After GM purchased Saab, they successfully ruined the Saab name as well as the donor cars they used as platforms. Remember the "Saab-aru" aka "Snob-aru" aka the Saab 9-2X. This was a sad attempt at taking a Subaru Impreza and refacing it to be a Saab.
Then there was the 9-7X. Man, was this a bad idea! The clean Saab front just didn't work on the Trailblazer SUV. This was the epitome of the "Franken-Car".
I was always a fan of the Saab brand all the way from the original 92001 concept from 1946. It was an aerodynamic, sleek and innovative design. Saab continued more or less with this similar profile all the way until the "Franken-Cars" came from GM.
But Saab has finally been getting back to its clean, simple and innovative designs. The Aero X concept from 2006 was a huge and welcome surprise and turned out to be the star of the show. Recently, Saab rolled out the 9X BioHybrid concept and I was pleasantly surprised again. This concept is a shooting brake design that shows their commitment to design that previously I thought would be lost forever eventually sinking the brand.
Now that Volvo has adopted the "Ugly" design language of Mercedes mainly due to its leadership from Steve Mattin, Saab will be the lone Scandinavian brand doing anything Scandinavian design related. I used to respect Volvo for their simple themes, clean surfaces and Scandi details under Geza Loczi's guidance. Now, I'm looking to the "New Saab" to replace Volvo and fill this void in the car design world.
2 comments:
It is great to see Saab rediscovering itself as a brand. At least from a design standpoint. Hopefully the design language that they have been showing in their concepts will start to lead to some more interesting production cars, rather than the hideous executions such as the current 9-5.
I really wish they would do a modern version of the 900. I've always loved that car's unique proportions and profile.
I agree. The 900 was always such an iconic design but never got the mainstream popularity of the beetle or 911 which have similar profiles. Obviously there was some marketing and prestige absent in the 900 which prevented it from reaching it's potential. But that never stopped its cult following of Saab lovers all over.
I'd love to see a new take on the 900 with Saab's new design direction (inside and out), a performance oriented chassis along with the utility they've always been know for.
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