GM release image of new Saab 9-5 interior bits
OK, it’s a mischievous headline.
What they’ve actually release is the first official photo showing the interior of the new Opel/Vauxhall Insignia (small photo only, unfortunately). This is going to be the launch vehicle for the new Epsilon II architecture that the Saab 9-5 will be built on.
Knowing GM as we do, you can probably look at this to see the basics of your next Saab 9-5s steering wheel, switchgear and maybe the entertainment and HVAC controls as well. I hope that’s the extent of it. Whilst this isn’t offensive at all, it’s not a Saab cockpit.
I guess we’ll find out in Geneva next year.
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Addendum…
Here’s the Saab 9-4x concept interior. The steering wheel comparisons in the article and in comments appear appropriate. Whether it’s a flat-bottomed sports wheel with the chrome trimmings remains to be seen, but that does appear to be the new shape.
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That’s a Saab steering wheel for sure…
SAAB steering wheel…Mazda 3 speedo/radio controls…same colours exactly.
Keep the red lighting at Opel, Pontiac, wherever you want, BUT SAAB IS SOOTHING GREEN, COMPRENDO GM !
Looks pretty good to me, I agree with No. 9 about the color.
Anthony Lo will care for us…(I hope).
It might look «pretty good» in an Opel, but it’s no Saab, even in green. Let’s not forget to keep the window switches in the middle. As for the ignition key, who needs a key today…
You could still plug in your key in the middle and hit a start button on the dash.
Ignition button will be in same place as the key is today.. And the steering wheel looks 99% the same as in the Opel, except SAAB printed in the middle…
I sure hope the button will be protected so you cannot switch the car off accidently, as is the case today with the key. Happened to me and it’s not a pleasant experience! Could be a hinged protection like on an ejection seat in a fighter plane…can’t be more Saab than that!
N: I hope that 1% makes the steering wheel look a bit better. It’s a little ugly!
Similar steering wheel to the 9-4x, no?
I think the wheel and the gauge cluster looks great, but the center stack is horendous. It gets fatter as it goes up! The navi screen looks like its from a 1950’s cabinet tv, and the airvents next to it are so pathetic.
I like the layout but I dislike the orange lighting. Stick with the Saab green lighting and alternate it with white.
Lets all be VERY clever now and NOT think that GM will go all Volkswagen Audi Gruppe.. Even though GM has given Saab the stick sometimes, they do NOT want the Same design in all GM cars as VAG does. (I cant believe that people buy an Audi today with the same feeling and designlanguage in a VW and almost in a Skoda as in an Audi.) Same with Maserati and Ferrari I guess- (For me It´s a Maserati any day over a Ferrari. Maserati has got style.. A Ferrari has not.)
The new Opel interior design is somewhat both Opel and Caddy in the middle console. Ok with that..
Saab will never NEVER be an Opel/Vauxhall/EU-Holden due to the fact that GM know that they have gold here. They have their Audi in the makings. Opel will have their speedwagons, but just just like Audi… Saab will not have the economycars like Opel, Chevrolet EU, Skoda, Seat etc. Lesser engines yes.. But exclusivety.. Always.
Saab was looked upon as quirky in the 40-60´s and a serious contender from the 70´s atleast in europe… From the 80´s (-84) when the 9000 came, the americas came into play. and Saab became an AUDI 100CC.. But not the Audi 100CC from the early eighties.. But the one that became the A6.. Why the Audi CC became more successful is to me an enigma. Look at the enginebay of an early CC … Like a C900.. No way near compact. The 9000 was revolutionary in many aspects to the car industry and so were the Lancia Thema. (The Alfa 164 No..crap.. and the Fiat Croma… No!)
Trust me.. This is the Opel/Vauxhall/Saturn/Holden Ensignia and no way near a Saab 9-5. There will be some bits and pieces from those vehicles, but the Saab 9-5 will look completely different. Anthony Lo and others will see to that.
By the way.. Has Anthony responded to you on the “blogstop”? God, my heart took turns yeasterday. I don´t want you to stop Swade! I wich I had the money to start a worldwide Saab magazine.. And you the editor.¨
Never met you Steven. Had some e-mail encounters. Hell.. You will be missed liked a darling pet.. Hope you understand me the right way. I´d like to have the money to go down to Hobart and speak to you. Drive or sit beside you in your C900 turbo.
We all love your writing and we all shure love You as a fellow Saab loving person Steven. I just shed a tear… I´m thinking of starting up yet another Swedish Saab blog.. But It´ll nerver be as big as yours.
Maybe you should do just like Martin T of iSaab.net? Make the site a forum instead that of a blog?
Cheers/Tom
Tompa. I sure hope you are right. You have to be, otherwise it wouldn’t make any sense keeping Saab. I, for one, would be looking at the next Aura to replace our 9-5 if only the sheet metal makes them different. And you are right on about Swade, the pen artist.
Actually, I would probably go over to Audi, not Saturn…
http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080602/FREE/399910294/1528/newsletter01
Swade,
Any chance we could convince you to do a periodic Djupe Strupe entry? Maybe a newsletter via email? I’m going to miss those entries the most.
Thanks again and best of luck in the future.
Rob
Boston, MA
Swade,
can just say that your blog will be missed but family is, and should be the first priority so i do not have any doubt that you are doing the right thing….
If only GM would give you a 3 year contract just giving you a lump sum to do “your thing” and get all additional proceeds from advertising etc.
Maybe those 3 years would enable you to get more advertising revenues etc or maybe it will just be a place that provides heart to a brand, something that advertising never can.
Just look at the entry in “the end” post from Par Brandt. Probably unknown for most of you, but he is with Swedish magazine “auto, motor and sport”, one of the big car magazines in sweden. His post was 7.10 in the morning local swedish time so it tells you about how this blog fits into the mind of one of the most important auto journalists in Sweden.
Lots of attention has been paid to the steering wheel, but what about the rest? It all looks very VERY 9X-Biohybrid if you ask me…
Red illumination is a terrible idea no matter what car it’s in.
I think this interior would look decent in a Saab if it was toned down a bit.
no.9, first off… thats actually a good looking car in terms of specs… turbo 4, awd, ~210hp, 260 ft lbs of torque… now we need a Saab to beat it!
second… how do you accidentally turn your car off? how did it happen?
saaboy
While wearing thick winter clothes my significant other inadvertently clipped the ignition with her purse. Of course, my first thought was that the dreaded DI was cooked…again. In fact I read some other accounts of this occurring. Don’t know about the other models, but the key on the 9-5 is very easy to turn off, voluntarily or not.
Well, as the 9-4X layout doesn’t look that different from the 9000 or the current 9-5, and the layout from the Insignia isn’t that different except for colors and the typical Saab flat top of the dash, I would expect the interior not that far off from the 9-4X pictures. Except the instruments, maybe.
Re accidental turn offs, there are 3 different versions of the key. The first (foldable) was too big and easy to switch off by accident, the second (separate banana remote) was quite small and I wouldn’t expect accidental switchoffs with that, and the last (small integrated remote) is fairly good. But I would take the risk of an accidental switchoff (has happened less than once a year for me with the small integrated remote) with no risk for complications over one with lower risk (happened once on my 9000) but that locks the steering column any day. In my opinion, Saabs gear lock rocks, just sad that the rest of the world never saw the light!
I think this interior would have looked a lot better with a soft blue lighting. I like in the concepts that Saab has been showing, they have all had some kind of latch that you have to lift in order to push the Start/Stop button. The one on the 9-x Bio-hybrid really has me though, on top of the actual gear shifter under the flip cap. Just like the floor mounted ignition was a true signature to Saab, a Start/Stop button on the gear shifter should be also.
no.9… in the c900 s that ive owned/ am driving, ive never had that happen! probably due to the centRe console being much lower than the 9-5. UNFORTUNATELY, my 9000 doesnt even have this risk
I’ve driven my dads 9-5 around a bit, and still have not had it happen to me thankfully. Sounds like it can be pretty scary…
The 1% does make a difference. The Saab looks better, but I think most of us decided we’d prefer to see it witha griffin!
I didn’t mean that Vauxhall griffin either!
I agree, use the Griffin!!! The emblem looks great.
Tompa, just have a look at the airco and satnav in the last 9-5 and 9-3, and you’ll see that GM is more than willing to go generic even with Saab. Dreams are fine, reality bites you in the behind.
Ken.. Ofcourse GM will keep on using bits and pieces from the GM parts bin. But contrary to VAG, GM will not let the overall Interiour designlanguage go all to smoothed-out. Saab has got the Scandinavian design to fall back on and GM will see to that Saab keeps it´s originality to set it apart from the others.
Jeff, sorry I have to disagree.
I currently have two cars. One has green illumination the other red. I would go with red everyday. It is far more restful on my eyes in the dark.
With modern technology you would think that manufacturers could give the occupant the choice of interior lighting…. but please not the VW blue !!!
Sorry Nigel, it’s my turn to disagree.
We have red lighting in our Pontiac Vibe and I couldn’t do long night travelling with that illumination. It’s ok for city driving, which is fine cause it’s a city car. The green in the 9-5 is sooo soothing to the eye. And of course there’s the night panel which I use once in a while. But I do agree with you on the VW blue. Tried a Passat before buying the 9-5 and really didn’t like it. Yierk. The V6 was also a thirsty bugger. I get much better mileage with the turbo four if I don’t boot it, whereas the Passat was a pig even when soft-pedalling it.
Hi all,
I’ve been owning Saabs since 1985 and there have been Saabs in the familty since the early 60’s. So I guess I know what a Saab is and should be.
Just concentrate on the standard vents in the Opel dash and that’s one of the striking things that should be replaced by the great Saab 9-3 and 9-5 vents. “Red light district” lumination should be less provocative or in the Aero X blue-ish style. I’d also still prefer the more cockpit like dash we’ve seen in the current 9-5.
Oh yeah..and don’t forget Human Factors Engineering (Ergonomics) are not related to automotive fashion but to science. Many new cars have awful ergonomics such as lots of shiny aluminum parts in the dash that will reflect in the windshield and thus distract you from driving safely. The same counts for easy to read gauges (even with your sunglasses on like in the current 9-5).
Let the Swedes do and finish the next Saab job! Go Trolls! Go!!
Pieter (Netherlands)