Someone should write a book about CEO’s Pet Projects and how they get to ignore all the usual rules inside a company and often lead to disaster.

The Nissan Versa ran that course at 52 mph, but I don’t think we’d consider that car to be lively behind the wheel either.

I’d be interested in seeing the “ultra stop and go” mileage improvement, such as Manhattan taxi service. I suspect that the efficiency delta there could be quite impressive.

Then again, if they didn’t call it a “Hybrid”, then maybe they couldn’t get the tax credit. Either way, GM has ruined a great idea by being shameless in it’s execution.

I took a look at the Edmunds consumer reviews of the 07 Vue Green Line and read horrible things about the reliability of the system. That is my biggest fear with this vehicle…so you save 10% on gas, it only costs you $1000 more than the regular, so it’s a good deal, right…until it needs expensive repairs. That’s probably why GM is so slow to push these on the market, and so slow to bring the new Vue Hybrid.

I like the auto-off concept, but it should be standard on all vehicule, not a supposedly eco-specific feature.

Still, for a car that’s supposed to target the eco-concious (or at least the cheap), the Aura “green line” sure has missed it’s mark.

From a stop, the gas engine restarts (quickly) when you release the brake. It was always ticking over by the time my toe reached the throttle.

Adamatari,

The Green Line’s base MSRP (including destination) is $22,790, to the Prius’ $21,610. But the Prius no longer qualifies its buyer for a $1,300 tax break; the Saturn does. So, effectively, the Green Line undercuts the Prius by $120 (which the Prius driver, in turn, will quickly make up in gas savings).

Anyway, regarding stars, the first is for being a generally competent package with no horrendous flaws (a given nowadays); I added a second for its pleasant steering and nicely-tuned chassis.

This is MORE than the Prius? Who are they fooling? Even if it’s the same or slightly less, you can get a Prius instead for about the same money?

Is this supposed to be a bad joke? Oh, wait, it probably is, so that Wagoner and Lutz can say, “see, we tried, it failed.” How dumb are these people?

This alone shows every reason that GM must change radically or die. They aren’t making the vehicles necessary for the future (even if gasoline continues to power autos for another 50 years, it’s not going to be getting any cheaper with India and China around). Heck, they aren’t even making the vehicles for today.

I don’t know why this even gets 2 stars. It’s a horrible failure, proof of the cluelessness of it’s manufacturer.

From what I’m reading, is there a noticeable pause before you can leave a stoplight? For example, green light, let off brake and hit accelerator, pause for engine start, and then move forward?

Without an electric motor capable of movement, I’m having a hard time imagining all the stop/starts making for a smooth drive.

The Prius is murdering more than the Aura.

Just my two cents.

I understand what you’re getting at (i.e. Prius buyers really get off on the unmistakeable aesthetics of their cars), but doesn’t the “niche product” Prius absolutely murder the entire Aura line in sales, including all variants?

Not much of a successful mainstream family sedan, in my opinion.

At best it makes them look like a bunch of retards next to the Prius.
At worst it makes them look like a bunch of cynical greenwashers who display hollow hybrid badges.

To make it even worse, GM is probably losing money on it all too.

In other words, this isn’t really a hybrid; it’s a gasser with a fancy starter. Not that this isn’t a good idea, but it hardly qualifies as a gas-electric hybrid powertrain. To wit: I could achieve the same effect in my non-hybrid accord if I turned off the engine at every stoplight and started it again when the light turned red. Hmmmm, maybe I should do this and plaster a hybrid sticker on the side of my car so I could drive in the HOV. I dub the technology: Gas-Human Hybrid.

I’m all for greater mileage and lower CO2 output, but that thing is just a sham.

The Aura Green Line isn’t a “bad” car, as none are anymore, but I don’t believe it will sell, and that is bad for GM. Moderate development costs that result in few sales and marginal brand perception, in the long run, will do less for GM than an expensive project that sparks healthy sales and positive brand perception (IMO).

Honda’s Accord Hybrid was similarly a flop. But regarding Honda’s hybrid system, IIRC, the electric motors are considerably stronger than the Aura’s and do more to ease the gas engine’s workload. In the Civic Hybrid, that’s combined with a CVT to provide a statistically significant MPG improvement vs. the base model (40/45 vs. 25/36), despite the former’s inability to move on electric power only.

The Green Line’s improvement over the base Aura is only 2 MPG (24/32 vs. 22/30), despite having the necessary components to qualify as a hybrid.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mild_hybrid

And though undoubtedly some people want a classy ride that supposedly saves the environment, I suspect many people do buy hybrids to pinch pennies.

This would also defeat the defroster mode in many circumstances, et.

The more I think about this, the more pointless I guess it is – or the more overpriced it seems. It’s a $2K bump to shut the engine off at a stoplight sometimes? I guess there’s no regenerative braking, either?

This might be inexpensive but it only serves to make the Prius look like a better value.

I understand your viewpoint, but I don’t see any bad side to what GM did.

Is the BAS system all that different than the system that was in the Accord? They called that a Hybrid even though the electric motor couldn’t move the car by itself.

If it has an electric motor, batteries, and regenerative braking, then why shouldn’t it be called a Hybrid? A “hybrid” combines two types of motors, ICE and an electric motor. The Saturn Aura does that.

And the VUE’s CVT was recalled due to its propensity for total failure, and then it was abandoned. So. I’d rather the Aura use a 4-speed than a self-destructing CVT.

I hear you. I’d be much less inclined to pick on the Aura Green Line if it came across as an earnest, tightly-focused appeal to the sort of buyers you describe.

Mind you, I’d still argue that it’s a poor business prospect, as sales of any midsize hybrid sedan remain slow. I suspect the hybrid market is still comprised mostly of “early adopters” who care relatively little about the dollars and sense of the vehicle; IMO, they’re looking to reduce their personal fuel consumption in a highly salient way (i.e. more than a 2 mpg increase), in a package that they feel represents the future of transportation (i.e. not an adapted high-volume family car).

That’s just to clarify that I’m not exalting the marketability of the Camry or Altima hybrids, which I didn’t much mention in the review.

Anyway, it seems to me that Saturn could have accomplished what you describe by fitting an auto-stop feature and CVT (didn’t Saturn have a 2.4/CVT in the Vue?) to the Aura XE, and come up with a better value equation. But they couldn’t have called it a “hybrid.” That’s what sours me on the Green Line. It seems like the answer to a marketer’s question: “what’s the bare minimum we’d have to do to get ‘Hybrid’ badges on this thing and play up the feel-good angle?”

Just my two cents.