The coolest new droptop roadster to come out of Detroit in years is...a Saturn? Yes, The 2008 Saturn Sky really can be found on the friendly, no-haggle showrooms of your local Saturn dealer. Signaling a whole new direction for the kinder, gentler division of General Motors, the 2007 Saturn Sky emerges from the heavens with a base price of $23,115 ($26,150 as tested) bearing a 3 year/36,000 mile warranty and EPA estimates of 20 mpg city/28 mpg highway.

First glance: From every angle, Sky is a beauty

I took twice as many photos of the Sky than I usually take of my test cars - it's just so cool-looking from every angle. Top up (link goes to photo) or down, the Sky presents interesting, provocative views from each direction. My favorite exterior feature has to be the Batmobile-like cowls behind the driver's and passenger's heads -- way too cool.

The front end features feline headlights and functional shark gill vents on the big hood, which leads up to a tiny windshield. The sides of the Sky bulge at the wheel wells and the back deck is high and truncated. An inverted trapezoidal back-up light sits below the center of the rear bumper alongside a rectangular exhaust tip.

The Sky looks more Porsche than Pontiac, more German than GM. Though the Sky is the mechanical double of the Pontiac Solstice, it is by far the cooler ride with its cosmetic individuality.



A few small oddities: The tiny chrome "Sky" badge on the rear bumper looks like an afterthought. The chrome eyelets that receive the top's rear corners are ugly blemishes on the rear deck. Paint quality and general fit and finish are OK, but not exemplary. For a car that's going to attract as much attention as the Sky Car, you want everything to be first rate.

SkyCar-Future :