[Fformula88]

Ok, lets say hypothetically both cars were for sale today, down at your local Saturn and Pontiac dealers. There were no markup on them, they are both priced similarly, and you could walk in, work a deal right away, and drive off later in the day.

Which roadster would you chose?

Now, to make it more fun, I am only putting up two choices. Being undecided is not a choice here. Lets say you must make a choice now.

I just thought it would be interesting to see what the early leader would be. :jester

 

[LatinVenom]

I know you want one or the other, and my quick answer would be the SKY.
My problem is I thought I would like the front end but it is a little to busy for me. I wish it would be more like the original VouxH...
I love the rear of the car and I would like it love it more if they would add a second exhaust outlet even if it is not operational.
:jester

 

[Fformula88]

Oops, I guess we already have a similar thread in the Solstice general forum. That’s ok. Its asking which you like better, I am asking which you would buy today!

Based on both, things are looking fairly close right now! Congrats GM! You have managed to compete against yourself again! Hopefully, a few non GM fans are saying they need to get one or the other of these too!

 

[Darkhamr]

Buying today? Then Solstice. It's the safer choice. I think the Sky is sexier, but there are parts I don't like as well. There is NOTHING I don't like on the Solstice.

 

[mceb]

If the blonde comes with Sky I'm switching :jester

 

[brentil]

Sky 100%.

But for real world I'm debating getting the Solstice when it comes out in ~June to tide me over till the Sky RL comes out.

 

[airbalancer]

Sky 100%.

But for real world I'm debating getting the Solstice when it comes out in ~June to tide me over till the Sky RL comes out.

What are you selling the Solstice ?
50% off invoice!:jester

 

[KappaMan]

I waxed philosophical before, but will add here.

"Brilliant" move by GM. They seem to have managed to awaken some folks to what could be a re-birth for Saturn.

Goes to show, great underpinnings are great underpinnings. If you do it right the first time, there is little reason to change much except for continuous improvement of the basic design (I'm talking about the chassis, structure, steering, handling, suspension, etc.)

And styling can be a tremendous, emotionally powerfurl, and indescribably effective way of differentiating cars.

GM may well have played their cards right with this one - I suspect that if you are a potential roadster owner, one of these cars will fit you better than the other, and both of these choices (from a styling standpoint - I'm not including features and such) probably grab you better than the rest of the competition out there in this small market.

For sub-$26K, these are two very hot, very differently styled, great value roadsters.

The question is, did GM really plan it this way, or did they get lucky?

 

[waiting]

The solstice is sexier, and from info so far maybe less expensive. Gotta go with the solstice.

 

[M H]

Until an hour ago it would have been the Solstice. Then I saw the Sky photo email alert in my inbox. All I can say is WOW. I love both ends, the sharp edges, the two tone (which reminds me of my 10th anniversary Miata) and I think the side fenders are Brilliant!

Wow.

 

[AeroDave]

If GM were only offering the Sky, I would be interested, but would probably end up with the NC Miata if it looks like the sketches that have been posted. Forunately, they are building the Solstice, so that's what I'm getting. The busy front end, goofy interior and higher price put me off the Sky.

As to offering two versions of the same car being a good idea, only time will tell. One one hand, the Sky offers a more contemporary angular styling theme that appeals to younger potential foreign car buyers, while the Solstice appeals to the retro roadster buyer that would have otherwise probably bought a Miata, on the other hand, they could just be splitting the Solstice buyers and making the Kappa program less profitable. From this forum alone you can see how many people here who were pretty commited to getting a Solstice have now jumped to the Sky.

If there are 20k potential Solstice buyers, and now it is something like 12k Solstice and 8k Sky, then they are loosing money. However, if they gain another 5k buyers that never liked the Solstice because of it's curvy looks, and total sales for the two Kappas is 25k, then maybe it's worth it. Selling 25K roadsters with little trunks, mediocer power and few options every year seems very optimistic to me.

 

[Fformula88]

I waxed philosophical before, but will add here.

"Brilliant" move by GM. They seem to have managed to awaken some folks to what could be a re-birth for Saturn.

Goes to show, great underpinnings are great underpinnings. If you do it right the first time, there is little reason to change much except for continuous improvement of the basic design (I'm talking about the chassis, structure, steering, handling, suspension, etc.)

And styling can be a tremendous, emotionally powerfurl, and indescribably effective way of differentiating cars.

GM may well have played their cards right with this one - I suspect that if you are a potential roadster owner, one of these cars will fit you better than the other, and both of these choices (from a styling standpoint - I'm not including features and such) probably grab you better than the rest of the competition out there in this small market.

For sub-$26K, these are two very hot, very differently styled, great value roadsters.

The question is, did GM really plan it this way, or did they get lucky?

Well put Solsticeman. These two cars appear to be as different as any vehicles GM has produced to date. The only other platform sharing cars that look as differentiated as these two from a styling standpoint are probably the Epsilon cars. The different wheelbases certainly help that, but I can look at a Malibu, or a G6, or Saab 9-3 and I really don't see one of the other versions in it. Based on the Saturn Aura concept however, I can see some G6 in the back anyway. I guess nobody is perfect.

Was it intended to be this way, or was it luck? I don't know. I would like to think this was by design, as it is really one of the things GM needs to be doing to stabalize its marketshare decline, and start making big profits on its car sales. Unfortunately, history makes me skeptical, and I worry it may have been by luck.

 

[1SportyCar]

I like the styling of the Saturn quite a bit more than the Pontiac. However, I can't wait to see either of them with the top up before I decide if I should park one in my garage.

 

[DreamerDave]

Good point. From the few pictures of the Solstice roof we've seen, that retro look may not work well with the Sky's contempory styling. Oh great, now we start the "What does the Sky look like with the top up?" discussions!

 

[2KWK4U]

I love the styling of the SKY. It is very "today."

However, the Solstice speaks to me more. It seems more timeless, more classic. I'm afraid that the SKY is going to look tired in 4 years or so, but the Solstice will always look good.

Couple that with the flamboyant interior of the SKY, and I think I'll stick to the Pontiac. That SKY interior does nothing for me. That dashboard looks like the dash from a '91 Saturn SL knocked up the dash from the solstice, and VOILA! You have the Solstice dash on top with the bottom half looking like it's vinyl over folded cardboard and those hideous rectangular vents.