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I loved my '86 900 SPG. Looked something like this:
'cept mine was silver with the dark grey ground effects - I got it from an Air Force guy who bought it as a special order while he was stationed in Sweden and picked it up at the factory. I've seen a couple photos of factory silver early SPG's, but they were extremely rare.
My dad and I rebuilt the engine, put a new turbo on it, did a home port/polish on the heads, bigger valves and new cams from SPG9 (I don't know if they're still in business as there are fewer and fewer of these cars around...). Man, did that thing haul. Handled really well for a FWD car, though you had to be judicious with the throttle when you were in the apex of a turn because the torque steer was pretty pronounced.
The seats were super-comfy and had been reupholstered a few years prior, so they were in pretty good shape; backseat was like new and surprisingly roomy for a hatch that was designed in the 70's. As a bonus, it had two single-DIN slots that allowed me to go ahead and add a Nakamichi 6-disc in-dash changer and a separate Nakamichi digital EQ/amp - super high-tech for 2001, when I got it I had that wired to a set of Infiniti Kappa Reference speakers, Boston Acoustic tweeters, and a single W6 in the trunk... the sort of stuff that's really important to a 17/18 year old dude
Unfortunately, the car had about 220k when I got it, and it finally died with nearly 300k on the clock, with a blown turbo, one dead cylinder and one dying cylinder. Northeastern winters hadn't been kind to the bodywork, and it had rust in the rear fenders and down in the lower parts, covered by the aero kit. Had tons and tons of great times in that car, the least of which was driving it from Boston to Los Angeles. Taking this into account, that car ended up being one of the most important and pivotal possessions I've ever had.
My parents had an '88 900 S sedan that had over 200k on it and ran perfectly. One winter, a tree in their yard cracked under the weight of ice and a 20-inch thick branch fell a good 30 feet and crushed the entire passenger's cabin lengthwise testament to how reliable and safe these cars were, the doors still opened, and it still fired up and ran just fine.
Someday, I'd love to find an SPG that's got a good body, and swap in a modern engine... maybe do a RWD conversion. Some people have done midengined swaps on these using the factory turbo engine... that'd be pretty slick
It wouldn't be so bad if they had just left the US market (like so many European makes do). They fact the brand is dead worldwide is what bothers people.
I gather Saab is dead -- period. That there's not even a miniscule chance of it coming back to life.
The best car I've owned was a 2003 9-3 Vector, six-speed manual. It handled great and was fun to drive. I had no repairs --- all routine maintenance and tire replacements. It had 185,000 miles on it when I sold it. I have gathered that I was lucky on the repairs.
Everytime I see one in public, it makes me miss my Saab.
Maybe it was the 9-5 then. I don't handle total losses, all I do it take reports and handle single vehicle non inj claims. A quick google search brought up this
" The HUD windshield has a square section of glass that looks as if it tinted or something in order to project the HUD image.
All NG 9-5 windshields are very scarce. I recommend you join the International NG 9-5 group on Facebook. There's a long discussion about windshields, or lack there of."
That would probably only be for 2010 9-5 and newer. But 2009 and older 9-5 would have no worries for windshields. I wanted one but decided to pass.. beautiful car (though).
I just got a 2003 9-3 arc with 93K for $6,300 at a dealership. This car is great! It's awesome in the snow, gets great gas MPG at high speeds and the turbo rocks. Anybody else miss these fine machines?
I don't as I live in Saab Central. When I first moved to Dover, NH I went to town hall to register my Saab. I was first on the street. When I got back to my car there were 3 other Saabs around me. Last night I parked at a bank parking lot in Portsmouth, NH and counted 5 Saabs (including mine) around me.
I'm thinking of adding a second Saab to the fleet (09 Saab 9-3 convertible). My 2008 Saab 9-5 AERO needs a swedish companion. I love the fact that my big 9-5 can get 30mph on the highway or better. I had a Subaru WRX automatic and that sucked for gas mileage (and premium only).
I owned a 2003 Saab 9-5 ARC. I absolutely loved the car. It looked great, it was roomy, it handled well, it was extremely fast, but it was the most unreliable vehicle I have ever owned. I bought it with 34K and had non stop problems with it and that led to me getting rid of it. Regardless of costs, it is still one of my favorite cars that I have owned. I think I may have had a lemon because my sister has a 9-3 that has been around the country and back with over 150k on it. SHe has never had any problems at all with it except minor things here and there. Her Saab was the reason I bought mine. Still think its a great vehicle...always wanted a Saab Viggen.
You're Saab had a British made 3.0 V6 engine.. I'd stick to their bread and butter engine, the 2.3 litre turbo. .Great engine.
I had a Saab years ago and wish they would bring back the old Saab styling.
It was a Saab 900 turbo, black, with the fin off the back, moonroof, velvet seats, and heated seats - back when these features were considered luxuries.
Loved the old styling, and that car was a tank driving through snow and up steep hills. I used to get plowed into snow banks when I parked on the street, and that little car would plow itself right out.
I still remember the listening to the turbo kick on going up hills, and the feel of being pushed back in my seat.
OMG love that episode where his Saab mechanic decided Seinfeld did not take care of the car and took it..
Though the episode where Jerry's BMW got BO from the mechanic was probably even funnier.
I had two Saab 9000 Turbos and loved them both -- an '86, the first year for the model, and an '88, the first year for anti-lock brakes. In fact, I traded the '86 for the '88 simply because of the brakes. I drove that '88 for about 12 years and 180K miles and never got tired of it; it just got to the point that "things" were failing on it -- AC, heater core. It was the first car I'd ever kept past 50K miles, and I figured it was time.
When I bought that first one I had gone shopping for a BMW or Mercedes. I'd had gobs of problems with my new '86 Jeep Wagoneer and wanted to try a European sedan, plus after having just spent $33K on that Jeep, I figured I needed to look for something with a similar sticker price. So my 16-year-old son and I went shopping.
Mercedes had nothing in that price range, and the BMWs in that range were too small for my tastes -- and for my family of 4. Plus the one we tried out just didn't impress either of us. Then we found the Saab 9000T. Oh. My. God. It drove like our Porsche -- quick and agile. Front and rear seats were both very comfortable leather, and if you needed a part-time pickup truck, you could simply fold down the back of the rear seat and haul a ton back there. We bought one off the showroom floor and never regretted it.
Not only did I love my Saabs, they were my all-time favorites, and I've owned a lot of cars over the past 50 years. Yes, I miss them. It was a sad day when Saab died.
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I had that wired to a set of Infiniti Kappa Reference speakers, Boston Acoustic tweeters, and a single W6 in the trunk... the sort of stuff that's really important to a 17/18 year old dude 
testament to how reliable and safe these cars were, the doors still opened, and it still fired up and ran just fine.
