Penske, a big auto dealership operator headed by former race car driver Roger Penske, made the deal shortly after GM filed for bankruptcy protection in a government-backed reorganization. GM was to continue to produce Saturn cars on a contract basis, including the Saturn Aura sedan, and the Vue and Outlook sport utility vehicles. Saturn began selling cars in 1990 as GM created the unit to build inexpensive cars to compete with Japanese automakers. It has sold more than four million vehicles.