GM FYI Blog

Meet Mark Heard, a Saturn Aura owner and recent host to the North American Car of the Year trophy. Here’s his story about his time with the trophy.

By Mark Heard
Guest blogger

Fellow Aura Owners!

How cool is this!? I was the first to receive the North American Car of the Year trophy for the western sales region. My name is Mark Heard, I am 24 years old, and a transplant to So Cal from Ohio. My 2007 Saturn Aura XR is my first car purchase. I opted for the Aura XR in black, brown Moroccan leather, and fully loaded except for the panoramic roof. I get tons of compliments and the ever popular, “That’s a Saturn? Looks just like a Lexus!” I absolutely love my car!

On to my journey with the NACOTY Trophy… I received a delivery notification in my mailbox and drove to the FedEx distribution center; I had no idea what was inside. I thought it was a bunch of towels and sheets my mom sent me. I opened up the box to find this massive blue Tiffany’s box. I immediately knew it was the NACOTY trophy. I was on my lunch break and brought the trophy back to work to show my new boss (he’s a huge car buff). We put it in the middle of the table during the staff meeting that afternoon.

The next day I drove to the dealership (Saturn of Torrance, Calif.) where I bought the car. My saleswoman was not available, but the finance manager was. She had the car detailed and then took a picture of me and the trophy with my shiny new black Aura. (They borrowed the trophy for 5 minutes to show two or three prospective Aura purchasers.) I continued on my journey down to Trump National Golf Club Los Angeles (I used to work there). There is a photo of my car with the course in the background. Notice my black billet grille? I installed that myself, and I get tons of compliments. Then I continued on to Long Beach, Calif., where I took a picture in front of the Queen Mary. A nice older couple stopped and mentioned they had seen the commercial and thought it was a PR hype-thing. I showed them the trophy and let them sit in the car. They were very impressed with the Aura.

I just moved into my first apartment and had my first visitors: my mom and aunt. We took the car along the coast starting in Hermosa Beach through Laguna Beach and continued on down to San Diego and ultimately Tijuana, (never been, I’m good for another three years or so). It was an excellent drive. I especially loved rolling through La Jolla and getting looks from all the cute girls walking by.

I guess it’s time to pass the trophy on. To the next recipient, I hope you have as much fun with it as I did. It was so much fun; the excitement of the trophy, showing friends, and looking for that perfect spot for a photo. I included a micro-fiber towel to wipe off the finger prints… man that thing is shiny!

Enjoy and congratulations from Mark.
(tAURAnce_guy on saturnfans.com”)