider of new vehicles pulled out. The deal broke down after the Renault-Nissan Alliance decided Wednesday not to proceed with a deal to supply Penske with future vehicles for Saturn dealers, according to a source familiar with the discussions. The deal's unraveling dooms about 340 dealers and the Saturn brand, which appeared to have been rescued this sum...

Michelle Krebs from Edmunds Auto Observer: In light of the U.S. government's emphasis on available funding for alternative-powered vehicles, Penske said "electric vehicles will be right at the forefront" and "might be the first vehicles produced in the U.S." under this new Saturn arrangement with foreign partners. A former racecar driver and still a race-team owner, Penske said performance, which Saturn tried to highlight with its Red Line models, will take a backseat for now. "We need to be foc...

Ned Hunter from JacksonSun.com: Mike Rowand, facility manager at Saturn of Jackson, said if anyone can save the Saturn automobile brand, it's Roger Penske. Still, Penske faces an uphill battle to save Saturn. General Motors will continue to build Saturn's Aura, Outlook and the Vue for Penske until 2011 and perhaps longer under the terms of the proposed deal, Rowand said. During that time, however, Penske will have to find designs that will once again set Saturn apart if he wants loyal buyers to ...

Robert Snell from the Detroit News: A group headed by Detroit auto tycoon Roger Penske is the likely buyer of the Saturn brand and dealer network. "Negotiations are literally going around the clock and we hope to have something to announce soon, but there is nothing to announce today," Saturn spokesman Steve Janisse said. The Saturn negotiations involve pairing parties interested in Saturn's dealer network with one or more auto manufacturers interested in supplying vehicles that could be sold un...

Lindsay Chappell from Automotive News: Roger Penske's 11th-hour decision to pass on acquiring General Motors' Saturn brand marks a sad continuation of the same problem that has dogged Saturn for a decade: a lack of products. Penske had the bold proposal of keeping Saturn alive by creating a virtual automaker. GM was not going to sell Penske any auto factories, and Penske was happy not to have to own any. In taking over the ownership of the Saturn brand name, Penske would get a logo, parts invent...