I lurve me that Saab 99 rally car. Grassroots Motorsports has project Saab 99 that they've built into a wicked cool rallycross machine.

I had no idea the bonnet opened like that...rather odd.

I knew they had quirks - ignition placement, etc, but that hood closure is idiotic.

I've been trying to find a good 900 Turbo vert with a manual for awhile with little luck.

@stuntpuppy: No it is not...you know all the belts are at the firewall. How else would you reach them easy?

I saw this in an issue of "Hot SAABs and Swedish Muscle"

GM made a HUGE mistake with the 9-2x. Here's my 2 cents, arm-chair corporate QB, hind sight opinion: They should have put a little more time into the 9-2x instead of rushing a rebadged Impreza that was not to impressive, they should have put the ignition on the floor, made it a hatchback instead of a wagon and made the styling more traditionally Saab. Although everyone seems to love wagons, I think they should have made it a wagonback/liftback/hatchback like the 99 and 900. Also, it should have been only available with the hi-end wrx engine. Wouldn't that have garnered more sales? Correct me if I'm wrong.

Actually, the hood operation is similar to my old E30s'

Ah. Back when Saabs were actually quirky Swedish cars, not warmed over GM badge engineering specials.

@JantheMan: I would have installed the engine so the belts faced forward. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for quirkiness - as grzydj pointed out, that's part of this car's charm - but this setup doesn't make sense to me.

I don't care how many nerdy professors and aging Berkley radicals drove these, that is still one HOT looking car.

Obviously the 2nd and 3rd commenters are not closeted Saabophiles. Before GM bought the Saab car group, they studied why Saab's were selling to the population that used to purchase Oldsmobiles and Buicks (remember, they were called Yuppies at that time), and one thing they siezed on was the fact that the hood opened this way. It was a way of minimizing the gaps in the front of the car, and had clean lines. They adopted this for the then new Buick LeSabre.

+ Watch video

saab 900 turbo. the bane of my high-school years.

2 friends had them, one blew the engine up (literally and figuratively) at least 3 times. killed it finally by throwing a piston rod through the engine (dented the hood. no idea how he managed it.)

the other got ran into a mail box.

then they both decided that 9000 turbos were the way to go.

not much left after that. they were fun though; a girl i dated for a few years after high-school had a 9000 aero, which was a torque monster.

fun to drive, but definately not my cup o tea.

/saab: hate them or love them, nothing in-between.
/hate

Rowr. Just rowr.

Also: the ignition placement is freaking genius. Older saabs have beautifully laid out interiors - pretty much every car company in the business today needs to take cues from the old Saabs in terms of ergonomics.

Is it just me, or is rear left blinker's seal crooked on the vid? GM 'heritage' quality..

I would totally Henry Ford that restored Turbo. It's one hot SILF.

That looks cool as fook!

In North America, Saabs have a reputation as quirky niche cars for "anoraks", but in Nordic countries they're pretty ordinary. It's a shame GM hasn't invested in Saab as much as it would've deserved.

Also, it's worth to note that Volvo competes directly with the likes from BMW, Audi and Mercedes.

I had a Saab 9000 Turbo for a few years. Learned to drive stick on it, learned to hoon' around doing 5k launches (mmmmm, torque steer) and all kinds of other youthful idiocy. It was perfect for playing shows due to the plethora of space.

Every piece of electronics on that car started breaking down eventually. Then the rust started creeping up the doors. I actually drove down to southern Missouri with my pops and picked up a clean set of doors for it. But before I got around to installing them, the engine overheated due to a faulty thermostat. While getting an emissions test. It failed miserably. Picked up a junkyard engine to drop into it but then a clean Volvo wagon presented itself and I couldn't resist. Car went to the junkyard.

I still have the spare engine/tranny + the doors in the garage.

I prefer my Saabs with two-strokes, thank you. That's still one fine piece of memorabilia, though.

My two cars: 1990 325iS, 1988 Saab 9000 Turbo. The Saab vomited its engine (ok fine... I put my finger down its throat) about 2 years ago and hasn't it accepted back since.

My experience with the Saab is like so: run away. As fast as you can. The interior is an odd mix of high quality plastics and really cheap cloth. The chassis is horribly flexy. And the electronics... sigh the electronics. The engine is pretty damn stout though - that much I will give it. The steering feel's pretty nice - i.e. when it is not desperately trying to twist its way out of your hands - very much like a temperamental cat I might say. It does however get great gas mileage for the power it is capable of... and I have on many occasions moved entire apartments in one trip

The e30 on the other hand - not so good at moving apartments, but better at everything else. This also is possibly the reason the Saab and its engine stay divorced :)

Best god damn steering wheel I have ever felt.

@UDMan:

I was hatin', I just thought it was quite different.

@UDMan: I was just about to mention that my 87 LeSabre used to open that way.

They had one of those (probably the same one, actually) at the Boston auto show a few months ago. It was getting more attention than any of the new Saab offerings.

@Chinese Knockoff Bento: That sounds like a magazine Charles might have.

@stuntpuppy: But this way you can swap the clutch in 15 minutes!

@Package: Me too. Runnin' on hate today. On second look the closure seems very aviation-esque, which would make sense on a Saab.

@Package: You could also have mentioned that on the Buick it was a needless, annoying gimmick. (I had an '89)

i always felt a bit queer stepping into my ex-inlaws 96 turbo 900...no door sills and it made you do a double take or two every time

@petedmeatv: The Saab 9000 was the beginning of the Saab decline into brand-engineered mediocrity. My dad had one, and it's a wonder he was able to keep it working as long as he did. But really, he was mostly pinin' for his Saab 900. At least for me, I'd be a lot happier if GM sold Saab to some wealthy Swedish investors so they could go back to being the quirky awesome cars like the Saab 99 and Saab 900 of yore.

Let's see, I have had a 1995 - 9000 CS LPT, a 1999 - 9.3 SE Convertible, and now have a 2k6 9.5 and 9.3 Sport Combi. The 9.3 and 9.5 are radically different. The 9.5 being the last of the "real" SAABs. My problems thuis far:
9K - transmission selector cable rubber boot was torn. ~$65 for new cable. AC compressor and clutch $1900k (I was out of town and the other half took it to the dealer)
9.3 5th bow seal for the top would break - $0 - warranty
9.5 - Mass Airflow sensor - warranty
9.3 SC - headlight bulb - warranty.
You have to understand that SAABs demand attention. If you provide it in the form of regular maintenance and inspections, they (in the words of another GM division) turn you on when you turn them on. Otherwise they are like Jaguars and mistresses:
Periods of intense pleasure followed by extreme pains of expsense.

@EndlessMike:
Unfortunately too many of those have autotragics. The 900CV I owned had the automatic. In fairness, that one actually worked like it should; most unusual for a 900. Ugh. I kept it a couple years before finding another 9000T (I've had a handful of them; this one was a rust-free '86 I found in Los Angeles) and a BMW 1100RT. Your best bet is to do the conversion to manual gearbox.

@elwood: Not me--I've owned a 96, 99, four 900s, four 9000s and a 9-5 Aero. The GM-ified Saabs have been extremely reliable cars compared to the older stuff even when they were new, and border on wash-&-wear with normal maintenance.

@LittlepixelTM: I actually have a photo somewhere of a red Saab 99 that have been turned into a speed boat. The roof was chopped on it and it looks like shit.....Why do I not own a scanner?

@petedmeatv: I still have the spare engine/tranny + the doors in the garage.

I want your transmission, (if it's not the one you were doing 5K drops with.) Message me with the details by clicking my avatar.

Thanks.

@EndlessMike:
There have been quite a few for sale in the Seattle area these last 5 years while I have been shopping for one. They've all felt really heavy and slow compared to my 9000CSE, so I haven't pulled the tigger on any of them yet.

@PaulE: Yeah, my dad's got a 9-5 Aero now, and he's been quite happy with the reliability. But dammit, the 99 and 900 are so much cooler than the GM-ified Saabs.

These all need the "Saab Gone Wild" teams wee horns to look their very best.

Remember Saab's old tag?
"Saab. The well-built Swede."

@lascauxcaveman: [Raises gun to head, pulls tRigger...]

@stuntpuppy: @udman, idiot!

@mehugtree: I had the 89 with the louvers... it had a unique sound... and hellatious torque-steer

So far my experience with my 2000 Saab 9-3 is that in terms of reliability/maint costs, it's isn't a Honda or Toyota... or even a Ford Escort.

But in terms driving dynics, it's way better than a regular Honda, Toyota... and especially... Ford Escort.

But the maintenance only horrible if you get the car fixed at the dealer. Having an independent mechanic who has the Saab-specific diag equipment is a necessity.

In my case, my mechanic owns a 1999 9-3SE... so he's familiar with these cars.

You also have to be proactive with the care and do some research to avoid problems. For example... use cheap oil and wait too long between oil changes and that oil pickup screen will get clogged with sludge which will kill the engine in no time.

And when you buy a used Saab, even if the mileage is low, pay your mechanic to drop the oil pan to make sure there's no sludge.

Meant to say 'driving dynamics'

Someone in high school had a red Turbo with the Aztec wheels...those wheels were amazing.

@racerx: Did they copy BMW, or vice-versa?

Now on my second old Saab ('87 9000T / '98 900SE Turbo), I hate to say it might be my last. That is unless the Turbo X represents the first thawing rays of dawn. Old models were incredibly stout in parts but fraught with strange issues...um, character. As a frequenter of Saabnet's classifieds, I can say EndlessMike is right, the old ones are getting harder to find.
Friends with NG 9.3s (Malibus?) have had nothing but problems.

@lascauxcaveman: Did you buy one?

As a member of SaabsGoneWild, I thoroughly approved of this article.