The introduction of the Aurora marked as General Motors' catalyst to reposition Oldsmobile as an upscale import fighter.

And it would, no doubt, be better than that star-crossed and litigation-plagued import fighter from a decade earlier.

After a spate of rave reviews in the buff books and consumer magazines, sales of Saturns, G.M.'s import fighter, soared to 20,000 last month.

In 1985, GM started Saturn (the first new American make since the Edsel), with the goal of producing high-quality import fighters.

For one thing, this was not merely another "import fighter."

The Big Three will probably pick up some market share in 1995, as they increase production of their new import fighters.

The import fighters that American automakers produced in the 1970s not only lost the battle, but helped lose the war.

But in the meantime, American chip makers will retain a potent import fighter.

It is the General Motors Corporation's import fighter.

The Aura sedan, derived from the Opel Vectra, gives Saturn the legitimate import fighter it has always talked about.