Click here to download my first audio post.

I’ve not got the time nor the software loaded to marry the audio with good pics lie Swade does, so I appologize in advance for that.

Now, if I could just quit the nasty habit of “ummmm…” I’d be happy!

Comments are open.

Someone needs to send this guy a fruit basket, or something. It seems he was entirely to plugged up on the test day. You’ve got a problem with the steering wheel, I take it?

But it’s a good review over all, and I thank Ivan for taking the time to send it on.

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Super powered Saab Turbo, for scrawny people
27 of February, 2008.

Finally, Saab should try a steering wheel smaller than a mill wheel. The troll designers could, at long last, surgically remove the “gym training machine” that a was built-in feature of the previous series in this 9-3 XWD version.

* – Csikós Zsolt

We couldn’t take out the Turbo-X from the racing track to shoot some pictures , so it’s the Aero XWD.

Do you remember the Soviet tuning Ladas of the eighties? The tinker-tuners promptly changed the original “BA3″ marked steering wheel to a much smaller sporty-like one that made the terrible hard steering even more difficult. You can not break the law of physics, if the distance from the axis is shorter, you need more power to rotate it. No doubt that many of the wannabe racer Lada-drivers became hemorrhoidal due to the hard fights they had in order to park the car.

Saab should give up the XXL size steering wheels…

But Saab is a luxury car – it’s price positions it in that class – so all models are equipped with power steering. So why do they need that horribly big steering wheel?

Because Saabs are FWD cars. And the turbo versions are quite powerful, too. And the combination of FWD and big torque once led to terrible torque steer: during hard acceleration the car would do everything to take the steering out of your hands. That is something that Saab could not fix until now, so instead of using an overlightened power steering they used the giant steering wheel to subdue the trouble.

At last Saab have broken the ice and the 9-3 XWD versions don’t try to take out the control from your hand. Especially not the sombrero-sized steering wheel, even though it would be enough to use a steering wheel sized like a saucer. Well, maybe one like that might be out of the development budget?

These XWDs let even the most scrawny, lazy people be Saab owners. No, it’s not because their engines are weak and can’t effect the steering wheel. The XWD system can be an option for the 9-3 Aero Sport Sedan and Sport Combi, they are 250 HP V6 turbo engines. Moreover, the 9-3 has a 2000-unit limited series equipped with a 280 HP engine called Turbo X, where the full XWD system is standard.

The turbo in the forefront. Just so you know where the power comes from.

XWD is the name of the new all-wheel-drive system that is the secret weapon from Trollhättan. The XWD Saabs still have a transversal engine at the front, but there is a propeller shaft connected to the rear axis. There sits a Haldex-clutch controlling the torque split between the front and rear wheels. That much is nothing special now, many cars have a similar system, especially those belonging to the WV group. It’s a system that works well, upper class technology. But the Saab-XWD has 2 more smart tricks that make it even more sophisticated. Thos who are interested in the technical details can find them below.

The rear suspension is totally refined.

Enough with the theory, time for the driving: the XWD cars are equipped with totally refined rear suspension and suspension level control, the steering is also refined. It’s not because they wanted to be more sporty, it’s mainly because it’s only the recent developments have allowed it.

People should buy with the automatic gearshift.

It would be better if I hadn’t recently test driven the Corvette on the tarmac of the Paul Ricard racing track prior to the Saab. After driving the Corvette the Saab’s suspension felt like a sponge. People can find it overtuned compared with recent Saabs. With the chassis tilted, the steering wheel sent hesitating messages to the front wheels, and the front wheels even drifted during some hard cornering. However, the typical noises of ESP and the frustrating, unexpected slowdowns have gone. Even though I couldn’t try it in it’s real environment (the Scandinavian icefields) you can tell the XWD has a noticable effect on the racing track.

But let me defend the Saab. First: the Corvette I have driven just prior to the Saab is a 400+ HP sports car with a killer suspension setup compared with normal cars. Second: testing a normal car on racing track is like to try to buy junkfood in a luxury bio-wellness shop downtown. A street car is always vague and hesitant on the racing tarmac, where the brakes usually feel terrible and the car feels weak.

You know what? We have tried the new limited 280 HP Turbo-X and it didn’t feel weak at all! How could it be weak, it’s the most powerful street car Saab have ever built.

Visually it’s really better than a BMW

The engine is a wonder, you can almost surf on the waves of horsepower and torque. Its sound is incredible – the roaring of V6 and the whistling of the turbo – and the brakes are also not bad. And that engine… I don’t know how to emphasize more: it’s fantastic, really. It’s so powerful, that it could be the only reason to develop all-wheel-drive – if you had only the front wheels dragging the car in hard acceleration, it felt like it could tear off the front off the car…

The bad news: the gearshift is awful, – as far as I remember, even the original in the Opel Vectra is more accurate. You should buy the Turbo-X with automatic. Even if it hesitates a little, it shifts the gears well and doesn’t steal significant power fron the engine – you will still have plenty of horses – and generally it fits more to the cruising style of Saab.

The XWD series felt surprisingly more comfortable than expected

The Turbo-X is not only about the extra power, it’s much more.

For instance, it will be available only in black for both the Sedan and Combi version. The suspension is lowered by 10 mm, the brakes are bigger and stronger, and it has optical styling too. And what is more important for Saabists, the traditional styled turbo gauge is on the instrument panel like it was in the classic Saab 900 Turbo. It was a surprise for me, that unlike the previous 9-3s I have driven, the car goes very smoothly on the streets, surprisingly relaxing and refined.

Was the Turbo-X better than a similar German – or even Swedish – middle class prestige car? Well, the answer is: No.

The design is nice, unique and very stylish. The torque steer that was the weak point of Saabs, is now in the past. The engine in the Turbo-X is genius. The suspension comfort is fine, the seats are amazing, the fragrance of the Saab is even better then Volvo (ok, it’s the question of taste).

We used that Turbo-X on the tarmac. You can feel the extra 30 horses compared to the Aero.

But a German car is more accurate, more crisp and sturdy. The build quality is much better, even though people may spit on them on the street (Ivan’s comment: it’s because the Audi, BMW and Mercedes drivers are the most arrogant and agressive drivers in Hungary). For cruising, gentlemen-like understatement and fine quality there is the Volvo S60, which has a warmer and more comfortable interior.

Well, let’s wait and see the price, it will be published in March.

(Ivan’s comment: according to the pricing of other Saabs, it definitely will be too expensive compared to the competitors).

Those Saab at Geneva videos are available as video podcasts from iTunes.

I feel like a goose because I can’t figure out how to link straight to them. But if you open iTunes, click on your podcast directory and then search for Saab then you’ll find them.

The downloads are about 9mb each, but the color and resolution are fantastic.

Enjoy!

Not that I want to come across as being too critical here, but after listening to this I had visions of a seeing-eye dog wearing a blindfold.

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In this podcast, PodTech staffer Matt Kelly has a chat with Brian Nesbitt, who’s the Executive Director for GM Europe Design. They talk at length about the Saab Aero-X concept and the design process (of both the Aero-X, and in general).

It’s recommended listening.

5.5 hours later update: Apparently the Bob story is false, but who knows. The retirement story spread like wildfire and this one is, too, but the source seems smaller. i guess we’ll find out in due course.

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Hi all,

Click the following link to listen to the latest TS podcast. Just a few thoughts on the whole Lutz thing and what it might mean for Saab, as well as a quick look at what’s in the product pipeline.

It’s a 7mb mp3 file. You can even look for it on iTunes and subscribe to it if you so desire.

January 2007 Podcast – Bob Lutz to retire and the need for the 9-3.

I think I’ve finally got most of this podcasting thing sorted. I’m just waiting on iTunes to list it in their directory for the benefit of anyone that might want to subscribe to it (though i’ve no idea if or why anyone would)

So, after a very long night and a similarly long day, have a listen, chew it over and let fly in comments……

The Future of Saab – mp3 file, around 8MB.

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I refer to the following picture during the course of the podcast.