Tough times call for tough measures. Nowhere is this truer than in Detroit's auto industry. News of General Motors -- once America's largest commercial enterprise -- possibly going out of business or eliminating divisions sends shudders through Wall Street and cities where GM employees work.
Kat Koonce loves her Saturns. She owns three, and has pictures of them on Saturnfans.com, where she is one of almost 2,500 Saturn devotees who've posted photo albums of their vehicles.
Long-suffering GM has recently seen some bright patches. It has had big hits with cars like the Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky sports cars and the Chevrolet HHR economy wagon.
Tradition can be a such a wonderful thing. It keeps us in touch with our past and it communicates our varied cultures.
Seeing more of your fellow drivers lately? That could be because there are more convertibles out there. Carmakers are introducing new drop-tops all the time, it seems, and they're getting cheaper, too.
Let's get this fuel economy issue out of the way right off: The Chevrolet Avalanche is not a vehicle I would recommend to anyone who really wants to save gas.
I regularly get expensive cars to test drive, and I've parked plenty costing $100,000 and more in the garage near CNNMoney.com's office. Attendants there usually have no problem putting them with - you know - the other cars.
Saturn still has a "no-haggle" pricing policy, but that doesn't mean the dealer has to charge sticker price. And some dealers are charging over sticker price for the new Saturn Sky sports car, according to a California newspaper.
If you take a look at the car's being unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in Switzerland, which opens to the public Thursday, you'll see some vehicles that look strangely familiar. But then, somehow, not quite.
General Motors will debut a new Saturn crossover vehicle, to be called "Outlook," next year.
As always, there's a lot to look forward to in the upcoming automotive model year. Then again, some of next year's new cars and trucks are already generating more groans than cheers.
This is not your father's Saturn.
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