2003 Saturn Ion

Saturn's S-Series replacement, the '03 Ion, nearly became General Motors' most important new car. It's the first built on what was to be a global small-car platform named Delta. But GM has scrubbed the global Delta plans--next-generation Opel/Vauxhall/ Holden Astras will share a Fiat platform instead, reducing Ion's importance to providing a hint at the '05 Chevy Cavalier.

Still, this is a watershed car for Saturn. The name is its second, after Vue, to eschew alpha-numeric nomenclature. The Ion retains some features of the aged S-Series: polymer body panels, the world's friendliest and least-pushy sales organization, and more than two doors for the coupe variant. While the SC has one extended-cab pickup-style rear-access door, the Ion Quad Coupe has two. Overall length is up 6.4 in. to 184.5 for the sedan (which goes on sale in late fall) and up 4.5 in. for the Quad Coupe (which debuts a month or two later) to 185.0. Saturn expects the cars to have the largest trunk capacity in the segment.

Ion's 2.2L/137-hp Ecotec four is shared with small Opels and Vauxhalls, including the Speedster sports car and Pontiac Sunfire. Transmission choices include a five-speed manual, a continuously variable automatic, or a five-speed automatic. The instrument panel appears to be a remnant of the global platform plans: It's on the center of the dash, making the assembly of left- and right-hand-drive versions easy.