Autoweek spots a Saab 9-3 test mule

Remember from the Geneva Motor Show that Saab said that the Phoenix architecture were being tested up in Swedish Norrland as we speak?

Dutch AutoWeek has spotted one of those test mules. Notice the wide front axle.

The strange thing is that according to Swedish register information, this car is a model year 2009 with a 110kW diesel engine and it is not in traffic!

Professional Driver tests the Saab 9-5 SE Vector 2.0TiD

I came across a couple of interesting tweets from a car magazine called Professional Driver:

Had a great 10 days in the Saab 9-5 a definite one to consider when looking at your options on a new chauffeur car

I must admit the New Saab 9-5 Aero is well worth a test drive if your in the market for a new chauffeur car

And so I googled professional driver and found that this is a British magazine for drivers that drive for a living:

Professional Driver extends the readership of its predecessor The Chauffeur to include the Private hire and Taxi sector's with an extended team of professional writers under the leadership of its new editor.

In other words very encouraging tweets from a magazine that focus on professional drivers! So I decided to check out their web site and there I even found an e-magazine with a test of the new Saab 9-5 2.0TiD Vector

They like the exterior design:

It's a striking looking car - big and imposing for its class

It towers over obvious rivals such as the BMW 5-series and Mercedes-Benz E-class.

There are a lot of familar Saab lines in the car - but the styling is comtemporary and modern.

And the interior design:

The interior is rather minimal, in fact - understated and elegant.

Legroom is exceptional compared to some rivals

And the engine:

There is plenty of low end torque

There is quite a growl from the 2.0-litre turbodiesel-though you wouldn't describe the noise as intrusive, or indeed unwelcome. A gentle background roar.

The verdict:

It's an extremely competent car - big and solid, but with excellent driveability and comfort levels. For Chauffeuring, it's already one of the most practical cars in its class in terms of legroom, while luggage space is up there with the best.

A very nice read and recommended! Let's hope this test and others can get the Saab leasing going in the UK.

SR interview with Mats Fägerhag about the eXWD

I am very facinated by technology, both the technology of today and that of the future. Right now what fascinates me the most is Saab's upcoming electric cross-wheel drive, eXWD, also know as the hybrid drive train developed by Saab and marketed by eAAM.

Here's a short interview done by Swedish radio with Saab's technical director at the Geneva Motor Show. They do of course talk about the eXWD system.

All Saab cars can get all-wheel drive

Saab Automobile has unveiled a concept car at the Geneva Motor Show, which show the direction of design in future Saab cars. But perhaps equally important was the revolutionary new all-wheel drive that Saab engineers have developed and which may end up in all Saab cars in the future.

- It provides extremely secure handling. I think most Saab buyers in the future will appreciate this system, says Mats Fägerhag who is head of technical development at Saab in Trollhättan.

What are the possibilities to further develop this system?

- You can use larger electric motors, and you can have a transmission that lets you can disengage the conventional diesel or gasoline engine, and then you can run on pure electricity. And if you put in a larger battery, a battery that can be charged, and all of a sudden you have a plug-in hybrid.

It is in cooperation with American Axle that Saab has developed this special four-wheel drive where the front wheels are powered by a standard engine and rear wheels by electric motors at each wheel.

A special battery will supply those engines with the power and the battery can be charged in different ways, for example during braking, which means that this four-wheel drive has better fuel economy than conventional front-wheel drive.

It is a revolutionary technology, says Mats Fägerhag, and the system can evolve to become more and more electrical and Saab can get a so-called plug-in hybrid being charged from the socket.

In about one and a half years, this four-wheel drive will be in production and then the next step is not far away.

- We present the basis technology today. Thereafter one could imagine that one can increase the performance step by step, and a performance step is very close in time compared to the basic design. So if I say that this design is completed in October 2012, then the next step follows pretty close thereafter, says Mats Fägerhag.

German reactions to the PhoeniX concept

The German market is more or less an untapped market for Saab. Only 137 cars sold the first two months of 2011 and only 657 in the whole year of 2010 are proof that Saab can do much better in this huge market. And therefor it's very uplifting to read the German reactions to the PhoeniX concept:


Der Spiegel: "Schwungvoll aus der Asche" ~ Enthusiastically from the ashes

When the cloth was pulled away from the car, the 81st Geneva Motor Show had the next big surprise: the study Saab Phoenix. The 4.42 meters long coupe with the name of the mythical bird that burned and then rose from the ashes, should probably be mainly an indication that Saab is back. And above all, has now started a new flight in high altitude.

German Auto Motor & Sport: "Schweden-Häppchen mit Flügeltüren" ~ Swedish appetizers with wing doors

With the Phoenix Concept at the Auto Show in Geneva, the Swedish car maker Saab gives a peak into the future design and new drive train technology of future models. The unusual design study will mark a new beginning Saab.

Autobild: "Phoenix aus der Asche" ~ Phoenix from the ashes

If this is the future of Saab, then the brand will never die: The Phoenix study is spectacular. In Geneva is the concept car that previews technology and design which will come in future models. 

Seud Deutsche: "Saab meldet sich mit Sportkonzept «Phönix» zurück" ~ With the PhoeniX sport concept, Saab is back.

In an unusual design study, Saab will mark a new beginning: In Geneva, the manufacturer presented "Phoenix", a butterfly- opening coupe with many technical features.

And finally some Austrian news: "Saab will mit PhoeniX aus der Asche fliegen" ~ With the PhoeniX Saab will fly out of the ashes

The traditional Swedish car manufacturer Saab urgently needed a reincarnation after the turmoil and separation from General Motors. With the new owner, Spyker Cars, Saab will again be build on past success and surprised with an innovative concept vehicle - the Saab PhoeniX Concept: The future begins here and now - but the design is inspired by the past from the aircraft.

Let's hope the German car buying population also have read these articles and that their curiosity bring them over to the Saab dealers!

Saab's image improved last week in Geneva

I just came across a nice article at Automotive News about how Saab's image arguable improved at the Geneva Motor Show. The reason was of course the PhoeniX concept. Here' s a few quotes from the article:

Before the Geneva motor show, Saab and its dealers admitted there still was a public perception -- albeit among a shrinking group of believers -- that the automaker had gone out of business more than a year ago as General Motors was rising from the ashes of bankruptcy.

...

But Saab's image greatly improved last week in Geneva, as Victor Muller, Jan Ake Jonsson and Jason Castriota pulled the cover off the PhoeniX, a 2+2 concept with wild, over-the-top styling. Muller is Saab chairman, and Jonsson is CEO. The concept was penned by Castriota, Saab's new design chief.

...the PhoeniX's mission is not about gauging response for a production model. Its purpose is to tell the world that Saab is very much alive.

And it succeeded.

Let's hope the rest of the world agrees! 

The liquid metal paint and thin seats of the Saab PhoeniX

If you have checked out my page dedicated to future Saab car, then you know that in addition to loving my Saab 9-5, I also take an interest in future Saab cars and technology. And so I would like to share with you a few points from an interview the Norwegian newspaper VG did with Jason Castriota at the Geneva Motor Show.

First of all, in the interview Castriota tells us that the fantastic paint used on the PhoeniX concept will be available for the public in six months to a year. I assume that it will be a very expensive paint (the PhoneX needed fourteen layers of paint!), and maybe this will be part of a customer individualization program by Saab? The Spyker sports cars are tangible proof that Victor Muller knows exclusivity and premium feel.

Secondly, in the interview Castriota reveals that Saab is working on developing thinner seats. Seats that not only will be lighter, but also will give better leg room for the rear passengers. Doesn't that sound like a typical Saab "invention" that is both practical and smart? And please, if the seats will look anything like the ones in the PhoeniX, then bring em on!

Click below to read the full interview in English.

I love my Saab!

Tonight I had one of those moment. One of those moments we all have from time to time. I had been out doing some cross-country skiing. The dark was falling and my skiing trip came to an end. I approached my car on the parking lot. It was covered with snow, ice, salt and mud. It looked really dirty . But so so hot! I got in, pushed down the start button and the engine growled. I put it into gear, drove off and felt so in tune with my 9-5. I wished the drive would never end. I just love these moment! :)