DonnieBoy

Hey all,

I'm in the market for a new vehicle. I want something inexpensive, that gets decent gas mileage and has four doors. I have been looking at the Saturn Ion both the sedan and the quad coupe but I have not heard much about these two cars. Any Ion owners out there? Anyone hear and good or bad news about them?

I am also taking suggestions on other vehicles. My choices are open but I have some restrictions

It must be American either GM or Ford (sorry no Damnnear-Chryslers for me) I also get GM and Ford Employee Discounts so it helps out with the price.

Must be a sedan or have good access to the back seat (like the quad coupe). I have a son in a car seat and getting that into the backseat of a car with only 2 doors is a pain in the arse.

Must have legroom up front.... I am not really tall at 5-10 but I like my legroom.

I drive almost 60 miles a day round trip so gas mileage is important. The sticker on the Ion Sedan says it gets 32 highway miles, which seems pretty good.

Price is pretty important I am looking for a lower priced vehicle. On another note anyone Drive one of these new Chevy Aveo's? I've been seeing the 4 door hatchback like one on the road it looks pretty nice but again havent heard much about them. Kinda looks like Ford Focus Competition to me.

Thanks for any replies.

DB

CrazySaturn

The Red Line is pretty darn good if you're looking for cheap speed. 200 hp and was tuned on the Nurburing.
Anyways, I have a 94 SL2 and I like the car, but the new Ions I don't really like the interior (too many circles) or the gauge cluster in the middle. I'd say take a test drive and see if you like it or not.

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VitaminChemE

I test drove the Ion 3 yesterday and really liked it. It was quiet in the cabin and it drove with a good bit of power. I too am in the market for a car and was looking at the Ion.

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Peryn

I have heard really good things about the saturns from most people. Its a shame your not willing to go foreign, or to a shared platform. The Mazda3 or Mazda6 would probably work real well for you...but there not american. Course ford does own a pretty decent chunk of them....

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Dont cry kid, It's not your fault you suck.

Xepidemic

Mazda 6 is damn sexy car!

Scorps

The Chevy Malibu Maxx is a pretty nice car...but the test drive is the smartest thing to do.

Cynthetiq

the saturn i drove for a week replacing my neon wasn't all that exciting, but that was a rental so whatever you take from that....

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DEI37

I used to work at a Saturn dealer, and what I saw, I liked. Good reliability, good on gas, and equipped with a manual transmission, either the SL1 or SL2 were "fun" to drive. The L series is a good car, too, although the V6 in the L300 is weak.

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irseg

You might want to check out the Focus. It got some cosmetic upgrades and new engines this year. It had a hell of a lot of recalls at first, but from what I've heard they're pretty reliable now.

The Saturns I've been in / looked at have all had the most godawful amazingly cheap interiors I've ever seen. I could never spend $15k on a car with an interior that feels and looks like it was made by some cheap Fisher Price ripoff.

Peryn

New Focus is, as far as i can tell, a rebadged Mazda 3.

And as for 15k, dont expect a whole lot as far as quality interiors go. Theres a reason its only 15k...

__________________
Dont cry kid, It's not your fault you suck.

irseg

Nope, the Focus is not a Mazda 3.

And sure a $15k car isn't exactly going to have a luxurious interior, but the Saturn's is FAR outclassed by anything else on the market. My dad bought a Kia Optima for $12k, its interior build quality puts some cars (GM products come to mind) I've seen costing twice that much to shame. I was pretty shocked by that.

Redlemon

My Ford (1999) was built in Mexico. My wife's previous car, a Mazda (1996), was built in the USA. Which is more 'American'?

Scorps

LMAO

I didn't know Fords where built in Mexico

MSD

Oh, I didn't realize they moved out of Korea.

Scorps

ouch..remind me not to buy a FORD.....EVER!