After exploring other Franchise options, we have decided to sell the facility to a new owner and exit the business. The new owner will be opening Discover Hyundai in our location on November 15 and many of our Saturn Team Members will be staying on to operate the facility. As you may know, Hyundai is one of the fastest growing franchises in the U.S.A. and many of their vehicles are comparable to what Saturn offered, plus even more choices for you.

What does this mean for you?

• Your factory warranty is in full affect for the term and fully backed and honored by GM.
• You can continue to come to Discover Hyundai for your maintenance work on your Saturn.
• You can currently go to Saturn of Arrowhead or Saturn of Tempe for your warranty work on your Saturn. When these facilities close you can take your Saturn to any GM Dealership to perform warranty work.
• If you have a GM extended warranty or car care, it will be honored at any GM Dealership.
• Our Saturn of Scottsdale extended warranty will be honored at any service center/dealership including Discover Hyundai.
• If you purchased a “2 Year Maintenance Coupon Book” from Saturn of Scottsdale it WILL be honored by Discover Hyundai. Simply present it when you come in for you first service visit.

I was recently interviewed for the Phoenix Business Journal for an article that appeared today in the Journal.  The article, titled "Local Saturn dealer happy over Penske purchase of company," suggested that any automotive dealer being happy about anything right now is a real rareity, but I believe that Saturn retailers might be some of the ONLY dealers in the United States that have anything to be happy about lately.

The purchase offer by Penske is indeed a reason to celebrate.  In the automotive business, Penske is a local Detroit hero, a down-to-earth car guy with a bit of the Midas touch.  One article I read suggested that his business model for Saturn could result in building the largest car company in the US without building a single car.  By bidding out the manufacturing for Saturn's next generation of cars, a new Saturn could be both nimble and quick with new models, and have lower costs and offer lower retail prices than anyone in the business.

Today, Roger Penske and Jill Ladjiak, General Manager of Saturn, appeared on the CNBC finance channel in their first joint interview to discuss the acquisition of Saturn by Penske. Penske answered that he expected Saturn to be profitable from the beginning, because he won't have the legacy costs and overhead costs of General Motors, and that because of his deal with General Motors to continue providing vehicles for the next two years, he will have some time to develop the future Saturn lineup.

Later this week, GM executives will appear before congress to request a $12 billion dollar bridge loan, and congress has asked the company for a detailed plan to demonstrate that the company can slim down, return to profitability, and pay back the loan.  In the proposed plan, GM has indicated that it would focus on four brands, Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC.

This has lead to a great deal of media speculation about what will happen to Saturn.  Some have even speculated that Saturn will close it's doors, which is NOT the case.  Today, Saturn retailers sell more vehicles per store than any other GM brand, and Saturn is faring as well or better than most brands during these tough economic times.

Saturn of Scottsdale was delighted to host the "Pictures of Hope" project, where children at Phoenix's Homeward Bound shelter depict their hopes and dreams in their own photography.

The work was unveiled this past Friday at Saturn of Scottsdale, and these holiday greeting cards are now on display at and for sale at Saturn of Scottsdale for a $25 donation to Homeward Bound's children's programs.

Linda Soloman, a Tucson photographer, started the nationwide "Pictures of Hope" in 2005 through Salvation Army, with sponsorship from General Motors.

Our Phoenix Arizona Saturn Dealerhip is delighted to pioneer a new online service technology, putting more control and 24/7 access in the hands of our customers.

If you are a customer and we have your email address on file, you should have already received a login password which will allow you to book an appointment to service your car.  If not, you can always register on the Saturn of Scottsdale Service Appointment page.

By booking online, you can be assured that there will be adequate technicians avaialable to quickly resolved your service needs, that a ride back to the office will be available if needed, and that you will have the least possible downtime.  Also, if we are running a service special that is appropriate for your vehicle, you will be offered any service specials that may be appropriate for your vehicle according to its factory recommended maintenance schedule.  You will also be able to view your service history online.

In coming months, we hope that more than 50% of our service appointments will be booked online, which will help our customers build their service histories online.   In the testing we have done so far, we found that after the initial setup and first use of our system, more than 90% of customers say they prefer online booking to calling for an appointment.

One things that has always made Saturn a different sort of car comany is our long-term commitment to the communities that we live and work in.  Going back to the start of the company, we pledged to be much more than great "corporate citizens," but rather, that we as retailers would invest not just as a business, but personally, in our communities.  We give our time, our money, our resources, and yes, even our blood back to those we serve.

Saturn's "Donor Days" are held annually on the Saturday just before Valentine's Day, and I am proud to say that most of our retailers nationwide are now actively partnering with their local blood services companies, making this event one of the successful give-back campaigns in corporate history.

On a local level, we partner with United Blood Services.and this year, we needed TWO bloodmobiles at Saturn of Scottsdale to handle all of the donations from our enthusiastic customers and neighbors who came into donate blood on February 9th.  This event topped off a year of active support for United Blood Services, including the donation of a brand new Saturn SKY which was awared to a random blood donor last summer.

It looks like GM is finally "going green" and they are doing it right, putting Saturn front and center in their battle for green car market share.  Saturn has long been known as the “safety company” and has also earned the title of the “green company.”  Saturn is GM's "alternative" brand and was introduced in the early '90's targeted younger buyers, and during the past 20 years, the company has grown up and evolved alongside our customers.  Just like our customers, we have not forgotten our ideals or what made us a force to be reckoned with in the auto industry.  Customers want style, they want safety, they want eco-friendly.  Saturn's designers listened and responded with some very green models and initatives in recent months.

Saturn has now announced THREE green models showing that the U.S. can still lead, that we are a serious contender and that we are listening to what customers want and expect.  Our ground-breaking Vue is already the leader-of-the pack of eco-friendly SUVs.  However, the 2010 Vue is expected to be available as a true plug-in hybrid that can run as a pure EV.  Given that the Vue is anticipated to be GM's first commercially available electric car, the Vue is definitely turning some heads and putting some smiles on customer's faces.

90% of all blow-outs are caused by an entirely preventable situation,  under-inflated tires, which is why all of our new vehicles have some sort of tire pressure monitoring system on them. 

Saturn is known as the "safety company" among all automotive brands, and it was primarily for safety reasons that we decided to add a nitrogen generating plant to our Scottsdale shop earlier this year.  Based upon very positive customer feedback, we have decided to add Nitrogen filled tires to our "Saturn Security Blanket" package which we offer to all new car customers (without raising the price of this package).

Nitrogen-filled tires are not only safer than air-filled tires, but during recent months of testing, we have seen a number of additional benefits, including:

• • Less Pressure Fluctuation
• • Better Pressure Retention
• • Increased Fuel Economy
• • Improved Handling and Performance
• • Extended Tire Wear and Life
• • Better for the Environment
• • Longer-term Stability

Saturn is touring the country with a stable of new Saturn ASTRAs, and they will be in Scottsdale at Westworld on October 22nd in the evening for you to take a test drive on a closed course. Click here to register for this event.

The ASTRA is Saturn's FIFTH new model to be launched in the past two years, something unprecedented EVER before in the automotive industry.  This new sport compact is the exclamation point on the Saturn brand revitalization.

Today, Saturn announced that the Saturn VUE Green Line (Hybrid Crossover) is officially the most fuel-efficient SUV on the market.  For people who complain that SUV drivers aren't environment-friendly, finally there is a solution, and it comes from America, the inventor of the SUV.

The Saturn Vue Green Line will go 585 miles on a tank of gas, and the combined city/highway 28 MPG rating is a full 20% better that it's closest competitors, the Toyota RAV-4 and the Honda CRV.

We expect to be getting our first Green Lines into the dealership by about mid-November, but because we are only planning on a limited production in 2008, we suggest that customers get their order in early, and we think that special orders will get here is about 6-8 weeks, but we aren't 100% sure as Saturn is still working out the details on the order process for these vehicles. 

I am delighted to report that I have joined the Saturn Franchise Operations Team (FOT), one of eight Saturn retailers who represent the more than 400 dealerships in the US.  During the next year, our group will be meeting with Saturn leadership in Detroit every other month.  Through these meetings, Saturn executives stay in close touch with what is happening in the dealerships (more than financial data or perfomance reports), and the dealers have an opportunity to be involved in the corporate decision making process.