2007 Saturn Vue Review

Specifications

Old Tech Helps Saturn Turn a New Page

You dont need be a climatologist or have your nose buried in a newspaper to know that Mother Natures been having hot flashes. It isnt because shes getting menopausal, shes just starting to heat up. Take this past winter for instance, where, on several days it was warm enough to walk around wearing a tee-shirt and shorts (I obviously dont live in California or Florida). Spring was pretty fair too; I ended up putting the winter apparel in the closet long before I would have previously, according to my calendar. Summer was hot and dry, and now that weve gone full cycle once again I should be getting ready to don a toque and parka. But Im not.

And its not just me thats been feeling the heat, as environmental agencies and governments have been lighting a flame under major polluters, including the car companies, to produce fewer toxins, and in this case more fuel efficient vehicles - in particular thriftier SUVs - that also pollute less. Some parts of the world, such as the UK, are busy finding ways of banning sport utilities completely. And its not as if full-size SUV owners (even here at home) havent been feeling the pressure, with the reality that two-and-a-half-buck-a-gallon-and-then-some fuel prices are here to stay. And, of course, the greenies have been keeping busy by protesting, chaining themselves to assembly lines, and, the more daring ones (lacking common sense), lighting SUVs ablaze.

Theres no question that one of North Americas favorite forms of transportation is under fire (sorry but I couldnt help the pun), but General Motors, arguably the king of the SUV, wants to change this, and theyre starting with the revitalized Saturn brand. Its curve ball to the world of high consumption is the new VUE Green Line,  the worlds first truly affordable hybrid sport utility thats as easy on gas as its initially easy on the wallet, plus easy on Mother Nature and good for a tax rebate or two to boot.

The VUE Green Line is Saturns first hybrid, and while it is parent GMs first hybrid sport utility vehicle, it isnt its first production hybrid. The Generals viewpoint on hybrids has always been from a wider access point than Toyota or Honda. Instead of targeting a select few through niche products, it went after the fleet market with the Chevy Silverado/GMC Sierra Hybrid during late 2003. The mild hybrid full-size truck is a concept that works better than you might imagine: most fleet trucks spend a great deal of time acting on the two most extremes of any pickup - either as true workhorses or lazily idling about.  A hybrid drivetrain is perfectly suited to this life, providing the necessary grunt from the electrical motor when pulling (although not as capable as a bullish diesel) while the idle-stop feature prevents excessive fuel consumption. GMs logical theory was also applied to the public transportation sector, with its lineup of Hybrid busses that launched in 2004.

But wait, theres more: as was announced at this years North American International Auto Show in Detroit, GM is working on developing a two-pronged hybrid technique in delivering the goodness of partial zero emissions vehicles to everyday folk. One of their big reveals at their home show was the Tahoe Hybrid with the Two-Mode hybrid system, a hybrid system developed in conjunction with such odd bedfellows as DaimlerChrysler and BMW. This is GMs first full hybrid, non-commercial production vehicle, and will be capable of running on electrical power alone, something that the pickup hybrids couldnt do. The other big reveal at the show was the VUE Green Line, another mild hybrid like the Silverado.
 
If revolution is what you seek in hybrids, then perhaps its best to direct your attention towards the Tahoe Two-Mode, or something daringly cutting edge, like Lexus forthcoming LS 600h, because there is simply nothing monumentally different about the Green Lines system. In the hybrid world, the type of technology that it uses is about as simple as it gets, and its akin to the first hybrids from Honda. This also means that the VUE wont be breaking any new records for environmental friendliness. But thats not the point of the Green Line. Rather, the innovation that Saturns bringing to the table is probably more signifcant. Its putting fuel friendly, low emissions technology into more peoples driveways, and its doing it the good ol fashioned way, by making it cost effective to the working class.

The Vue Green Line starts out with a simple but modern gasoline engine, the 2.4-liter EcoTec four-cylinder with variable valve timing. Its the first time that this engine has been employed in the VUE. On its own, this is a significant upgrade in power when compared to the standard VUEs 143-horsepower 2.2-liter four, although the combination of this gasoline engine and the electric motor - which Ill get into more detail later - creates a sum total of 170 horsepower and 164 lb-ft of torque. Like every other regular car gone hybrid (Civic, Camry, Accord, Escape, Highlander, etc), the VUE Green Line will not only be more fuel efficient than its gasoline-only counterpart, shaving about 20-percent off the top of what a regular four-cylinder VUE would consume on average, but itll also beat the gasoline-only inline-four to 60 mph by about a second.

The generator-motor is actually visible in the engine bay, unlike other mild hybrids, that have their coils stuffed in between the engine and gearbox. If you pop the hood and peer around the big plastic cover, you can actually see the 19.4 horsepower motor/generator which delivers up to 115 lb-ft of torque. Another oddity for the Green Line is that its gearbox is a conventional four-speed automatic of the Hydra-Matic variety, although its been modified for this particular application. Perhaps its just me, but the automatic hybrid combination drips with irony; Saturn canned the CVT gearbox on the VUE three years after it was introduced, which is odd, as almost every automatic hybrid on the market aside from the Honda Accord Hybrid has a CVT (continuously variable transmission).

Customers wont quibble about this though, but rather will undoubtedly appreciate that the VUE hasnt lost a single cubic foot of cargo volume to the hybrid conversion. By keeping the start and stop functions of the motor-generator juiced by the cars regular battery in the engine bay, the hybrids power pack could be downsized to fit within the sub-floor under the cargo bay. This also bodes well for versatility, of which the VUE has plenty. The Green Line still has 60/40 split-folding seats and a front passengers seat that folds flat, lending to some pretty voluminous hauling capabilities. Five-up, from cargo floor to roof, theres 30.8 cu-ft worth of space available, and if you dont need the back seats they fold down to yield 64.0 cu-ft from bottom to roof top.

To me, the Vue has always been a friendly vehicle. Its not the least bit aggressive looking, and if the entire polymer plastic paneled body of my tester wasnt covered in a full-size stick-on tattoo, then the VUE Green Line would be a very discreet machine. Chrome-plated wheels and a skidplate persuade the naked eye to believe that this isnt really a hybrid, because the only real details which betray its green secret are the wee Hybrid badges stuck around the exterior. I think this approach will work just fine for people who just want to get on with their green motoring lives, rather than to be singled out at fuel pumps by intrigued passersby.

Much the same story goes for the interior. Since this is the first in-depth look of a post-facelifted VUE weve done, theres a bit of stuff to talk about, such as the redesigned center console and the various bolt-ons that GM added to make the Vues cabin a nicer place to spend time. The new GM-corporate steering wheel can be found here; its leather rim is pleasantly tactile, while the stereo and climate control systems are easier to use, plus they look modern. As for the particulars of the Green Line, there are new chrome-ringed instruments that show the output/recharge status of the hybrid system, a new tachometer with idle-stop indicator, and a green button that forces the car into eco mode, minimizing the impact of accessories such as the air conditioner. One thing that hybrid enthusiasts might miss is a visual display on the inner workings of the powertrain system, such as the in-dash one on the Toyota Highlander Hybrid.

When driving the Green Line its very difficult to detect that theres nothing more going on than what normally happens behind the wheel of a VUE. You cant hear the electric motors working unless you turn off the stereo, turn down the fan and listen extra hard. Unfortunately, though, there isnt really all that much to report on when at speed. The steering is typically over-assisted, like most compact SUVs, and lacks feel due to electrical assist, but it makes the VUE a treat to navigate in tight spots and through congested traffic. Acceleration doesnt feel anywhere as rapid as GM suggests, the long-as-a-physics-lecture-on-a-warm-June-day gearing fights the engines willingness to move forward. But its not like youd want to go too fast anyway, as the package is sealed off by a ride thats soft and squishy, just like the brake pedal.

I didnt drive the Green Line long enough to generate any valid fuel consumption numbers, but given that this is a four-cylinder front-wheel drive SUV, more of a tall wagon actually, aided by hybrid components, I dont have any reservations with it matching GMs claims.

In that respect, the VUE Green Line succeeds. This is probably the only hybrid vehicle that it would be conceivable to purchase on the basis of saving at the pumps. At 27 mpg in the city, its just about as efficient as a compact car, while its 32 mpg highway rating makes it the most efficient sport utility vehicle, period. End of sentence. And with a starting price of $22,370, the VUE Green Line is very, very reasonable, checking in at a mere $620 more than the front-wheel drive V6 model. A VUE Green Line stuffed to the gills with every single option available will ring in at $26,765, which is still cheaper than any other hybrid SUV on the market. If theres any machine that can convince people to switch over to hybrids, this probably has the best chance.

Saturns also about to add another green ring to its product lineup with the Aura Green Line, slated to arrive sometime in 2007. It, like the VUE will be a mild hybrid to help lure those with shallower pockets into the realm of hybrid ownership. Unlike many of the vehicles it competes with, its mild hybrid, four-cylinder arrangement will help it undercut rivals by a significant amount. However, if theres any machine that can convince people to switch over from regular cars to hybrids, my moneys on the VUE Green Line.