Autoblog

Bloomberg's Greg Bensinger penned an article Friday that's getting some play on the web. In it, he spoke to Saturn's product development director, Lisa Hutchinson, who said that the Saturn division is indeed considering the addition of the Corsa subcompact to the lineup. Hutchinson doesn't attach a timeframe to anything, but states that the American consumer's concern over fuel economy is what's driving this. Later in the day, the Detroit News' Autos Insider column picked up on Bensinger's story. Speculation about a quality American-marque subcompact will do that when gas costs three bucks and change.

We want to see the Corsa here as badly as anyone else, but if you think back to October '06 during the Paris Motor Show, you'll remember that none other than Bob Lutz himself confirmed then that the Corsa will be sold as a Saturn. In fact, the exact words he used, according to Automotive News, were that the Corsa "will very definitely go to the United States." The thing is, the Corsa we'll get will be the next-generation model, not the one shown above. Last October, the timeframe surrounding this, as relayed by the Automotive News' David Sedgwick, was reportedly five years -- meaning 2011, probably as a 2012 model, if we had to guess. AN also reported that the US version of the car would likely be built in Mexico.

We're sure that Jill Lajdziak would like nothing more than to hop out of a Corsa on stage during one of next season's US auto shows and announce that it'll be on sale in the near future, but based on what Lutz already said -- and he of all people would know -- it's probably not happening anytime soon. Bummer.

[Source: Bloomberg News]