Saab not resting....Next 9-3 testing....

If they take away the Turbo, they will have stripped the company of all that remains of the Original SAAB. Please don't take that away, we want SAAB to get back to it's roots.

GO SAAB!

— daytonaviolet (View Profile)

Posted on 5/17/2007 4:11:01 PM | | Votes: 3   

Yes, the latest Saab designs look great!

But, no, Saab is not a serious performance competitor to the BMW or Audi, which are sport coupes & sedans bred for the autobahn. There is nothing wrong with that, because few buyers actually explore the limits of vehicle performance, but i guess the audience here is more interested in bragging rights than anything else.

The high-HP Audis are AWD, and the BMWs RWD. Saab cannot offer anywhere near the level of performance with a FWD chassis -- torque steer becomes unmanageable, as any Viggen owner will attest. Most Saab afficianados wish that Saab would return to its off-road rally roots, where 4-season driving capability is more important than who has the most HP.

Only the 9-2X ("9-2WRX") was truly capable of high HP, and GM pulled the plug early on that project before giving it a chance. The 9-2X was the most fun Saab in over a decade because it WAS NOT a heavy V-8 bloatmobile. It was light, agile, and had enough traction to go anywhere, on any road, at any time of year.

A V-8, too, would not fit any current Saab chassis, nor would it be accepted in Europe (remember, Saabs are primarily marketed there, not in the USA). When you pay $6 per gallon of gas, you probably will be less enthusuiastic about driving a V-8. Even with the right gearing for economical highway cruising, no V-8 is fuel economical in urban driving. Tell me how an engine that is twice as heavy and volumous -- which requires a larger and heavier chassis to maintain the same strength and stiffness with a larger engine -- would burn less fuel.

The fact is, turbo engines, pioneered by Saab and others, have proven themselves economical, powerful and reliable. Reliability degrades of course when you tune it for obscene amounts of pressure boost, but that should be obvious. Saab needs to win back buyers with continued innovation in safe, fun, 4-season cars. it should not be chasing German sports cars for Nurburgring lap times, nor should it be another outlet for GM V-8s and Trailblazer chassis. In my opinion, Saab needs another sporty 3-door hatchback in the worst way.

— moto (View Profile)

Posted on 5/21/2007 1:56:43 PM | | Votes: 1