"Keith J" > wrote in message >...
> I was where you are a few weeks ago. Here is what I thought of my
> possibles.
>
> Saturn VUE V6
> - the engine is a 3.5L Honda built engine (250 hp)
> - 2004 model has a $3000 rebate which the Tallahassee Saturn rose to $3750
> which puts the FWD model under $20k with the option of 17" alloy wheels.
> - more standard feature than most vehicles out there, including safety
> - very impressive power, not as agile as the Ford Escape. Has the feel of a
> larger vehicle
Caveat: When I say "aggressive" I don't mean insane, we like to get to
the speed reasonably quickly. :-)

We considered the Vue, but we drive a Saturn now and it's falling
apart (1995 L2). There have been problems for years that the mechanics
have never been able to fix. There's something wrong with the
automatic gear shifting. We took it to Saturn and they replaced some
chip to fix the problem, but only temporarily. Then small things like
a rattle under the dash, windows suddenly fog up in the rain or cold
(imagine dealing with that on a wet, snowy highway) and as a result we
ALWAYS drive with the AC on, not enough windshield wiper speeds,
there's a leak in the door that has never been properly fixed, and
wind noise. I've had parts replaced more often on this car then any
other car I've owned and it only has 75k miles.

We have no confidence in their repair department. Aside from their
failing to fix the ratting dash and the leaking door, we had an
over-heating problem during the summer. The first time the mechanic
charged us $300 to replace the water pump. That wasn't what was wrong.
They gave it back to us without testing it. The next day they replaced
another part for more money. When I picked up the car it still
overheated AND the temperature gauge stopped working! This day they
never called to tell me it was ready. Probably because they didn't
want me to rip another hole in them. When I called them the repair
shop had already closed. I had to deal with a very kind salesman who
waited an extra hour after closing for my wife to pick it up. The
third time they got it right with a replaced fan, but it was still
$500 later. Now the over heating problem has started again. That
Saturn repair shop we dealt with has since closed. So I can't
negotiate based on their poor job the first THREE times. So Instead of
taking it to a dealer, renting a car for the day and possibly paying
for new parts that weren't replaced the first time, we've decided to
get something else -- but not a Saturn. The I'm sure things have
changed with them, but the stigma is still there and we wanted
something else.