A new Saturn small car that will arrive in showrooms late next year is an example of how General Motors Corp. can pool its global resources to roll out high-quality new products at a faster pace, company officials said.Last night, GM offered a sneak peak at the Saturn Astra, which is nearly identical to the 2007 Opel Astra unveiled earlier this week in Italy. Further details on the sleek-looking Saturn, which will share underpinnings with the next-generation Chevrolet and Pontiac compacts, will not be released until the Chicago Auto Show in February, GM said.The three- and five-door Astras, which will replace the aging Saturn Ion, were designed by GM engineers in Russelsheim, Germany, and will be built in Antwerp, Belgium, GM said."The Astra is a great fit for Saturn, with its European style and driving dynamics," Jill Lajdziak, Saturn general manager, said in a statement. "It also signals our efforts to get new vehicles to market quickly and reinvent the entire Saturn product lineup with unprecedented speed," she said.With the new car, Saturn will have refreshed its whole product line in less than two years, GM said.Pete Hastings, an auto industry corporate bonds analyst with Morgan Keegan & Co. Inc. In Memphis, Tenn., said building the Astra for sale globally will save GM valuable capital dollars."I think the cars coming out of the GM Design Center, they've got their act together. They've got the right idea in going forward with the global platform for the cost savings and taking the best from around the world and putting them into these offerings," he said. (AP)
