23 July 2009 - 14:00
Saab 9-5 escapes early
You weren’t supposed to see these for another month, but here they are: the first pictures of the all-new Saab 9-5.
Leaked by a German magazine onto the internet, the photos show the Insignia/Mondeo rival in all its chrome-highlighted glory.
Smart looking thing, isn’t it? Look at the wraparound glazing and the almost coupe-ish slant to the C-pillar. More than a hint of old Saab 900 there, don’t you think?
The headlights – and the instruments – have the ‘ice look’ that Saab has been showing off on concepts for a while now, while the chrome around the lights and grille is far neater (and less bespectacled) than the current 9-5.
The 9-5 is underpinned by the Insignia – no bad thing, that – so it’ll use similar engines, albeit reworked by Saab for a little more power. We know that electronically torque-split four-wheel drive will be an option, as seen on the 9-3.
Despite GM’s takeover woes, the 9-5 should remain safe: Saab has an agreement with The General to use the parts for the foreseeable future, and the cars will be built in Sweden.
We’ll get to see the Saab 9-5 in the metal at the Frankfurt show in October. It’s expected to go on sale in the UK early next year.
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A good improvement over the current 9-5. I like that the steering wheel has a smiley face. But what did they do to the back? I don't know if it's the peculiar camera angles, but it looks like an elongated Mazda 6 from the C-Pillar back!
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I don't know whether I like it or not. I will have to ask my dad to see if it's a proper Saab or not. At first glance it looks good, nice and modern but we'll just have to see what the journalists say when they get their hands on it.
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the interior shots i saw saw a host of plastic vents, you know those are gonna rattle like a old wooden box after 5 years. Great looking profile though.
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I dont like the interior on it. It seems a bit cheap. Looks better than the old one though.
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as a saab man myself, im not completely sure. I like the front, that looks good and is definitly looking like a real saab. Im not sure about the rear and profile, especially the rear doors, they look out of proportion.
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Its not a true SAAB unless it has little wipers on the headlights.
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I was under the impression that the 9-3 was an Insignia / Mondeo rival and the 9-5 was a BMW 5 / Audi A6 rival. Anyway. Apart from those ugly as hell cheap plastic grid air vents on the inside it looks good. Why not use horizontal louvres instead of those? You can't go wrong with louvres. The rear end is a bit of a Mazda 6 4dr but Mazda 6 has a nice rear so it's not a problem. Beats the hell out of the previous one, which was a bit of a Royal Ascot hat.
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Looks too american. Not a good thing.
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I like the interior. The air vents, a grid that covers most of the dash is pretty cool; looks unfinished in an industrious way. It could be much worse - but I like it. I like the DBS gear stick. Hopefully it got some stick under the hood as well. SAAB usually aim for mediocre middle of the way stuff, never aim really high. When GM took over SAAB a decade ago I was hoping they'd stick a Corvette engine in the 9-5 with some AWD to compete with the Germans, but boy was I wrong. They don't want to stick their neck out; it would be very unswedish to flex, you know. Just comb your hair and stand on the sideline hoping to get picked up.
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Uh, obvious question for Mr Saab: will you do a version with a Koenigsegg engine?
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Not good enough to take market share away from its key rivals. I think Saab would benefit from recreating/modernising an old classic like Ford (GT) & Fiat (500) did. I would buy a modern interpretation of the 900.
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Surely the 9-5 is a bigger car than a Mondeo/Insignia. Is it not aimed at the BMW 5 and all its rivals. Looks abit like the Jag XF in these pictures, especially at the back and thats no bad thing
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Holy cow, what have they done to the back of it? That is some serious overhang.
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Saab love those air vents but they look naff, like an old chip slicer! That C pillar is more like half of a V pillar it's so slanty but it might mark the car out a bit more and binning those chrome covered lights was a good idea.
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It's just a very poorly disguised Chevrolet Malibu/Buick LaCrosse :-( Maybe the Saab guys made it handle, but it looks American, not like a Saab.
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saab is a great car company and i liked the old 9000 since that i think they continued to make great sensible cars.
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I wish Saab Still made Saab not GM or keonigsegg, This is not a real Saab it has a platform from an ople insignia, back in the 80s and early 90s Saab were among the best cars on the road good looking fast comfortable and VERY reliable, and they still stick out from the crowd today but not in a very good way.
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Kuang commented on this article
23 July 2009
Those C pillar blind spots are going to be a pig. I'm undecided - I think Saabs should be dramatic and slightly off the wall, and they seem to have lost that years ago.
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