The latest chronicle in the history of the Saab 9-3 would sound crazy - if it wasn’t for the already ridiculous game of Saab-potato we’ve seen since GM ditched the Swedish car brand in 2010. And yet the 9-3 will live on - as a Turkish Cadillac of sorts.
The government of Turkey has arranged a deal to put the on-again, off-again Saab 9-3 sedan back into production under a Turkish marque, with all intellectual property being purchased by the government - except the Saab name. Supposedly the car’s new fascia will be what is described as “Cadillac-inspired.”
According to the Hurriet Daily News, the deal was settled back in May, with three prototypes of the “new” car presented by Saab CEO Mattias Bergman. The Turkish government is directly involved in the engineering of the vehicle, with the country’s Scientific and Technological Research Council working directly with the 9-3’s engineering team at Saab.
This will be part of Turkey’s initiative for promoting cleaner vehicles, as the most recent development of the 9-3 saw it being re-engineered with an electric drivetrain under the ownership of NEVS, which was included in the deal.
So a Turkish built, electric, Cadillac-faced, Saab 9-3 then. Neat. Check out how non-Saab it looks over at the Hurriet Daily.
PHOTO CREDIT: Rémi (SAABLOG-IN) ON FLICKR