Adventures of a Sky Owner - Episode 244 or is it 317? I forget!

[rs0987654]

I love my Sky. I really love it. I really do. Of course, you might never believe it when you consider I have only 5000 miles on the car after 9 months. That is saying something for a Southern California driver. The Sky is not my daily driver, and it hasn’t been since my first day of owning it. Something comes over me when I drive it. Some alter ego takes possession of my driving consciousness. Its like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hide. I max out every gear and I take every curve as tight as I can. I pity the poor person who is going too slowly in front of me because I pass that person in a way that communicates my displeasure. I really shouldn’t do it. When I drive to work all that adrenalin comes with me into the office and people wonder where that quiet reserved guy went. Then they look out into the parking lot and realize I brought my Sky Redline.

Even though I am exaggerating a bit here, there is an element of truth in this. The Sky is a two handed driving experience, and the temptation of taking it to the max is always there. The need for restraint is also always there.

There are a lot of days when I just want a driving experience without a lot of excitement. I just want to go to work and come home relaxed in peace and quiet. It’s not me against the road. It’s me with the road – a Zen like thing. So, I have another car I use for daily driving. It was a Ford Taurus with a lot of extras, a few problems, and lots and lots of miles. And then one day before Christmas it stranded me on the side of a major freeway in somewhat of a dangerous spot, and it started me to think that it was time, and that a new car was near.

My wife and I attend as many auto shows as we can every year. I am a ‘car guy’ and she indulges me. In the last year we noticed the Saturn Vue. We would get into one at each show and be amazed at the comfort, the value, and the price. It was always a stand out. So, two weeks ago we set out to return to the dealer where we bought our Sky for some test drives. Now here is where the story gets difficult because I can talk about the dealer, who is Saturn of Santa Clarita, a forum-supporting vendor, who I have praised several times on this forum. They did what they did before and that is keep all the promises they made. I could talk about the Vue itself, which is a fantastic car. It is much better then we expected, and we expected a lot. But I would like to talk about our salesperson, Peter Trencher.

We arrived about an hour late. Peter was just finishing with another customer. He came over, introduced himself, got the keys to a 4-cylinder Vue, and we where off on our first test-drive. Like all good Saturn salespeople, Peter pointed out all the safety features, and the storage features, and the comfort features including the movable armrest. I remarked, ‘Peter, do you know you sound like an actor who used to be on TV?’ ‘Oh, it was the guy who played the rich kid on Dobie Gillis years and years ago – I used to watch that when I was a kid.’ I know I am really dating myself, but what was Peter’s response? ‘Oh you must be referring to Steve Franken. He played Chatsworth Osborne Jr. from the second season until the end of the series.’ He then went on to name a number of roles the actor played throughout his career. Peter turned out to be a walking encyclopedia on actors. He named most everyone on the series and for those still around, what they were doing. All of this happened while he was pointing out all the features of the Vue. Did you know that Warren Beatty played the role of the rich kid Milton Armitage during the first year of the series, and that Sheila James Kuehl, the gal who played Zelda; Dobie’s girl friend in the series, became a California State Assemblywoman?

It also turned out that acting was Peter’s profession before he came to work at Saturn. We discussed some of that while we were taking a second test drive, this time in the 6-cylinder model. Of course, Peter pointed out all the differences between the 4 and 6 cylinder models. We came back to the dealership, and took a walk to see the various colors and equipment packages available in the Vues located in the back. Finally, all our questions where answered including those on various purchase and incentive programs. We gave Peter a pricing assignment, told him we would discuss more via email, and exchanged good-bye’s.

In the following week, Peter and his sales manager John, who we know on the Forum as SSC Summit, found a 6-cylinder Gold Cashmere with Tan interior Vue XR with the equipment we wanted. We drove up on Friday night after work in the Ford and traded cars. While we were waiting for the Finance guy to review the paper work, we got Peter to bring over a DVD with some of the scenes he has been in on various films and TV shows. We saw him in Dragnet as a crime lab investigator, we saw him as a lawyer in Strong Medicine, as a disgruntled customer in an insurance commercial, and as an alien in the pilot to Babylon 5. We found out that his first role was as an extra in Serpico in which he stole the first scene. His picture was subsequently selected for posting in front of the Broadway theater where the stage version was introduced.

Well, our session with the finance guy came and went. Peter got us into our new Vue, all the while pointing out more features we did not know about, and got us on our way. It was late and it took about two hours to get home. But the extra drive was worth it. This purchase was a great experience. We also had a new friend.

In the first week of having the Vue, my wife and I have become more impressed by the car. It is the nicest non-sports type driving experience we have owned. It is comfortable, safe, and easy to drive. It has a tremendous view. The seating is outstanding. Handling is great. The turning radius is excellent. The braking is terrific. It is quiet. The ride is fantastic. It has power that rivals my wife’s CTS, all at about 20 mpg. It has storage. The sound system is tremendous. It is solid. It has a low price. My neighbors, at least those with kids, love the car.

So, I am REALLY enjoying my daily commute in the Vue and, on those days when I want to get the adrenaline going, in the Sky. I’ll have to choose which car I take down to the video store next weekend. I have to rent Serpico and check out that first scene.

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To see if you recognize Peter, I included several of his professional pictures. I also included one of the Sky and Vue together. Driving the Sky with the top down through an early California winter chill to get this shot was a blast.

[ChiliSky]

Thank you, that was enjoyable

[Wolfheart]

Nice story. Good to know the Santa Clarita dealership(Galpin) is on here too, that is where I ordered and picked up my Sky from.

[cerberus]

Cool story RS! John mentioned you came back for a Vue last time I swung by to bug him. Guess I need to check back down there to see if Peter's pics are layin around the store now,

[GaryH]

Had to quit reading. The book was too long.

[Mad4MySky]

Awesome story! I, too, met Peter when I was ordering and then picking up my Sky. The whole crew over there are great people. After our first visit there, my wife remarked that it felt more like talking with some friends than actually doing business and ordering a car.

I've been back to the dealership twice and both times I have enjoyed speaking with Peter. You feel the energy from him when he starts talking about the movie and theatre. I've actually rented some of the movies and saw him in them. It's pretty cool when you can say, "I know that guy right there."

I'll be making a trip back there in a couple weeks to have my oil changed and get them to fix my single cup holder. I like and respect them so much I prefer to have them do all the work on my car and readily make the drive from Las Vegas to Santa Clarita.

I don't particularly trust the two dealerships here for two reasons.

1. They both are owned by the same group and they marked the Sky up $3000 and refused to come off at all.
   
2. The first and only time I took my car in they put a dent in the trunk lid and dropped a tool on the edge of the trunk. When I brought this to their attention they flat out denied it and pretty much snubbed their noses at me.

[dcparks]

What a great story!! I used to have a Vue. I traded it in when I bought Lucy.. I couldn't quite handle two car payments. I really enjoyed the Vue the couple of years I drove it. I would like to get another if my financial situation were to change.. I need to go by and visit the dealership there in Santa Clarita. I visit there often on my way to Ventura or to L.A. There are some excellent dining establishments around there... Anyway, thanks for sharing your great experience...