Comments on: Some real Crossover news

By: SaabKen

SaabKen — Wed, 12 Oct 2005 17:43:53 +0000

Maybe this could be the basis for the 9-4X/9-6X ? I think Swade you posted spyshots of this before.

http://www.thecarconnection.com/index.asp?DID=RSS&n=178&sid=178&article=9430

By: DrApa

DrApa — Tue, 11 Oct 2005 09:49:11 +0000

I think Mattias has gotten it all wrong… sorry to say. It is true that a Saab-model was shelved some years ago by GM, but that was the 9-3 SportCombi! It was developed and almost ready to go into production, but Saabs bad finances at the time meant that they just couldn’t afford to put the model into production and GM was not interested in pouring more money into Saab.

There will never be a 4WD Saab, or any other brand for that matter, based on the current Epsilon-plattform as it is strictly for FWD cars. Attempts have been made to fit a 4WD system on the current 9-3, with some success, but the solutions used cannot be used in a production vehicle. The first true Saab with 4WD will be based on a different plattform than the ones currently used.

By: Swade

Swade — Tue, 11 Oct 2005 05:07:27 +0000

Mathias will have to clear that up, but there’s a chance (I think) that the 9-3sc reference could perhaps be to either the Sporthatch concept or the 9-3x. Just a possibility.

And as for fitting FWD. Well, I wouldn’t put anything past those Trolls. OK, Eps is not meant to take it, but every country has a different Eps going on, hence the global Eps II.

I’m just thinking out loud.

By: 1985 Gripen

1985 Gripen — Mon, 10 Oct 2005 23:52:21 +0000

No offense to Mattias intended, but how could SAAB have had a crossover based on the 9-3 SportCombi shelved years ago when the SportCombi itself just finished its design phase and was released recently?

I understand from other sources I’ve read on the web that there was indeed a SportCombi planned but not yet designed around the time of the SportSedan’s inception, but it couldn’t be designed because so much money was poured into the design and manufacture of the SportSedan that there was no money left over to design alternate body styles for the 9-3 until years later.

Further, if this crossover Mattias speaks of would have had Haldex 4WD, doesn’t that mean that it couldn’t have been based on the 9-3, which is based on GM’s mid-size FWD-only Epsilon platform?