Saturday Snippets
Poor Minx:
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Last week there were Saab 9-1 MINI-fighter headlines all around the world. A motoring journalist had seen a sketch by GM, had recited the details to a sketch artist who slapped a Saab grill on it and said we’d see it in Geneva.
Now they’re saying we won’t.
A Saab official made it clear that the 9-1X is not the Mini-fighter I wrote about here and in the May issue of Motor Trend.
Yes, we’re still seeing a Saab compact car in Geneva. Nothing’s changed on that front. It’s just that the sketch he saw had nothing to do with that car. Somehow, though, I don’t think we’ll see the update go around the interwebs with the same ferocity as the original story.
And for what it’s worth, despite them saying that the 9-1 isn’t GM’s MINI fighter, I think it’ll fit right into that MINI class.
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Why do I love the Saab 9-3 SportCombi so much?
Aside from the brilliant styling, it’s the practicality. Which to me was always a Saab trait.
Here’s yet another article asking if the station wagon is the ‘new’ SUV. Just don’t call it a station wagon, though.
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And whilst I’m in a post that’s slightly related to the 9-1….
I remember seeing the first sketches of the Iroc concept (the next VW Scirocco) and thinking Wow! But somehow it doesn’t look so good when the cartoonish sketch characteristics are made real. All I can think of when I see this is “Shut Your Mouth, please!”
If the 9-1 has similar proportions and doesn’t look so much like a fish taking a breath, I think it’ll be brilliant.
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I have to disagree with you on this one Swade. This car looks awesome and will sell very well. VW has decided not to sell it in the USA, which is simply dumb.
I love the stance and the overall shape, Frank. It’s just the mouth. Drives me nuts.
thx for putting up my photo! not really looking forward to cleaning off my car, but at least the snow was pretty.
Wow, that vee-dub is freakin’ hideous! Isn’t it best if a car doesn’t lose traction? How are they showing it off by sliding it around? I’d like to see the Turbo-X trying the same thing, but I’m sure it wouldn’t slide around nearly as much!
When we Americans hear the name “IROC” we think of this.
Well, actually……it’s showing remarkable traction in that video. Skidpans are set up to have cars sliding all over the place. The shot late in that video where the car is doing a long arc at pretty good speed shows some remarkably grippy tendencies.
Grippeny tendencies, maybe?
The Turbo X did pretty well in the skidpan too. The video where I rode with the SPT guy went through a skidpan and he was throwing it around like crazy.
THAT’S what a “skidpad” is!?!? I never knew. I always wondered. I know that the higher the gravitational force (g) the better the traction, but I didn’t know it was an actual place built just for that. You learn something new every day…
I can’t help but notice this car looks very very similar to the spec’d up Volvo C30.
That’s not a Scirocco….it’s an abomination to the name. VW would be much better of calling it a Corrado since they’re much more related designwise… I dread the day they start selling that thing and people think that I drive one of those instead of my pretty little -81 GTI
Swade, if you don’t like the Scirocco, don’t look at any modern Fiats ever, you’ll keel over :p
Also, poor nothing, snow is the Swedemobile’s natural element. Poor me, having to drive a muscle car around right now. It sucks.
Also, Gripen - The IROC is the official car of my hometown, so don’t knock it :p I’ve always had a thing for IROCs and their less powerful brethren, I like them a lot better than gen 2 Camaros.
By the way, if Saab ever uses a V8 in the 9-5, I sure as hell hope it’s this V8.