Posted on 10/11/2010 10:41:01 AM PDT by WesternCulture
For Swedish carmaker Saab, its new 9-5 model could not be more important. Contributor David Hooper finds out if it lives up to all of its pre-launch hype, and considers the company’s plans for the future.
Saab’s painful separation from General Motors has been well documented, but with new owner Spyker now in place, financial backing from the Swedish government and the European bank, an engine deal with BMW and a stunning new flagship model now on sale, the next mission in the carmaker’s story is ready for take off.
The aircraft puns are quite unavoidable once you have driven the new 9-5, and for most owners, sitting in the cockpit of this car is as close as they will get to piloting a fast jet.
Sink into the luxurious leather driver’s seat and you are almost there, surrounded by a plethora of switches and dials on the centre console which control the car’s main functions. There is even a touch-screen display to programme your destination into the GPS navigation system, change radio stations, or select your favourite album from your MP3 player.
But for any would-be pilots, Saab has two more treats in store – a head-up display which can project the car’s speed, rev counter, cruise control setting, or GPS navigation instructions onto the windscreen in green lettering, while on the dashboard, the centre dial can display what looks like an aircraft’s altimeter, but actually shows the 9-5’s road speed instead of a plane’s height. It looks brilliant, and I loved it.
As well as doing a good impression of an aircraft, the top-of-the-range Aero model I’ve been testing had yet more tricks up its sleeve. The optional touch screen GPS system will not only take you to your destination, but if your mobile phone is paired to the car via its Bluetooth system, it will even provide the phone number and ring it up for you, so if you’re going to a restaurant, your table will be waiting when you arrive. It’s all clever stuff, but most importantly, it’s intuitive and easy to use.
Saab isn’t known for updating its range of cars too regularly, but I have to say, this new 9-5 has been worth the wait. There are few cars I get excited about driving these days, but from the moment I saw the first press pictures of Saab’s new flagship, I have been looking forward to getting to grips with this one.
In my opinion, it looks even better in the metal than it does in those carefully lit publicity pictures, but you have to give it a close inspection to notice the subtle blue tinges to the light units, and the cleverly-styled Saab badging on its bootlid.
It’s a big car, aimed squarely at the executive market, which provides generous room inside for five people to travel in the lap of luxury, and its huge boot will accommodate plenty of luggage.
The range starts with a 160PS 2.0-litre diesel engined model, while for those who prefer petrol, a high output 180PS 1.6-litre engine is available for a small premium.
Further up the range is a 2.0-litre petrol engine, with the model I have been testing, the 2.8-litre V6, sitting at the top of the tree. Another interesting point worth noting is that AWD versions of the car are available with 2.0-litre petrol or diesel engines, as well as the top of the range model, so unlike some of its premium German rivals, slippery winter conditions won’t pose any problems for Saab 9-5 drivers.
There are two trim levels from which to choose, Vector SE or Aero, and of course, a generous options list to make sure you can have your car just the way you want it.
The start button, making its debut in the 9-5, is located in the same position as the key used to be, so will be familiar to fans of the brand.
To drive, the new Saab 9-5 feels as special as it looks. Beautifully put together, there is no hint of a squeak or a rattle, the steering is nicely weighted and provides just the right amount of feedback to the driver. Travelling in this car is as smooth and as comfortable as it gets.
At motorway speeds, the interior is impressively quiet with very little wind or road noise making itself heard, and in the V6 model I tested, the hushed tones of the silky smooth power plant are a delight to hear when you press the pedal towards the plush carpet.
As adept at cross-country sprints as it is on a motorway cruise, the AWD system gives the new 9-5 an in-built feeling of security. Most Saab drivers will never explore the upper limits of this car’s performance envelope, but even with its mighty 300PS fully deployed, it handles in a predictable and assured manner, having despatched the 0-100km/hr benchmark in a mere 6.9 seconds, it is an engaging machine to drive quickly.
The diesel engined cars, although obviously not as potent, are just as capable in the handling department, with any engine noise kept to a minimum inside the car.
Success for the new Saab 9-5 range seems assured. Beautifully designed and built to standards befitting a premium brand, I feel that like me, the company’s loyal customers will struggle to find much to criticise in what is arguably Saab’s most important new model ever.
But will it be enough to ensure the carmaker’s future? As excellent as it is, this is a large executive car, the market for which is shrinking the world over as we motorists are encouraged to switch to smaller, greener, more fuel efficient vehicles.
The rest of Saab’s range is long-in-the-tooth and beginning to show its age, so if the company is to ensure its long-term survival in a fiercely competitive global market and thereby secure Swedish jobs, it needs to follow up its undoubted success with the 9-5 with a smaller, more affordable, greener vehicle – and fast!
If it can do this, then the foundations for Saab’s future will be built on so much more than a wing and a prayer.
The company’s association with General Motors, however, isn’t quite over yet. Creating new cars is a long-term and ongoing project, so July next year will see the launch of the estate version of the 9-5, the Sportswagon, followed by a new 9-4X Crossover model.
In 2012, an all-new 9-3 range is in the pipeline, which as well as the saloon and Sportswagon, will renew one of Saab’s greatest successes, the 9-3 Convertible.
Victor Muller, who owns Dutch firm Spyker, has declared his desire for a small car, while at the Paris Motorshow, which runs until October 17, the Saab stand will be showcasing an all-electric prototype, based on the current 9-3 Sportswagon.
As for the company’s long-term future, a deal with German carmaker BMW to supply its 1.6-litre petrol engine has just been signed at the Swedish company’s headquarters in Trollhättan. This is a big step in the right direction, which I expect will lead to further co-operation, perhaps in the form of a small diesel engine.
A Saab spokeswoman explained how the company is working on strategic partnerships with other companies and is currently in the process of rebuilding its global sales network. It is also busy developing new markets in countries which could not be more diverse than the Swedish firm’s homeland – China, Russia, India and Brazil.
Saab then, certainly has the ambition to succeed – if it can translate that ambition into sales, then its long-term future, and that of its predominantly Swedish workforce, will be assured.
As a long-standing fan of Saab, I wish them well.
9 To 5
Dolly Parton
Tumble outta bed
And stumble to the kitchen
Pour myself a cup of ambition
Yawnin, stretchin, try to come to life
Jump in the shower
And the blood starts pumpin
Out on the streets
The traffic starts jumpin
And folks like me on the job from 9 to 5
Chorus:
Workin 9 to 5
What a way to make a livin
Barely gettin by
Its all takin
And no givin
They just use your mind
And they never give you credit
Its enough to drive you
Crazy if you let it
9 to 5, for service and devotion
You would think that i
Would deserve a fair promotion
Want to move ahead
But the boss wont seem to let me in
I swear sometimes that man is out to get me
Mmmmm...
They let your dream
Just a watch em shatter
Youre just a step
On the boss mans a ladder
But you got dream hell never take away
On the same boat
With a lot of your friends
Waitin for the day
Your shipll come in
And the tides gonna turn
An it’s all gonna roll you away
2nd chorus:
Workin 9 to 5
What a way to make a livin
Barely gettin by
Its all takin
And no givin
They just use your mind
And you never get the credit
Its enough to drive you
Crazy if you let it
9 to 5, yeah, they got you where they want you
There’s a better life
And you think that I would daunt you
Its a rich mans game
No matter what they call it
And you spend your life
Puttin money in his wollet
3rd chorus:
Workin 9 to 5
What a way to make a livin
Barely gettin by
Its all takin
And no givin
They just use you mind
And they never give you credit
Its enough to drive you
Crazy if you let it
Fade:
I’m Swedish, but I doubt my next car will be a Saab.
I’ve owned three SAABs and I admit they were fascinating in many ways. But over here, Volvo is the most rational, safe and economically wise option.
Let’s face it; being rational, financially aware and secure is what Sweden is all about.
See nothing, hear nothing, say nothing.
- If central parts of Malmö are set ablaze during Muslim riots, I’ll just move to the suburbs.
In Sweden, Volvo has been at the top of the lists for nearly half a century. I guess things will stay that way.
SAAB is a bit too rock’n’roll for the well off, PC, Swedish middle class.
But; a big Welcome Back, SAAB!
(In Swedish, but I guess the images are like porn to SAABists:)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yeiaY2E79JI
Wonderful!
What is petrol?
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/car/10q2/2011_saab_9-5-first_drive_review
I don’t see it selling very well...
4,300 pounds....
“What is petrol?”
- dunno but is heavily taxicized.
Sooo...you drive a chinese car?
(I am still wondering if the chinese paid ford for volvo with US bonds...)
I briefly considered a SAAB SportKombi wagon, but ended up with a Subaru GT wagon.
I hope they kept the fighter jet-inspired cues for the dashboard and interior. The “flight check” blink-blink-blink effect as the controls light up is kind of cool.
I think the Chinese will be the next major wave after the Koreans into the US car market.
If the UAW thinks they’re hurting now, wait 10 more years.
New Saab 9-5 = crap.
It has nothing in common with classic Saabs like 9000.
Just another remake of same Opel-based GM Epsilon II platform (Opel Insignia, Buick Regal etc).
Such an irony GM has choosen the Germany’s worst carmaker Opel as a thinktank to design all of it’s up to middle class vehicles.
Ha! According to "westernculture" everything made in Sweden if far superior and there will be in demand to the point that they will never be able to make enough of them.
With all those features, Saab just introduced a 10 year old Cadillac. Way to be cutting edge guys.
Petrol is what the British call gasoline.
Old Swedish car joke:
Sweden has two car companies, one makes cars for the fast lane, the other makes cars for the slow lane.
C’mon. It is a German car. Only a few styling and some manufacturing are Sweedish.
I owned a ‘65 volvo 122 sedan.
It had more than 400,000 miles on the clock when a distracted woman driver smashed into the back of the car, pushing it into the car in front of me. She hit me so hard that the drivers seat (with me in it) landed on the back floor.
I sold the wreck to a guy who was building a Model T street rod project. As far as I know, the little 4 cyl is still running.
“I don’t see it selling very well...”
- The reason that SAAB still is around in the car industry is that their products still feauture the means necessary to compete in the premium segment - a segment most car makers wish to belong to, but few master.
Look at the Japanese and their efforts of taking over the premium/luxury car segment of the market in Europe and America.
The Japanese car industry failed big time in Europe and also in many parts of America. The products simply did not meet up with the demanding and discerning ideas of craftsmanship and superior engineering that this category of the market was looking for.
Apart from this, I’d say the car loving portion of the upper class and the upper middle class in Europe and America fancies a bit of spirit into a vehicle.
Something a Lexus never will have.
“The optional touch screen GPS system will not only take you to your destination, but if your mobile phone is paired to the car via its Bluetooth system, it will even provide the phone number and ring it up for you, so if you’re going to a restaurant, your table will be waiting when you arrive. It’s all clever stuff, but most importantly, it’s intuitive and easy to use.”
Years’ old technology ...
Onstar did that long ago.
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