One of the reasons it shouldn’t matter that there’s no XWD and diesel combination in the Saab 9-3x:
If you’ve been reading winter-related posts here and at Trollhattan Saab then you know that Saabs, either modern or older, tend to do just fine in the slippery stuff. The fact that XWD is available is pretty much a bonus, but I’d like to suggest that for 95% of people, a 2WD version of the 9-3x would probably be capable of handling everything they come across.
Of course, the reason Saab do need XWD on this car, and preferably with a diesel version, has been pointed out by Alex in a previous post on the issue – because the market says they need it, especially in Europe.
——
So….the Saab 9-5x….
That’s a car we’ve never even heard of but it’s one that I’m sure is on it’s way. If it isn’t, then Saab would need to have their collective heads read.
A 9-5x would, of course, be to the 9-5 as the 9-3x is to the 9-3 range: a XWD-equipped and perhaps more rugged version of the base 2WD car.
The difference would be that the Epsilon II architecture that the 9-5 has been designed on is one that’s been developed with all-wheel-drive in mind from the get-go.
It’s also been developed with a variety of engines in mind, so the combination of diesel and XWD in a future Saab 9-5x shouldn’t be an issue at all.
The fact that you can’t get a diesel/XWD Saab 9-3x and the angst that that will cause for a few is an illustration of how much Saab ‘need’ the next generation Saab 9-5, and how much they will need it in as many flavours as possible.
Even if most people don’t ‘need’ an all-wheel-drive Saab at all.
Comments are closed.