GM's take on hybrid sensible and affordable

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      General Motors' Sierra and Silverado pickup trucks may have been available with a kind of quasi-hybrid setup for a couple of years now, but the General hasn't really had a true hybrid vehicle in its lineup. The Sierra/Silverado's main fuel-saving/emission-lowering attribute essentially consists of a heavy-duty starter motor that shuts the vehicle off at stoplights and restarts it when you take your foot off the brake. It's a pretty clever idea, actually, but a hybrid? Well”¦

      But now the Saturn Aura Greenline–which shares itsdrive train with the Saturn Vue Greenline SUV–has this feature as well, plus a regenerative braking and battery-charging arrangement, and a gas-saving feature that shuts the fuel off during deceleration. It has a nickel metal-hydride battery pack, and although it provides an electrical power "boost" at takeoff, it won't run on pure battery power alone. Still, in all other aspects it's a hybrid vehicle. Put it this way: if the goal of hybrid technology is to save gas and run cleaner, it qualifies. The Aura Greenline is, in GM's own parlance, a "mild" hybrid vehicle.

      More relevant, perhaps, it is currently Canada's lowest-priced hybrid mid-size sedan, with a starting price of $27,575. By way of comparison, Toyota's Camry starts at $32,000 and its Prius at $29,500. One of the downsides of hybrid technology is that thus far, it's been reserved for those with a few bucks in their pocket. We all want cleaner air, but at this stage of the game, if you don't have around 30 large in your jeans, you're pretty much out of the game. The Aura Greenline addresses this somewhat, but the technology won't really have lived up to its potential until entry-level models have it as well.

      Nonetheless, the Aura Greenline is powered by GM's ubiquitous Ecotec four-cylinder engine, which, in this situation, displaces 2.4 litres and develops 164 horsepower. It's joined at the hip to GM's equally ubiquitous four-speed Hydramatic automatic transmission. Despite the company's claim that this combo gives the Aura Greenline "spirited" performance, this is not a lively automobile, and it delivers rather sedate acceleration.

      But that's okay. Honda tried to harness hybrid technology as a performance boost with the Accord Hybrid and it went nowhere. The Aura Greenline is a sensible-shoes, four-door sedan that delivers decent fuel economy and is actually kind of nice to drive. But "spirited"? Not really.

      Speaking of fuel consumption, the Aura Greenline delivers 8.5 litres per 100 kilometres in town and 6.2 litres per 100 kilometres on the highway. By way of comparison, the Honda Civic Hybrid is good for 4.7 litres and 4.3 litres per 100 kilometres, respectively, and the non-hybrid Aura goes through 11.5 and 7.2 litres per 100 kilometres. This gives the Greenline a 25 percent fuel-economy improvement on the latter.

      Another energy-conserving feature of the Aura Greenline is the air conditioner, which has two settings. The "hybrid" mode, in GM's words, "favours more fuel efficient performance by limiting the draw on the hybrid powertrain". Otherwise, all accessories operate as per usual when the vehicle is stopped and the engine shuts down. A note here: my test car didn't always shut off when it was stopped at a light or crawling along in bumper-to-bumper traffic. This may just be how the system operates, but I noticed it nonetheless.

      Otherwise, the Aura Greenline is a nice car to drive. The transition from battery power to internal-combustion motivation is nondiscernible and virtually unobtrusive. Aside from a slight shudder, most people probably won't even feel it.

      This model is also the best sedan Saturn has ever put forward, as far as I'm concerned. The hybrid feature is nice, but the Aura itself is a nicely styled, well-balanced, and, most importantly, driveable four-door sedan. Compared with some of the other models this GM division has marketed, it almost feels upscale and has a definite European flavour, even though it's manufactured in Kansas City. It's head and shoulders above the Ion sedan, for example, and comes fairly well trimmed out. Standard equipment includes the aforementioned air-conditioning/climate-control system, cruise control, remote keyless entry, one-touch power windows, four-wheel disc brakes with antilock braking system, and so on.

      It's interesting how the Aura Greenline reflects GM's marketing strategy. In addition to this model, the company has at least two more hybrids waiting in the wings, due to be released any time now. Most other hybrids–Toyota's Camry or Prius, for example–extol the engineering expertise and technological sophistication of their hybrid system, which is fine. GM, however, decided to make it affordable.

      That's good too.

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