Since it's launch on April 7th, ImSaturn has seen membership grow to a positively staggering 1,524. That's a huge number of devotees to Saturnalia — it's almost equivalent to 3% of the people who've purchased a Saturn so far this year. And why shouldn't they all be excited? Members get to be wowed with such exciting and amazing features like — press releases and groups organized by Saturn model. Who wouldn't be excited to chat and share stories with other proud owners of the now-defunct Saturn Relay minivan?

But, the online community does take steps to ensure members feel like they play an active role in the company. For instance, when ImSaturn member Rick Murphy 'posted' concerns about a delay in the delivery of his new Astra, company reps like Steve Janisse are there to squash the negative publicity reassure concerned customers by posting a quick response saying,

"So sorry for the long delays...but all of your cars have either already been shipped or will be shipped today. We'll give your retailers an update. If anyone else is looking for their Astra, please let me know."

According to the New York Times, which has breathlessly covered the exciting news, Saturn has a wild side. Apparently — bear with us, we're so excited we can hardly type — the company's planning a contest dubbed "kissmyastra." The contest not only acknowledges people in the 18-34 demographic heart the lower case, but also people who find themselves caught in embarrassing situations with their cars. The contest promises big prizes for people caught with their Astra in the most passionate of positions.

All joking aside, it appears that Saturn's greatest problem may be basic brand and product awareness among the general public, not amongst their own customers. Troy Clarke, President of GM North America described the problem to Automotive News,

"If you look at the purchase funnel, you ask, "Do we have a consideration problem on Saturn or a conversion problem?' The fact of the matter is we have a basic awareness problem."

Transformers [MySpace]

Related:
All of our Transformers coverage, and all of our pretty Transformers pictures [internal]

MySpace may be utilized mostly by perverts and Dateline reporters disguised as lonely teenagers, but apparently those people do buy cars. Now the General's hoping to appeal to that same loving-the-lonelygirl demographic as they launch their — and we shit your not — "Friends with Benefits" campaign on MySpace. The General's Pontiac G5 campaign offers tiered incentives for getting people to register their cars on MySpace and get 100 friends to by a G5. That user gets a $100 MasterCard gift card. If you somehow manage to get 1,000 friends to buy the General's new Cobalt-companion, you'll get $1,000 dollars. No word yet on whether you'll be able to use that money to also get your legal fees paid for from the lawsuits incurred from bedding those pre-teenie-boppers. – Matt Hardigree

GM launches MySpace marketing ploy for G5 coupe [Detroit News]

Related:
Like OMG, LOLROTFL: The Lincoln MKX on MySpace; Make Friends With Your Fast On MySpace [internal]

It's like an alternate sci-fi universe where every sellable product is anthropomorphized to become a kind of friendly sidekick — a glorified pen pal ready to laugh at your jokes, instant-message streams of abbreviated expressions of delight long into the evening and post naked pictures of itself with all the naughty bits blurred out. But it's not an alternate sci-fi universe, it's MySpace. The latest automaker to jump aboard the Dateline NBC "Predator" Express (c'mon, we kid MySpace) is Lincoln, whose upcoming MKX crossover is apparently a 30-year-old female from the United States with requisite friends and a breathlessly self-absorbed curriculum vitae. No, FoMoCo marketers can't drop the hyperbolic bullshit for even a second, can they:

Who I'd like to meet:

Self-made optimists who are proud of who they are and where they came from

Entrepreneurial spirits who are always looking for the next opportunity

Successful men and women who balance their busy lifestyles with style and flair

Embracers of life's challenges and celebrators of its successes

Those who are driven to do more and to dare more

ROTFL.

Lincoln MKX [MySpace]

Related:
More on MySpace; Photo Dump: Lincoln MKX, MKS [internal]

makefriendswithyourfast [MySpace]

Related:
Ray Enjoys Stroking His Fast In Detroit [internal]