Saab History

Saab History Receives 1981 Saab USA Press Kit

Posted on 14. Nov, 2008 by Ryan.

I have recently received the 1981 Saab USA Press Kit featuring a full lineup of 900 models. I have provided the 6 press releases below, for your viewing pleasure, enjoy!

SAAB TURBO HATCHBACK FOR 1981

SAAB OFFERS REDESIGNED, LIGHTWEIGHT ENGINE FOR 1981

SAAB 900 FOR 1981

NEW SAAB INTERIOR FOR 1981

SAAB 900 NOTCHBACK SEDAN FOR 1981

SAAB TURB0 SEDAN FOR 1981

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The Saab Project Designs by Model

Posted on 28. Jun, 2008 by Ryan.

As a follow-up to the previous writeup on the past and present Saab designers and their achievements, it was necessary to include a chronological up-to-date listing of Saab projects both production and concepts.

This listing includes each Saab project, year introduced along with each designer and/or engineer that contributed to the given project.

This list is a work-in-progress, so any additions and/or modifications that you see necessary below, please add your comments to ensure correctness and accuracy.

Photo Credits: Saab Automobile

Design Contributions by Model

SAAB Scandia 90 (1946-1958)

Bror Bjurströmer

SAAB 91 (1947-1966)

A.J. Andersson

SAAB 92001 (Prototype) (1946/1947)

Sixten Sason

Gunnar Ljungström

[...]

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The Endangered Saab

Posted on 23. Jun, 2008 by Carl.

Photo Credit: Carl

It’s been a little while since I’ve made a post up here, but given the disappointment as of late, I felt it was time to talk a bit about a concern I’ve been having.

I’ve been driving Saabs for ten years and the majority of that time was spent at the helm of the quintessential Saab, the 900. As with any aging populous of car model made between 1979 and 1993, the number of Saab 900s on the road have decreased naturally for some time. However, it seems that as of maybe the last 5 years, more and more 900s have fallen into the hands of people who, for all intents and purposes, shouldn’t have had one.

Today, I went on an excursion with my good friends Ali (escalator guru for all the forum-goers out there) and her fiancé Brian to look at what appeared to be a very nice 1984 Saab 900 Turbo. Complete with Uncle Bob’s “Special Black” as indicated by its facsimile Monroney sticker and a clean bill of legal health from CarFax, it looked like we had a great day lined up that would end with a C900 coming south in the coming week. We drove 80 miles north from where I live here on the coast of New Hampshire to a town in the White Mountains to examine this spectacle. Gas prices being what they are, we had to really trust the Craigslist ad for what it was worth, as well as the email correspondence from the seller. There was a claim of a “rusty rocker panel”, and that was about it.

That was not the only issue with the car. We rolled up and saw it parked about 30′ away, to which I jokingly uttered my catchphrase “It’s good from afar, but far from good”. There is truth in every joke, however. The car had been repainted, badly. Where that paint job had failed, mainly as a result of improper surface preparation and the ensuing rust bubbles, the paint was “repaired” with a tube of touch-up paint. That’s all well and good for a little chip, but there were spots easily 2″ in diameter that were brushed in. The seller greeted us and showed us around the car. Upon opening the driver’s door of the car, the “rusty rocker panel” was visible. Honestly, had the rust been fixed right the first time and not slapped together with Bondo, it wouldn’t have crumbled upon contact like the asbestos pipe coatings they had in the old Jr. High school I went to ages ago. The man snapped at me, ordering me not to touch it. I promptly snapped back and said, “how else can I determine if this can still be fixed?”. He then grudgingly started the car, which sounded awesome. I asked him about the warm-up regulator, knowing full well that an 8-valve Saab will start poorly with a malfunctioning one. He had replaced it… with one from another one of his old 900s.

I was getting a really bad vibe about this guy, so I called for a team meeting outside the little boys room in the guy’s workshop. The rust seemed fixable, but it would take some exploratory work to determine the full extent. We asked to take a test drive, and then to use the lift in the shop afterward to inspect the undercarriage. Ali and Brian took the first drive and I stayed behind and chatted with the guy. “You know,” he said, “this is the first time I used Craigslist to try and unload a car and I got like 50 responses. I should dust off my other old 900s in storage, fix ‘em and sell ‘em off too!” I just sort of gave him the boilerplate “Yeah, everyone wants fuel economy these days” line and waited for the duo to return. Upon their arrival, I climbed into the driver’s seat and strapped in. There was no dealer plate on the car, so we were only limited to the industrial park we were in. Nevertheless, I took it out to the road and slipped into 2nd gear… the boost slowly creeped into the first third of the yellow as a haunting sound that I hadn’t heard in nearly five years came from the motor. Rod bearing failure was enough for me to say “*four letter word* this, we’re outta here” but being behind the wheel and 200′ away from the person holding the checkbook, I had to save face for a minute or two.

I pulled back up out front and left it running so the dude could pull the car in and show us the rest of the disaster. While he did that, I pulled Ali and Brian aside and said “We need to walk, this car is on its last legs and is an absolute piece”. For some reason, we decided to stay around and see the undercarriage and that sealed the deal. The four of us stood under the car speechless for a second and I yelled out “THIS THING IS HOLIER THAN JESUS!” Not only that, the catalytic converter was long gone — much to the joy of the sketchy technician. So here was a guy, buying up rotten old 900s that were never really dealt with properly in the early days and passing them off as reliable transporation. I made a remark about the rod knock… “OH! That’s pinging, all Saabs do it. I’ve been working on Saabs for 40 years and I know ping when I hear it! YOU MUST HAVE BEEN OVERBOOSTING!!” I was genuinely insulted at this point and said, “No, that was rod knock — same sound my 1987 900 Turbo made in its dying days. That car never got a third of the way into the yellow. Guys, let’s go!”

We walked.

So what is the moral of this story? Classic 900s are an endangered model. A-Arm rust, dead transmissions, rusty bodies, blown head gaskets, my generation’s affinity for the Turbo and SPG models… all these factors have played a part in the disappearance of the 900. Another trend, which has me all fired up right now, are these people stripping the cars for parts when there was a very small issue to begin with. Instead of buying the $60 head gasket set, a case of beer and taking a Sunday afternoon to get down and greasy, they write the thing off as junk, part it and send another 100-hour’s worth of 1980s Swedish labor to the crusher.

Kids, these cars WILL NOT EXIST in a few more years if this keeps up. I saw my little 18-month old nephew (Sister’s friend’s kid, they still call me Uncle Carl) today and I got sad for a minute thinking that if he didn’t have an Uncle Carl to educate him, it’s not very likely he’d ever know what a Saab 900 is by the time he’s old enough to care.

Henceforth, I am issuing this decree as a long-standing member of the worldwide Saab community: Stop parting out potentially good-running 900s! I don’t care if they are 8V Automatic 4-door sedans or Commemorative Editions, they’re all special and worth saving regardless of how they came equipped from the factory.

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Springtime in Sweden Limited Edition Convertible – 1988

Posted on 27. Apr, 2008 by Ryan.

Photo Credit: Larry West

In 1988, Saab-Scania’s Saab Car Division, presented during a “Springtime in Sweden” event, a limited edition Saab 900 “Springtime in Sweden” convertible.

The following are the specifications on this limited edition Saab 900 convertible:

Production: There were only 288 Springtime in Sweden or SiS models produced during this time.

Distribution: These vehicles were specifically designated for each Saab dealership in the United States at that time.

Engine: 2.0 Liter Turbocharged engine

Transmission: 4 were Automatic, 284 were manual transmission.

Exterior: All of the vehicles were painted black, included a matching black convertible top, all badges were removed, and included SPG wheel arch mouldings, SPG body panels and the SPG three-spoke alloy wheels.

Interior: The interior included buffalo grey leather seats rounding out with a commemorative badge indicating that it is a “Springtime in Sweden” edition shown below.

Existing owners of this vehicle take pride in knowing that they own a true limited edition Saab convertible.

*There has been talk of a registry to list current owners and locations in the United States, so if there has ever been a good time, perhaps we can begin one here:

—–

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The New York Times Places Saab 900s in Driving Test

Posted on 08. Apr, 2008 by Ryan.

Image Credit: New York Times

The New York Times has recently posted a piece about a computer game that could make you a safer driver. It is interesting to note that this game called “DriveFit” features two classic Saab 900s prominently displayed.

I have also done some “virtual” test driving of the Saab 9-X (2001), Saab 9000 (1988), and SCANIA truck and I think that as a result, my driving has improved. Let’s hope so given the results from those videos here.

It goes to show that when it comes to driving safety, the Saab Automobile is the preferred choice.

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Classic Saab 900 Featured In Recent Avis TV Ad

Posted on 25. Feb, 2008 by Ryan.

     
A frequent visitor to Saab History has just notified me of a classic Saab 900 that was featured in a recent Avis Rental Car TV advertisement.
  
I am beginning to see a trend in product placement for the Saab brand from the 2008 Saab 9-3 Aeros featured in the two Superbowl ads for Bridgestone to the Saab 9-7x showcased in the recent movie, “Untraceable”.
  
It is truly great to see the classic Saab Nine Hundreds making a comeback! This ad featuring this classic Saab 900, gives me hope about the ongoing project of my recent acquisition of a similiar classic Saab 900.
  
Enjoy the ad!

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The Saab Naming and Model Nomenclature

Posted on 25. Feb, 2008 by Ryan.

Image Credit: Saab History

As a follow-up to the posting I made back in November of 2006 on the logo history, it is about time that I compliment this information with the following on the correct capitalization and nomenclature of the models of the Saab Automobile brand. I hope this sheds some more light in our dialog about Saabs, SAABs and all of the great products that have been developed over the years.

I have provided a fairly well written piece already done on Wikipedia that I would like to articulate if I may regarding the correct capitalization and model nomenclature as a guide.

It is my hope that as a result of this posting, others will be able to better articulate their writing and speaking when referring to all of Saab’s products from 1947 until present. I also think that this posting will help to end search criteria that is typically entered in Google as follows: (SAAB 93 XWD, SAAB 92 ABS, Saab 94 Ski Rack, 2001 SAAB 95, 1999 93, etc.) If this search criteria was taken literally, as it should as google can only do just that, we would have had Cross Wheel Drive available in the late 1950′s, ABS in the late forties, and two long production runs for the SAAB Ninety Five and Ninety Three. Let’s hope that this clarifies this naming and model nomenclature once and for all.

1947-1969 (Svenska Aeroplan Aktiebolaget)

The Company: When referring to the company in both written and oral communication where the products were produced between 1947 and 1969, it is proper to use SAAB in all capital letters to refer to these vehicles.

The Models: When referring to vehicles model nomenclature in both written and oral communication that were produced during this time, they are written and pronounced as 92 (Pronounced: Ninety Two), 92 (Pronounced: Ninety Three), 94 (Pronounced: Ninety Four), 95 (Pronounced: Ninety Five), 96 (Pronounced: Ninety Six), 97 (Pronounced: Ninety Seven)

1970-2000 (Saab-Scania)

* Note: Although the merger took place in 1990, the original products continued. (excluding NG900, 9-3 & 9-5)

The Company: When referring to the company in both written and oral communication where the products were produced between 1970 and 1990, it is proper & acceptable to refer to them as Saabs in lower case letters or Saab-Scania vehicles, also in lower case letters.

The Models: When referring to vehicles model nomenclature in both written and oral communication that were produced during this time, they are written and produced as 97 (Pronounced: Ninety Seven), 98 (Pronounced: Ninety Eight), 99 (Pronounced: Ninety Nine), 90 (Pronounced: Ninety), 900 (Pronounced: Nine Hundred), 9000 (Pronounced: Nine Thousand), 9-5 (Pronounced: Nine Five), NG900 (Pronounced: New Generation 900), 9-3 (Pronounced: Nine Three).

2001 – Present (Saab Automobile / General Motors)

The Company: When referring to the company in both written and oral communication where the products were produced between 2001 and the Present, it is proper & acceptable to refer to them as Saab in lower case letters and/or Saab Automobile / GM vehicles.

The Models: When referring to vehicles model nomenclature in both written and oral communication that were produced during this time, they are written and produced as 9-X (Pronounced: Nine X), 9-2x (Pronounced: Nine Two X), 9-3x (Pronounced: Nine Three X), 9-3 (Pronounced: Nine Three), 9-4x (Pronounced: Nine Four X), 9-5 (Pronounced: Nine Five), 9-7x (Pronounced: Nine Seven X)

I leave you with a brief summary from Saab Automobile’s entry from Wikipedia.

Saab / SAAB Correct Capitalization and Model Nomenclature:

While Saab is in fact an acronym, and, as with many other manufacturers, the word “SAAB” appears in all-capitals within the corporate emblem and in on-vehicle badging, the current correct capitalization of Saab when in print is “Saab,” and not “SAAB.”[citation needed] Other manufacturers such as Volvo, Toyota, Lexus, Acura, and Chevrolet employ the use of all-capitalized vehicle badging, but they are still considered proper names and capitalized as such when written. Likewise, Saab is treated as a proper name and not an acronym, despite its origins..”[citation needed]

Furthermore, all current Saab vehicles are badged with a large 9 and a smaller 3, 5, or 7x following the 9, such as “9³”. However, the digits are considered separate, and are spoken as, for example, “nine three,” and written as “9-3.” Nearly every Saab model ever produced has begun with the number 9 (Saab 600 being an exception), and Saab’s two models became 9-3 and 9-5 in the late 1990s, which was likely a marketing attempt at positioning the vehicles as direct competitors to the BMW 3-series and 5-series, respectively.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saab_Automobile

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The Saab 900 Turbo Cabriolet Prototype – 1983

Posted on 24. Jan, 2008 by Ryan.

Photo Credit: Saab-Scania AB

I have located the original photograph in my archives from the Frankfurt Motor Show that Saab used in their press release to showcase the original Saab 900 Turbo Cabriolet prototype in 1983. This vehicle was also featured in the Saab Olympics which took place in Los Angeles in 1984.

Here is the caption from the photograph as I am still looking to obtain this original press release:

SAAB 900 TURBO CABRIOLET — The Saab Turbo Cabriolet is a design study based on the Saab 900. The prototype presented at the 1983 Frankfurt Motor Show in West Germany is powered by the Swedish automaker’s 175-horsepower third generation turbocharged engine with four valves per cylinder and intercooler. Top speed is in excess of 125 miles per hour. No decision has been made about production.

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