No 2009 Saturn Astra for the US Market

The Saturn Astra takes a brake

Launched in January 2008 for the U.S market, the Opel-Vauxhall Astra based car will be discontinued for sale this year in the United States. At the beginning of the month, 139 days worth of Astra were in stock. Production of the model will continue and the car will be kept on sale for the Canadian market.

“We feel we have adequate stock of the 2008 Astra already. Since there were no major product changes for 2009, we're content with what we have on the ground here," Steve Janisse, Saturn spokesman was quoted as saying by Autonews. By fall at the latest, sales of the model will resume, and the car will be introduced as the 2010 Saturn Astra.

Not even new incentives will be put in place to help sell the existing stock. The Saturn Astra comes in just a few option packages as it is. "We don't expect to do heavy incentives. From a marketing standpoint, it'll remain the same rate as what we've had -- which is targeting digital marketing," continued Janisse.

In early 2008, Opel Astra sales in Europe rose up to almost half of million. Saturn hoped to sell just one-tenth that number in the States. GM reluctance to hope for higher numbers came mostly out of the American's buyer aversion to hatchbacks, even if the price tag for the car was in the $20,000 range.

Only 11,968 units have been sold in the January – December 2008, due to “weak dollar compared with the euro”, This, together with the economical situation and the fact that Saturn has placed more money into marketing the Aura (Vectra for the European market) sedan and the Vue crossover, made the Astra a high risk gamble for 2009.