Comments on: Saab 9-1 – the opinion

By: Adrian

Adrian — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 08:48:49 +0000

“Make it a Naturally Aspirated sporty 2 door coupe that has Electronic Fuel Injection, Manual Transmission and it is has to be Special (Electronic Manual Special).”

Nah, it’s perfectly OK to play about with the nomenclature to fit “retro”…

Rover’s 75 played on the P4 75 – except that was just a reference to one specific engine in the range, which went from 60 to 105.
Mini’s Clubman – well, the original Clubman was the square fronted version of the saloon. The countryman or tourer was the estate, but they didn’t get the rights to that…
Fiat’s 500 – the new one’s a 1400…

By: Brendan

Brendan — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 08:22:47 +0000

I have been pondering this retro idea for a little while. All the modern recreations of the older classics have kept the same name, eg Mini, Beetle, 500, etc. Unfortunately I don’t think any of the 9x names (92, 93, 95, 96, 99) could be reused with the current line-up. As good as a modern 96 would be what would it be called? Because 96 would be too confusing.

I can only think of two ways of making a modern classic.

1. Recreate a Sonett. With three different Sonetts made it would be easy to make a modern version of at least one of them. Only problem is that it was originally sold in only Sweden and the USA. So not that well known to non Saab fans outside of Sweden and the USA.

2. Make a Saab Monte Carlo (no model number). Recreate a modern version of the Monte Carlo and sell it without a specific model number (e.g. 96). Or maybe a recreation of the original 1973-1974 EMS. Make it a Naturally Aspirated sporty 2 door coupe that has Electronic Fuel Injection, Manual Transmission and it is has to be Special (Electronic Manual Special).

By: progolf

progolf — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 07:52:08 +0000

I need to replace my old (96 model) 9-3 2,3L aut (no turbo). I also have a 2002 9-5 2,0t wagon (with BSR tuning (224 hp) ), so what I need is a smaller “number 2″ car. A car that I can use around town, to and from work (3 kilometers, yes, I know, I should use my bike!), when I go golfing, drive (there you go again, bike!) to our soccer ground for training etc.. SAAB has note to offer (I regard the 9-3 too large, too thirsty and a bit dated. So the 9-1 would fit the bill. Small, fun, good milage, less CO2 etc. What do I choose? Well, the Mini Clubman, of course, with Pegeout’s 1,6l diesel (not the best and most modern diesel, but it doesn’t matter when the rest of the “package is sooooo goooood). So many options available that you feel that none has a similar car. Fun to drive, good looking, not much space, but 90% of the time I’m alone in the car (and I have the 9-5 when I need to transport people and stuff) so it doesn’t matter. I would have chosen the Cooper, but my budget didn’t hold. This is what the new 9-1 should be “like”. SAAB should not copy the Mini’s looks or anything, just the “concept” and bring us a SAAB destinct vehicle. Check out the Mini on http://www.mini.com and configurate your own! Mine is black metallic with silver roof and stripes (front and back), Chili equipment + some extras and those beautiful brown leather seats (reminds me of SAAB’s color scheme in the seventies). Remember the smiling guy SAAB used as a symbol when they introduced the new 9-3? Well, that’s how you REALLY feel everytime you drive the Mini!

By: Adrian

Adrian — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 06:04:15 +0000

I think you’ve promoted the Renault & Ford range up a size notch.

Clio = Fiesta = Corsa
Megane = Focus = Astra = A3 = 1-series = V40/S50 = A/B-class
Laguna = Mondeo = Insignia = A4 = 3-series = X-type = C-class = (current) 9-3ss
(gap where Vel Satis used to be) = (gap) = A6 = 5-series = XF = E-class = 9-5

By: PT

PT — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 23:57:09 +0000

So, does this point towards the next gen Saabs being:

91 = Clio/1 series/C30/A3/Mini/
93 = Megane/3 series/S40-V50/Focus/A4
95 = 5 Series/?A6/Laguna/S60-V70/Mondeo
94X = X3/XC60/Freelander/Q5

??????

Or have I mixed up my Lagunas with my 3 series and misunderstood my Focii……

By: Me

Me — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 20:51:44 +0000

Let us compare Volvo and Saab,

Who knows that the Volvos C30 S40 and V50 are based on the same (Ford focus) platform ??

With SAAB the same thing seems to be going to happen. The 9-1 and all the 9-3 family will be based on the Delta II platform.
If we look at the Epsilon II platform with the Insignia (4.8 met) and the 9-5 (5 met), the “Delta” 9-3 can still be 4.6 meters long.

I’ll keep hoping.

By: Markac

Markac — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 00:25:17 +0000

When you look ahead at Saab’s line up for 2012, there seems to be some huge gaps between the models. I’m just speculating, but I think a Gamma II based 9-1 will come in about 4.1 metres, the new 9-3 will be around 4.6 metres and the 9-5 will be over 5 metres in length. People used to complain that Saab’s models were too close together in size, in 2012 exactly the opposite may be true?

By: WooDz

WooDz — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 22:13:07 +0000

It seems that the compact estate is on the rise and I wonder how log it will be before others join the band wagon? Both the Peugeot 207 and Renault Clio are offered in estate form but out of the two I prefer the 207SW. These are limited in load capacity but they function very well for the purpose they are intended. A lot of people already own small cars, usually it’s the first car you end up driving after pass your test in Europe. Sub-compacts are nippy, easy to park, good on fuel and cheap to insure but a couple of years down the line you need something with a bit more versatility but moving up to a far more expensive compact vehicle used to be the only option. the 9-X BH by design has that wagon look about it. for Saab to offer a competitor to the Audi A1 with a touch more loading space then it could be a winning ticket. Has GM thought about this? I’m sure they have except the A1 is due for launch next year and in typical fashion the Saab version will not be ready until a few years later.

By: No.9

No.9 — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 12:49:00 +0000

Joe, I’m not surprised at all. We North Americans tend to forget how Europeans have mastered the art of designing small cars as opposed to shrinking big cars, as we do on this side of the pond. The first time I sat in a Renault Twingo over ten years ago, I was flabbergasted by the amount of interior space as opposed to the exterior dimensions. Isn’t what the original Mini was all about? I would love to see a back to basics Saab 9-1 on the Gamma architecture.
As for my comments on the Astra based 9-3, I suppose if they put enough cup holders, which is not the case with current Saabs, no matter how clever the single cup holder might be, I guess they could risk a hatchback in the US or as usual, deprive the North american market of the most interesting models. Relatively speaking, I believe the Saturn Astra is doing much better in Canada than in the US, which is not surprising. The Rabbit, the the Golf and now back to the Rabbit and the Golf, have always been hot sellers, specially here in Québec. I know for a fact that a lot of people left Toyota when they discontinued the Tercel Hatch.

By: Joe

Joe — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 12:04:08 +0000

I actually do own a Corsa 5 door version and it’s not that small. I consider myself being a pretty big guy as i am sure Swade will agree I fit very nicely in it with quite a bit of room left to spare on the front and at the back. And i have to say that the Corsa OPC version is astoundingly powerful with a 1,6ltr turbo engine on a car that small. I guess the only thing that would make it better was if it was a SAAB in comes Saab 9-1