2000 Saturn LS It's big -- and it's a Saturn. By Ron Moorhead, New Car Test Drive .com

It's larger, it has more creature comfort, it's larger, it's a Saturn and it's larger. Combine European heritage with Saturn's philosophy of doing things just a little differently than parent General Motors, and you get the new Saturn L-series. Simply put, these vehicles surprised the heck out of us.

What dealers and customers alike have been telling Saturn for quite awhile is, "give us a larger vehicle." That's exactly what Saturn has done. And they've produced a vehicle that exceeds our expectations.

Along with the need for a bigger car, Saturn has needed an influx of enthusiasm for its product lineup. Loyal Saturn customers have been forced to move to another brand to fulfill their needs for greater roominess and comfort. Well, they now have what they asked for. In fact, we believe they have gotten more than they bargained for. It's a big challenge to design something to compete against the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord, Volkswagen Passat and other highly capable mid-size sedans. However, it appears this totally new car from Saturn is up to the task.

Saturn likes to keep model selection simple, just like the rest of its buying experience. So, they have made the new LS available in three versions of the sedan plus two wagons. The sedan comes in LS, LS1 and LS2 versions. The wagon gets two models, the LW1 and the LW2. The LS, LS1 and LW1 are powered by the 2.2-liter four-cylinder engine. The LS2 and LW2 are equipped with the larger, more powerful V6.