Saab was always a company surrounded in mystery and controversy. From its unusual, quirky styling to the halfway-misleading claims of “a jet-fighter for the road,” advertising, it’s a brand that left its mark on automotive history with many still puzzled with what it was all about in the first place.
Now before you throw stones at us for featuring a “furren car,” we should probably point out that the Swedish car maker was under 50% General Motors ownership since 1989, with the American manufacturer buying out the remaining shares in 2000. Between then and up until the sale of the marquee to Spyker in 2009, it would act as a full-fledged GM brand. Thus, making it a GM car during that period, in our eyes.
This particular Saab 900 Aero has been modified substantially by its owner and begs the question, “is different always better?”
Your author was always enamored with Saab since the first time I had ridden in an old Saab 9000 back in the mid-90s. For the same reasons many were put off by the brand, I found the cars interesting. I loved the ignition mounted in the center counsel, I liked the styling and I loved how many of their models featured turbocharging. It was a European car for the guy who didn’t like European cars; it didn’t take itself too seriously and it broke conventionalism every chance it got.
In fact, I once briefly considered a secondhand 9-5 Aero instead of the first-gen CTS-V that I had purchased for the daily commute. However, as interesting as the Saab was in my eyes, the RWD, LS2-powered Caddy had ultimately won me over. Plus, parts were much easier to come by for the ‘V.
So when I ran across this video the other day by our friends over at /Drive, I simply had to pass it along. It kind of struck a chord with me as my passion for all cars was triggered and it made me miss my favorite Scandinavian brand once again. Highlighting a 2002 9-3 Viggen and a highly-modified 900 Aero owned by the same enthusiast is what Matt Farrah has done in this film, sharing his opinion that’s much in-line with your author’s.
Rick Seitz is the owner and founder of GMEFI Magazine, and has a true love and passion for all vehicles. When he isn’t tuning, testing, or competing with the brand’s current crop of project vehicles, he’s busy tinkering and planning the next modifications for his own cars.
