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No 2009 Astra for the US

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I bet.
Since they are selling about half the number they had hoped for in the first place. There are plenty of 2008 Astras sitting on dealer lots.
I test drove one and really liked it. But the 4 speed auto has to go. Plus the engine isn’t that great.
And the interior is nice but starts showing its age.

And there is the price problem. You can’t get an Astra for under MSRP. (but they do have rebates) Which has to be killing them.
Saturn got rid of the “dent free plastic panels” a few years ago, but they should have gotten rid of their no haggling policy first.

Conversation 20 comments

  1. I got the basic automatic 3 door for $15400, a $4400 off from MSRP. Plus the dealer give $1000 more on my trade-in than book value.
    At that price the Astra is a very good car. What really killing the sell is the lack of advertisement plus the lack of common’s feature like MP3 jack, armrest and cup holders. Not many care if it have a rain sensing wipers etc.

  2. I mean they think they are going to make a profit by selling to weak people who are too timid to haggle? Saturn is dead…They sold 5x more of those crap IONs than the Astra.

  4. I may be wrong, but Saturn has established a brand that reflects cheap cars for cheapskates (although it is more perception than reality.) It is hard to shake it off, regardless of how hard they will try. Heck, Huyndai has a better brand following than Saturn in about the same time. They are better off to do away with the brand and not waste European designs with below par engines, transmissions, and interior. The Saturn experiment has more or less failed. Time to move on. Sorry…

  6. As Saturn is likely getting the axe, I guess we will never get the new Astra that replaces this one. Spy photos of the 2010 look great…but too expensive to ship here. Since GM can not figure out how to build their good .European stuff here we will have to do with the Cruze, here is hoping for a decent Cruze hatchback.

  8. Too bad. I’ve been in the European version and I thought they’d do well here. It’s a thousand times better than the WT Cobalt. The engine options were lame though. I saw zero marketing on this car which certainly didn’t help sell them.

  9. Time to ship this car over to Chevrolet and call it a Chevy Astra. Saturn is getting its walking paper, isn’t it?

  10. Sad. One model year on an aging platform (and car for that matter), within a brand that has an identity crisis. Make is a premium small buick to justify the price…call it the comeback of the “Skyhawk.”

    I never knew why they stopped selling the ION. They actually advertised for it and it sold. I think I’ve seen one Astra commercial since it came out. I really don’t know where the sudden surprise of “Omg, it’s not selling!” is coming from. It’s all in their advertising….or lack thereof. Would you think Hyundai, Toyota, and Honda would be where they are today if they neglected to advertise? I don’t think I’ll ever understand GM….even Mercury has SOME commercials!

  11. Talk about bad timing. Those dumba$$ CEOs should have brought this car over a looooong time ago.

    Maybe it’s time to let those CEOs go too. Wait, maybe not … if we let them go, they will collect millions in severance pay. We should let them go down with the sinking ship.

  12. The ION sold bc it was a rental car staple and sold in sedan. They jacked up the price and sold it as a hatch only (not most popular body type in US) when they have a perfectly nice looking sedan version. Plus, they should have made it in Mexico to lower the price and compete against Focus. Stupid GM as usual.

  15. Sure sales are off on the Astra; but they're also off on the Camry, Accord, Civic, and just about everything else. Toyota is having one of their worst years in ages! I don't think I would spend a lot of (very limited) cash on advertising right now either! Doesn't mean you've got a bad car or bad management–means you've got a REALLY bad economy! (And as wonderful & friendly as Mr. Obama is; I'm starting to worry that doesn't have a clue.)

  16. Though not the policy, you most DEFINITELY can buy a new Saturn–Astra included–for under sticker before rebates. Saturn dealers always had this “room” in their pricing, like other brands and models, they just made it a point not to do it. Now, with so few sales, most will dicker down like it were a Chevy, Toyota, etc. Not as overtly so as others, but they will do it, in most cases if not blatantly advertise it.

    It’s a great little car, just different than what people are used to, and not helped by being an import (pricey) sold by a brand no one cares about anymore (Saturn). But still, if you want one…what a time to get one, and enjoy the Euro solid little runabout.

  17. Actually this Astra is selling better than it did a year ago…They sold 500 per month and now they are over 1000 per month! The crapmobile ION sold 5000 per month…What does that tell you about Saturn buyer?

  18. The engine is a craptastic old thing with that state of the art belt drive…And they still cant get a competitive price on it.

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