GM to Form Unit for Small ‘Saturn’ Cars

General Motors Corp. announced today that it will form a new subsidiary, Saturn Corp., to develop and market a new line of small cars in the United States.

GM said Saturn will become its sixth automotive nameplate and the first new one since 1918, when Chevrolet joined Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Buick and Cadillac.

More than a year ago, GM announced the formation of Project Saturn, in which the company planned to revolutionize the high-technology way it makes cars.

GM Chairman Roger B. Smith has said that concepts developed in Project Saturn eventually will be used throughout the corporation.

GM said two major recent developments would aid in supporting the Saturn Project: GM’s acquisition last year of the giant computer company Electronic Data Systems Corp., and a joint car-making venture in California with Toyota.

Smith said GM will try to negotiate a separate labor contract with the United Auto Workers union to cover Saturn.