by Red J
September 14, 2011 in Editorial
Somebody asked me to make a list of alternative cars to Saab.
I’m sorry but after having seen all cars on the motor show, and having seated in almost everyone, only one car made me feel similarly as a Saab.
You will find out after the jump.
by Red J
September 13, 2011 in News
To be here and checking the offerings from the other brands and knowing that Saab is not here makes me a little bit sad.
OK, I’m still missing Merc and VW, the Koreans, Fiat and JLR but nothing has impressed me at the moment, but maybe is it only because the brands have last week already announced everything they will be showing. 
by Red J
September 12, 2011 in SaabsUnited Related
Hi,
in the next two days I will be at the IAA in Frankfurt. There will be no Saab booth inside of the motor-show and there won’t be no Saab convoy outside, but if you have interest in any non-Saab thing, I will try to make a couple of exclusive pictures for you.
I will only check the site one or two times per day, so please don’t get to impatient 
by Red J
August 30, 2011 in News
The IAA is approaching and soon 15 new Saabs will be cruising through Frankfurt during Europe’s largest car show, waving the flag of our beloved Swedish car brand. Saab wants to thank their fans and is looking for driver(s) that will drive the community designed 9-5. Other cars in this small fleet will be the 9-5 SC and the 9-4x.
Saab is looking for someone, is it you? Do you want to spend a day with the Saab Germany crew? Is there anyone out there who wants to experience the thrill and innovation of Saab up close and cruise with us through the city of Frankfurt? If you are a passionate Saab fan, you should take the opportunity and apply now.
by Red J
August 27, 2011 in News
Frankfurt in September, a city full of car crazy people from all over Europe, but no Saab at the IAA. However, few will notice it. Therefore Saab is planning to shows presence before the exhibition entrances, at the parking lots and on the Frankfurt hot spots.
During the motor show a convoy of 15 new Saabs will cruise twice a day for several hours through Frankfurt. The Saabs will be made ready next week and will get a flashy livery. Saab is giving the on-line community the possibility to help.
by Red J
August 16, 2011 in SaabsUnited Related
When you have been one time in a motor show during the press days, you will never want to miss it again. It is not that it is only fun and lingonberry juice, but as this is more my hobby than a job, I enjoy every second I can be nearby a Saab car.
This said you can now imagine that I started planning my IAA visit on the trip home from the Geneva motor show.
by Swade
October 8, 2009 in Saabology
A few weeks ago in Frankfurt, I was fortunate enough to sit down (in a Saab 9-3x) and have a good long chat with Simon Padian about all things to do with Saab Design. We covered a lot of different subjects over the course of around 45 minutes and this is the second part of that interview.
Part 1 is here.
Part 2 is here.
Again, my thanks to Simon for the interview and insights. This is the final part in a three-part transcription.
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Saabs United: What was the first Saab you ever drove?
Simon Padian: Let’s see…..the first Saab I ever drove?
SU: Was it prior to you starting with Saab?
SP: I don’t think I ever drove one before I started at Saab, no. I’d been in Saabs before I worked for them but I don’t think I’d ever driven one, thinking back. Or did I? Yes, yes I did. The first one I ever drove was a 99. It was about a year or 18 months before I came to work at Saab. I didn’t own it. It belonged to a friend, but that was the first one.
SU: Was it a turbo?
SP: No. It wasn’t.
SU: I’ve just bought one so I’ve got turbo fever.
SP: Inca wheels?
SU: Yeah, with a spare set of Incas to go with it.
SP: Fantastic!
A bit more crapping on from me about 99 Turbos……
SU: So, the 9-5…… We’ve heard the press talk, that’s it 80% Swedish. We’ve come to accept that it’s a conglomeration between Sweden and Germany, but what was the main focus of the Swedish work?
SP: Well we’ve been involved with the car right from the start, of course. The main focus for us, in location terms, was probably the interior. That was developed, physically, in Sweden. Bus as I said, we’ve been involved throughout the whole process. Being part of the GME (GM Europe) design organisation, and it’s been a large project, so [head of GME Design] Mark Adams has been the person overseeing the project in its entirety.
SU: Do you tend to put more emphasis, personally – whether it comes down to the ownership experience or driving experience or just getting attached to the car – do you tend to think more in terms of exterior or interior?
by Swade
October 5, 2009 in Saabology
A few weeks ago in Frankfurt, I was fortunate enough to sit down (in a Saab 9-3x) and have a good long chat with Simon Padian about all things to do with Saab Design. We covered a lot of different subjects over the course of around 45 minutes and this is the second part of that interview.
Part 1 is here.
Again, my thanks to Simon for the interview and insights. This is part 2 of what will most likely be a three-part transcription.
——
Saabs United: Can you run us quickly – if it can be done quicky – through the design process? So for example, “we’ve going to build X class of car” – is that where it starts?
Simon Padian: The starting point is, I suppose, what we call the portfolio dicussions, it’s where we say “OK, what kind of cars are we going to need in X-number of years?” What kind of role they should have, what should it be built on? And obviously we’re involved at that point, because design’s all about looking ahead and we’ve obviously got a lot to say about that. So then when a car’s been identified and it’s like “OK, we’re going to do that kind of product” then you start looking at the architecture and there’s a lot of discussions backwards and forwards in terms of “well, from a design perspective, we want to reduce the front overhang as much as possible… we want to widen the track… we want to get the proportions right” because that’s the starting point, really, the proportions. Once you’ve locked in some of those parameters, then you’ve got to live with those proportions, basically. It’s very difficult to do a good design if you haven’t got good proportions. They’re the building blocks. If your overhang’s too long at the front and your track’s very narrow and it’s tall – it doesn’t matter how good the design is, it’s never going to look right. So you try and establish all those parts. There’s lots of discussion – detailed discussions around the architecture, the position of the windscreen, for example. We’re working a lot with engineering and what tends to happen is that you at least try and narrow it down to bandwidth. So there’s a little bit of freedom because of all the packaging and components…..
SU: …everything’s got to fit in….
SP: Yeah, everything’s got to work. So usually you can say, OK, the touch-down point for the windscreen, for example, that can come anywhere within, say, a 100mm bandwidth, and that way you know your limits in terms of how the design can be or where the surface is going to go. Things like roof height, we’re always trying to push the roof down, of course, because it makes the car look more dynamic, but you’ve got a limit to how low you can sit in the car, how much headroom you need so that people can fit in it. So all these kind of things. The biggest one at the moment, which is effecting everybody is the front end, in terms of the pedestrian protection. All the regulations are getting a lot tougher now….
by Swade
October 4, 2009 in Saabology
I was fortunate enough to sit down (in a Saab 9-3x) and have a good long chat with Simon Padian about all things to do with Saab Design. We covered a lot of different subject areas over the course of around 45 minutes and I’ve transcribed all the things I’m allowed to 
in the following text.
My thanks to Simon for the interview and insights. There will be a few more parts of this interview to come in the next few days.
——
Saabs United: Let’s start at the beginning. When did you start working for Saab?
Simon Padian: Back in 1989.
SU: So I imagine you’ve worked on every vehicle since that time?
SP: I have. Pretty much everything we’ve produced since then. There were a few things that I haven’t worked on and there are quite a few things I have worked on that have never come out, as well. The very first project I worked on was the ‘new 900′ as it was then, working for Bjorn Envall….
SU: …and that was completely scrapped, wasn’t it?
SP: The theme was kept, but as you probably know we changed platform at the eleventh hour and we basically had to re-do everything. It became narrower, for instance. We did try to keep the theme but it was a re-start.
SU: How much time would you have lost because of that?
SP: It’s difficult to remember, but it must have been between eighteen months and two years.
SU: You mentioned to me earlier that that new 900 was originally going to be built on the same platform as the 9000.
by Swade
September 29, 2009 in Saabology
Here’s something I didn’t know about prior to it happening and it looks like something that would have been a bit of fun, too.
Saab and Sony Ericsson teamed up (theoretically) to do some interactive work between phone and car on the Saab 9X BioHybrid and Saab 9X Air concept vehicles (video here and here).
Last week they also ran a competition at the Frankfurt Motor Show, where people were asked to share their view of Saab using pictures taken on a Sony Ericsson C905 Cyber-shot phone.
Ok, so they’re cell phone pictures and lack a bit of color and contrast, but some of the results are pretty good.
There’s a site set up specifically for the competition and you can view the results here.
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My thanks to Alexandros for the heads up!
by Swade
September 23, 2009 in Saabology
G’day all. Greetings from Changi Airport in Singapore, which has got to be the best airport in the world to be stuck at (if you’ve got to be stuck somewhere).
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I know I write all of my thoughts here at SU with honesty and clarity in mind, but I’m also aware of the fact that you hear positive stuff from me about Saab all the time, which is why I’m pleased that a few of you have already made it to Frankfurt to see the 9-5 for yourselves.
One such pilgrim is EduSaab, who made the trip from Spain. I’ve just logged in to find his comments on the car in my inbox so I thought I’d bring them here to front page.
Put simply, this really is a great new car from Saab.
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Well, I am really impressed with the car. As said Swade, you must see it in real life. The quality of the car in every aspect is very high. The boot is huge!! is like a cave, and I have a 9000, 9-3ss and my father had a 9-5(MY1999).
The rear seats are bigger than the new Eclass and the seat position a lot better by far!!. I seat in many cars today, and I can say for sure, the best seat position and the easiest to find the correct position is the Saab. I am quite upset with the Merc. in this aspect of seat position, primary with the rear seats, as my father has an ML350, in this case happens something similar, but also the rear seat room in the Merc is shorter but also happens with the A6 and 5 series, the new 9-5 is more like an S class than a E class in this aspect. Another feature I liked is the new electric seats (in the show all of them electric seats) have a new button to increase or decrease the “volume” or how soft/hard you want the seat, not only in the back, also in you bottom!.
Another feature I didn’t know, is the park assist. It also help you to detect a car park place where the car could fit on it, at speeds under 30 km/h and also guides you how you should enter in the car park place.
There are a lot of stuff to be considered in this car, and Saab has a lot of reasons to be so excited with this car, in few words…….is superb!!, the Infotaiment system is awesome and easy to use. The only bad thing, is the rear seat headroom, its true its a little
claustrophobic, simply because the roof goes down too early and if you turn your head to the side to see the your side you should crouch a little bit the head, but its more “psichologic” than a real lack of headroom.
In 18 months we are going to see the Wagon, and later on the new 9-4x, but there isn’t a concrete timetable forecast, but more or less it is what it seems.
Something I notice and the sales people there also thing the same, is the difference between the trunk door of the 9-3ss and the 9-5. In the 9-5, is heavier and you need a lot of effort to close it in one movement, in the 9-3ss as it is made from aluminum its really light and easy to manouver. Its a small details, but when you are used to something, then is noticeable.
I should say again, that this 9-5, its more like a 7 series, S class or A8 territory in terms of rear seats, than the Eclass or 5 series, in room space, but primary in terms of comfort, it won’t have a space to put your champagne, but the leg room, the seat position and comfort its awesome!!
About the HUD, I have some pictures, they have a unit with it, in the customers section, and you can play with it. You can adjust the position(up/down), the brightness and then the info you want. Speed, speed with rpm(not digital, analogic meter) and the last one now i don’t remember it.
Once again I must say thank you for the great attention of the Saab people in the stand. I was at the Barcelona autoshow this year, with the arrival of the 9-3x, being a spanish guy, with 3 Saabs, loyal customer and fan, the service of the spanish Saab guys to me, was rubbish, and they lost the opportunity to sell me one of the last V6 units of the 9-3ss.
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I know that others have seen it as well and I’ll try to bring those comments to the front page in due course as well. – SW
by Swade
September 21, 2009 in Uncategorized
I’m not totally sure who ‘Saabinfo’ is, but he’s posted a great video from the Frankfurt motorshow onto Youtube.
In the video, they quite spontaneously demonstrate the USB connection to the new Saab 9-5 entertainment system, which works perfectly.
Here’s some food for thought……
As I watched this, all my concerns about numbers, materials, horsepower, suspension, etc all melted away for a moment. This is the car in action. Just a little bit of action, but action nonetheless.
We talk about images, angles, hockeysticks and a wheels like the conversation is the most important thing in the world. It is important, but nowhere near as important as someone being able to plug that thing in at a motor show for the first time and put a big smile on their face.
That’s what it’s all about, isn’t it?
“Saabinfo” – I couldn’t find a link to a website on your Youtube channel, but will be quite happy to link up should you provide one.
Well done, and thanks to Raquettelaker2 for the tip.
by Swade
September 18, 2009 in Saabology
WooDz is a long-time commenter here at TS/SU and he joined me at the Saab stand on Wednesday to view the 2010 Saab 9-5 for the first time.
He’s offered up these thoughts on the car and I was pleased to receive them. My schedule here in Trollhattan is pretty hectic for the next 24 hours, so I won’t be able to write heaps of material myself. And aside from that, I think it’s pretty important for you to hear another person’s perspective on this car anyway.
I’ll hopefully get to recording my own thoughts on the driving experience I had today some time late tomorrow.
My thanks to WooDz for taking the time and sharing what he learned at the Saab stand at Frankfurt, and for joining us at dinner afterwards (which was no small commitment as it was about a 3 hour drive each way for him to attend).
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Swade managed to work an absolute blinder on the 16th where I found myself standing next some great people who have kept their heads whilst the whirlwind reorganisation has sweep through SAAB and almost Trollhättan itself. As gratitude I’d like to give you an insight to what I personally think of the all new 95.
Given how virtually every article has mentioned the size of this car, I was expecting to see not one but 4 great hulking lumps of metal on the Saab stand. Yet; for its size the new 9-5 looks fairly compact. The edges have been rounded off making the car appear smaller than it really is.
Inside; and again you get the same feeing that you’re sat in a sports coupe only to turn round and find leather coated rear seats that look too far away, for what your mind is thinking is a small car. Behind the wheel is very snug indeed but that’s not to be mistaken for cramped, far from it. The facia encapsulates you and your hand falls naturally next to the gearshift reminding you that a SAAB is still a drivers car. The seating position is great and very supportive in true SAAB fashion and yes; they were extensively designed in Sweden, as much of the interior was, with the exterior mainly designed in Rüsselshiem.
Pictures of the interior do not do this car justice as there is no raw hard plastic to be found anywhere. At arms length everything blends very well leaving no doubt that the accounts were kept chained like rabid dogs when it came to the budgeting for this gorgeous car. Examining materials closer there is still a fair amount of plastic but its usage has been so well executed you do have to concentrate hard on reaching a final decision on what it is.
In the back the leg room is more than ample and for someone of 183cm I still had a good 5 or 6cm of headroom making me wonder, just how tall is the average journalist to consistently write that the sloping roofline could cause a problem for large rear passengers? Looking forward; your perspective changes to when you are behind the wheel, as you notice just how big the 9-5 cabin is and as you touch and feel the various materials surrounding you, there are no sharp edges or cheap feeling parts to be found giving the overall appearance that this a very well appointed vehicle.
With the 9-5 standing before me in all its glory, I just felt it inappropriate to distract from the main focus of the event with many questions on future products. Although I was really impressed with the openness of the SAAB management to talk about the future and I got a sense that the new era of SAAB is full of enthusiasm and purpose. The Koenigsegg Group bring with them unfathomable amounts of energy too that will seem at complete parallels to the clinical GM mechanism which may just ring true, that this small group or entrepreneurs could well succeed where a large corporate is just not geared to accommodate such a niche brand.
For the first time SAAB will have a Direct Injection engine with a 220hp 2.0ltr Turbo. If your thinking this is a detuned Chevy Colbolt engine, then don’t because it’s the next generation version meaning it’s a lot more frugal. Unique to SAAB is the Bio-Power variant which is likely to be the worlds first production direct injection turbo charge e85 capable powertrain and it’s also destined for the North American market.
Unfortunately the air-intakes behind the front wheels do not have a function, which does go against SAAB’s ideology. It was not originally intended for just aesthetic appearance but cost for materials and labour vs. performance enhancement just couldn’t be warranted. Yet, to remove the vents completely, would have made the 9-5 look more understated, going against the direction that SAAB wish for the brand. So the intakes don’t have a function yet, with the emphasis on the last word.
We’ve also heard a few rumors on the inter-web regarding a 1.4ltr mated to an electrical propulsion system. This is not happening, which does not rule out any hybrid combination for the 9-5 but considering the task of marketing a sub 6 cylinder in the luxury sedan segment you can appreciate that a 1.4/hybrid would be far better placed in a future product. That product is underway and naturally no dates or timelines could be given but expect a far stronger design language as the company drives a statement that, “We are SAAB and we are proud to be.” Maybe a philosophy we should reaffirm as owners?
Once again many thanks to Swade and to all that came to the Australian bar, to this quite a memorable day.
by Swade
September 16, 2009 in News, Saabology
Auto Motor and Sport are here and once again, they’re providing some fantastic coverage of the event.
ctm was kind enough to translate some summary points of their article from yesterday.
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Thoughts on the 9-5
I can confirm that the sunroof does push back the roof area where the lights, etc, are contained. I sat in the back yesterday, however, and it didn’t impose at all on headroom. It does ‘feel’ a little more squeezed just in psychological terms, however.
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Talking to the head of BAIC and to Kjell ac Bergstrom
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Talking with Jan-Ake Jonsson
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Thanks once again to ctm!
by Swade
September 16, 2009 in Saabology
I referred to a guy named Olaf B in an earlier post.
Olaf’s a professional photographer here in Frankfurt and he’s just posted 200 photos on his website from his experience here at IAA today.
In a word, these are breathtaking. If you don’t take a look at this gallery today, you’re just not trying hard enough.
Many thanks to Olaf for the link, and congratulations on some brilliant work. I hope Saab Germany take some notice of these and hook you up on the next project because they are simply stunning.
Click here to view the images.
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