Bill H. Posted March 15, 2005 Share Posted March 15, 2005 Neon, crash tests results....... http://www.automotive.com/2005/12/dodge/neon/safety/index.html The National news reported something different, but I could not find any results........... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juba310 Posted March 15, 2005 Share Posted March 15, 2005 Skonopa, thats a nice lookin satty you got there. Glad you like it! I also own a Saturn Ion, and I'd reccomend it for someone on a budget. The one I have is a 2004 Ion1 Sedan Manual, just going on 5k miles. What drove me most to it was the price. 10,800 out the door new. It also gets pretty good gas mileage (28 city 32 hwy i think its rated at). Heres a pic of what mine looked like new While I have the sedan, the coupe version looks damn sporty. With the 140hp 2.2l ecotec and a manual transmition, its got some pep to it. I also love the way it steers with the electronic power steering... buttery smooth. The only qualm I have with my car is its lack of refinment, but thats expected in getting the base trim, no options. If you're looking for something with a bit more space, the L300 series saturns are great. If you're still in a mood for an SUV, you might want to look into a saturn VUE... not too big, but lots of space in it, and it gets over 20mph (23/29), it comes standard w/ manual too. We're a saturn family. Dad has the Vue, mom has the L, and I have the Ion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skonopa Posted March 15, 2005 Share Posted March 15, 2005 ---------------- On 3/15/2005 9:17:30 PM Juba310 wrote: With the 140hp 2.2l ecotec and a manual transmition, its got some pep to it. I also love the way it steers with the electronic power steering... buttery smooth. The only qualm I have with my car is its lack of refinment, but thats expected in getting the base trim, no options. ---------------- Mine also has the 140hp 2.2l ecotec DOHC engine. One thing I notice immediatly is between your 2004 and my 2005 is the re-designed nose. The chrome grill on the newer one seems to give it a bit more class. I have a few more options on mine, such as the power windows and power sunroof. I also have the remote/keyless entry. I also have the 15 inch alloy wheels and rear spoiler. The CD player is also capable of playing MP3s. However, that is going to be swapped for my Alpine XM/CD deck. Also, the factory audio system is going to be replaced with my MB Quarts speakers, 12-inch JL Audio sub and 500 watt amp (which I, thankfully, was able to recover out of my last vehicle). As to the issue of lack of refinement, that is something that was somewhat addressed with the 2005 models. I am not expecting Cadillac type refinement, but at the same time, I at least want something a bit better than your typical cheapo "Eco-box" car. From what I've read, the steering wheel is larger in the 2005s, as well as some enhancements they made to the interior. What I was really jonesing for was the ION Redline. Unfortunatly, I could not get one until at least April, and I just did not want to wait that long. Also, the performance models tend to be more of a maintenance hassle as well. Overall, after having it for a couple of days now, I am still quite pleased with my new car. I've gotten some good comments at work as well as at the gym about my car. It seems that the people really like that color as well ("Dragonfly Green", according to the Saturn website. To me it is "Teal". I really like it myself, although I originally wanted the "Pacific Blue"). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juba310 Posted March 15, 2005 Share Posted March 15, 2005 ---------------- On 3/15/2005 10:08:42 PM skonopa wrote: Mine also has the 140hp 2.2l ecotec DOHC engine. One thing I notice immediatly is between your 2004 and my 2005 is the re-designed nose. The chrome grill on the newer one seems to give it a bit more class. I have a few more options on mine, such as the power windows and power sunroof. I also have the remote/keyless entry. I also have the 15 inch alloy wheels and rear spoiler. The CD player is also capable of playing MP3s. However, that is going to be swapped for my Alpine XM/CD deck. Also, the factory audio system is going to be replaced with my MB Quarts speakers, 12-inch JL Audio sub and 500 watt amp (which I, thankfully, was able to recover out of my last vehicle). As to the issue of lack of refinement, that is something that was somewhat addressed with the 2005 models. I am not expecting Cadillac type refinement, but at the same time, I at least want something a bit better than your typical cheapo "Eco-box" car. From what I've read, the steering wheel is larger in the 2005s, as well as some enhancements they made to the interior. What I was really jonesing for was the ION Redline. Unfortunatly, I could not get one until at least April, and I just did not want to wait that long. Also, the performance models tend to be more of a maintenance hassle as well. Overall, after having it for a couple of days now, I am still quite pleased with my new car. I've gotten some good comments at work as well as at the gym about my car. It seems that the people really like that color as well ("Dragonfly Green", according to the Saturn website. To me it is "Teal". I really like it myself, although I originally wanted the "Pacific Blue"). ---------------- yeah, the grill is more "elegant" on the newer 05 models, I prefer the old though... just my taste. On mine the only options, if you can call them that, were the am/fm radio and A/C. I replaced the stock speakers (which I found just horribly muddy) and stock headunit with a pioneer cd player and pioneer 4ways. They sound decent, at least for not having an amp beyond the HU's. For the refinment, I've also heard the 05's are a lot better in the category. I personally like the small steering wheel... it looks a little weirds but I like the way it feels. The Ion redline is beautiful... but it was simply out of my price range, even at 17k or whatever it costs *which i think is great for what it does*. The design, power, everything on it intrigues me... I wish i could have one! I agree with you, the pacific blue is really hot looking. I wanted that too, but all they had at the price I wanted were white, silver, and red. White gets dirty too fast, and silver is just boring. Im happy with the red. Have you taken a gander over at the new SKY model thats coming out? It looks absoluetly amazing... a stylish saturn... mmm. If you ever have some time, you might want to take a peak over at www.saturnfans.com some really great forums there for saturn enthusiasts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skonopa Posted March 15, 2005 Share Posted March 15, 2005 ---------------- On 3/15/2005 10:16:43 PM Juba310 wrote: yeah, the grill is more "elegant" on the newer 05 models, I prefer the old though... just my taste. On mine the only options, if you can call them that, were the am/fm radio and A/C. I replaced the stock speakers (which I found just horribly muddy) and stock headunit with a pioneer cd player and pioneer 4ways. They sound decent, at least for not having an amp beyond the HU's. For the refinment, I've also heard the 05's are a lot better in the category. I personally like the small steering wheel... it looks a little weirds but I like the way it feels. ---------------- As to the look, I personally like the newer one myself, but hey, to each thier own. Yeah, those stock speakers are pretty crappy, though. After listening to MB Quarts backed up by 500 watts of amp and an Alpine headunit, it royally sucks listening to that stock setup. I wonder what that "Saturn Advanced Audio" setup, with the six "premium" speakers with 160 watta amp sounds like. If I had not already have my aftermarket components, I'd probably opt for that. As for the smaller steering wheel, I've never test-drove the 2004 and earlier models, so I don't know how that is. This 2005 was the first chance I got to check out the ION's since they first came out (as my 1999 SL-2 still had plenty of life in it, and I had not intention of replacing it anytime soon - but somebody else kinda took care of that for me) ---------------- The Ion redline is beautiful... but it was simply out of my price range, even at 17k or whatever it costs *which i think is great for what it does*. The design, power, everything on it intrigues me... I wish i could have one! ---------------- Yeah, and I would've gotten in blue. By the time I priced one out with all the options I wanted, it came out to around $23,000. I could afford it, and it was within my price range, but did I really want to pay it? In the end, I decided it was not worth it, at least at this time. Maybe next time, but than again, it'll be interesting to see what is available by that time, as I intend to keep this one for as long as I can (at least 5 years, hopefully longer). ---------------- I agree with you, the pacific blue is really hot looking. I wanted that too, but all they had at the price I wanted were white, silver, and red. White gets dirty too fast, and silver is just boring. Im happy with the red. ---------------- There were a few of the blue ones at the dealer here in Fredericksburg, but none of them had all the options I wanted. A part of me still thinks I should've gotten the ION-3 (and I could still, as I do have a 30-day/1,500 mile "return" policy - in that I could still return this car and be like as thought I've never bought the thing). However, when I went and looked at the Saturn website to compare, the only real difference between my ION-2 (with all the options I have on it) and the ION-3 is the 16 vs. 15 inch wheels. Not worth it, so I'll stick with what I got. ---------------- Have you taken a gander over at the new SKY model thats coming out? It looks absoluetly amazing... a stylish saturn... mmm. If you ever have some time, you might want to take a peak over at www.saturnfans.com some really great forums there for saturn enthusiasts. ---------------- Yes I have. A convertible! Imagine that! When they become available, I'd like to take one for a test drive. It does look pretty sharp, there. I'll have to take a peak over at that Saturn Fans website. Especially as I do have a question about how the placement of the six-speaker "premium" system, as I'd like to use that to place my MB Quart speakers (to try to keep it "factory" as possible - I really don't want to hack up the interior of my brand new car to get better speaker placement) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Adams Posted March 16, 2005 Share Posted March 16, 2005 Sorry if these cars have been mentioned, but I didn't find any reference to them.... The Mazda 6 and 3 series are quite nice looking cars. I've driven the 6 and it's got plenty of pep and handles really nicely. As for the Saturn.....wow - now THOSE are real chick magnets. Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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