Though, I do agree (except for the awesome seats that IMO are second to none) that the interior (i.e the dash in particular) could be better in the 9-3/Turbo X.

thats a helluva post Ronald. Take a deep breath man. Good points though.

Here in Australia, a fully loaded Viggen was pretty much $100k on the road. A 335 coupe now is around $135K on road. An our dollar is not that far off parity with the US$.

If you want hope, then I suggest you look at the Generals latest offerings. They are all class leading and top notch. The new Malibu, running on an older platform, is now placing 1st going up against an all new Accord and basically all new Camry.

New CTS, has become the industry’s love once again and is winning awards left and right. This vehicle is stunning in the flesh.

The Lambda Crossovers, have people actually considering BUICK!? Sure they have a larger network. Everyone is putting these crossovers in the top three for the segment.

The new full size SUVs continue to be the kings of the SUV wars.

The entirely new revamped Commodore offerings down in AU. Top notch.

The general is done messing around. Sure there are some inconsistencies (everyone freak out in 5,4,3,2,1 about Bluetooth), but its basically confirmed Bluetooth will be offered on all models come MY2009. Integrated switchgear, no more “Insert radio here” squares, etc.

All of the latest products give me hope for Saab.

I mean, can we PLEASE get at least 1 vehicle that is class leading, or raises heads and praised? the 9-5 completely KILLED the e-class in 1999 when it stepped on the scene. and gave the 5 series/a6 a run for its money until their redesigns. I truly think the 9-5 in 1999- ~ 2002 was the last time that saab truly put forth their BEST effort to smack the germans around and go S80 hunting. I mean, now as i research a little, i see that we still do have one of the [if not the best] wagon on the market: the 9-3SC.

Point is, im not sure if the general is just not caring what saab does as long as they dont march back into the office and ask for more $$$ , or if its just Saab creating a bunch of short stops until some real cars start churning out. I love the 9-3 series but the problems that are there ARE NOT BEING ADDRESSED!!! look at the interior of that thing. do you really think the interior of the 9-3 is worth 27K base price? all that wood of unknown origin that shines like plastic in the light. it is obvious they just tacked it on there with some super glue and called it a day. The leather (which they finally addressed at the consumer’s $1500 expense!) was worse than a 21K Camry. And dont even get me started on those plastics that cover the cabin in every angle. Overall the interior is subpar, and the Turbo X gives no further “promise” for good things to come. I mean, if a sub 18k car, like the mazda3 can give me a WAY better interior than the 9-3 can, then we have got an even bigger problem on our hands. I have never in my life seen a dash that doesnt even have wood on it, or some sort of metallic face. The 9-3 just throws the plastic all over the place.

ok ok, my rant is off :] it just gets so frustrating to me to think: well why can cadillac do it better? I mean, have you seen the interior of the CTS???? lord knows i wish i was an adult and i could afford one of those!

Overall what im getting at is not only is the TurboX overpriced, and is an appearance + Mechanical package [as i like to call it], but it just wouldnt give anyone reason to jump ship from a Aero or another car from another make that can do it better at a lower price. What would happen if you park next to your coworkers BMW, and you guys go for a ride in your car for lunch? he will right off the back acknowledge the lack of wood, hard @$$ seats, and the Sea of plastics on the dash. this car screams NOT PREMIUM!

Oh and the Turbo X just gets black spray painted wood instead of the metallic, or regular wood. I am willing to bet that all they did was get some wood trim out of a 2.0T, and went to a Swedish Home Depot store and got some black spray paint and started spray painting like their is no tomorrow. just to make the cabin black. First person to get the Turbo X, I am begging them to scratch that Black trim on the door, and prove me wrong. I bet you will see wood poking out from under it . All kidding aside, they probably just hooked up the XWD/eLSD, got a lot full of 5000 rims off ebay and badged them “Saab”, and some new TurboX and XWD badges.
There. You. Have. It. Turbo X

And like I said, i really am a tough critic, this i know, but it is better that someone in the Saab community say it instead of a place like Autoblog, where they rag on Saab all year around and call it a festival. Just go on there and even MENTION the 9-5, and all you here is “Yea my grandma had one of those, she died in 1945″.

I think that the TurboX IS special but EVERYONE MUST agree that a subtle hp increase would have worked wonders for this car. and some carbin fiber and a leather dash would have made this car very very competitive. To me, the Turbo X should have been the Aero instead. Period. All of those things on the Turbo X are a given in todays world, and are already on competitors vehicles.

Saab is always scared to take the jump. Passed a church the other day on my way home from school, and the message was “always go the extra mile, its never crowded”. Saab, are you listening?!? You have to spend money to make money in this world, just ask Donald Trump.

Morale of this very painfully long post? come out with stuff that will make those heads turn, and please advertise for once! i never see one anymore, probably since the 2006 model year. lol. It all starts with the 9-4x and 9-1, then the 9-5. but as of today, i should see more, if any, 9-3 advertisements on TV. not Infiniti/Lexus/Lincoln, etc.

beren