Saab: 9-5 news **Next Gen Image Leaked (page 3)**
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Saab: 9-5 news **Next Gen Image Leaked (page 3)**
Call Of The Wild for 9-5 - - By Hilton Holloway - - Source: Autoexpress
The Scandinavian revolution starts here. Saab's drive to be more modern and vibrant has begun, and we've got our hands on the official proof.
These exclusive top-secret sketches are from the firm's design team, and are part of the project to replace the ageing 9-5. According to sources, they are the last work of ex-styling chief Michael Mauer and were finished days before he defected to Porsche in April. The images reveal three versions of the new 9-5 - a saloon, estate and a four-door hatchback supercar.
Due on sale by 2007, the radical range should rid the brand of its executive rep image. The hatchback has a swept-up tail and wears spectacular 21-inch wheels. Insiders have told us the car will get a new grille design, with a prominent centre section that stands out from the rest of the nose.
The new estate is vastly different from today's model. Similar to the Honda Accord Tourer, the sketch shows a long, low car, with continuous side windows. It also features prominent wraparound headlamps, although designers have stuck with Saab's traditional clamshell bonnet. The sporting saloon is perhaps the most conventional of the three, revealing clear links with the current car.
Our sources tell us Saab has yet to rubber-stamp the plans to replace the 9-5, but it's possible that any new model will use GM's rear-wheel-drive chassis from the Insignia concept. That would be a radical move for the company, which has long been associated with front-wheel-drive models. The new 9-5 will still use turbocharged four-cylinder engines, as well as GM's 3.2-litre V6 in normally aspirated and turbo forms.
The Scandinavian revolution starts here. Saab's drive to be more modern and vibrant has begun, and we've got our hands on the official proof.
These exclusive top-secret sketches are from the firm's design team, and are part of the project to replace the ageing 9-5. According to sources, they are the last work of ex-styling chief Michael Mauer and were finished days before he defected to Porsche in April. The images reveal three versions of the new 9-5 - a saloon, estate and a four-door hatchback supercar.
Due on sale by 2007, the radical range should rid the brand of its executive rep image. The hatchback has a swept-up tail and wears spectacular 21-inch wheels. Insiders have told us the car will get a new grille design, with a prominent centre section that stands out from the rest of the nose.
The new estate is vastly different from today's model. Similar to the Honda Accord Tourer, the sketch shows a long, low car, with continuous side windows. It also features prominent wraparound headlamps, although designers have stuck with Saab's traditional clamshell bonnet. The sporting saloon is perhaps the most conventional of the three, revealing clear links with the current car.
Our sources tell us Saab has yet to rubber-stamp the plans to replace the 9-5, but it's possible that any new model will use GM's rear-wheel-drive chassis from the Insignia concept. That would be a radical move for the company, which has long been associated with front-wheel-drive models. The new 9-5 will still use turbocharged four-cylinder engines, as well as GM's 3.2-litre V6 in normally aspirated and turbo forms.
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See what mother GM's cash can do when politics are set aside and good bosses are put in place? About time we saw something serious from Saab. Of course, by that time, it will be 7 years late, but better late than never.
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Originally Posted by Rod
It'll take some serious balls for Saab to release anything similar to those sketches by 2007.
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Damn right Saab... don't let Volvo and all of Ford's money steal the lime light. Bout time i got excited about a Saab product that moves beyond the $30K something range?
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The sizzle in the Steak
meh....
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Originally Posted by Moog-Type-S
meh....
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I'm the Firestarter
Worst... spy... pics... EVAR
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to be built in Germany
Next Saab 9-5 model to be built in Germany -- Reuters / May 23, 2005 - - Source: Automotive News
FRANKFURT -- General Motors' Adam Opel AG plant in Ruesselsheim, Germany, will build the next generation of Swedish brand Saab's 9-5 model from 2008, an Opel executive told Reuters on Monday.
That marks another feather in the cap for Ruesselsheim, which in March edged out Saab's plant in Trollhattan, Sweden, for the coveted job of making the next generation of GM's mid-sized cars in Europe, successors to the Opel Vectra and Saab 9-3 cars.
The source, who asked not to be identified, said Trollhattan would continue to make the current versions of the 9-3 and 9-5 until 2009.
A GM Europe spokesman said the company had not yet decided where to build the new Saab 9-5 or on which platform it would be based. The successors to the Vectra and 9-3 will use GM's so-called Epsilon architecture.
The spokesman added that Trollhattan in future would not make mass-volume cars but instead specialise on niche models. "That means around 20,000 to 40,000 units per model," he said.
The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reported on Monday that Saab Chairman Carl-Peter Forster, who is also president of GM Europe, told workers in Trollhattan that their plant might build a high-end Opel car that GM has on the drawing board in Germany.
That marks another feather in the cap for Ruesselsheim, which in March edged out Saab's plant in Trollhattan, Sweden, for the coveted job of making the next generation of GM's mid-sized cars in Europe, successors to the Opel Vectra and Saab 9-3 cars.
The source, who asked not to be identified, said Trollhattan would continue to make the current versions of the 9-3 and 9-5 until 2009.
A GM Europe spokesman said the company had not yet decided where to build the new Saab 9-5 or on which platform it would be based. The successors to the Vectra and 9-3 will use GM's so-called Epsilon architecture.
The spokesman added that Trollhattan in future would not make mass-volume cars but instead specialise on niche models. "That means around 20,000 to 40,000 units per model," he said.
The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reported on Monday that Saab Chairman Carl-Peter Forster, who is also president of GM Europe, told workers in Trollhattan that their plant might build a high-end Opel car that GM has on the drawing board in Germany.
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Originally Posted by Infamous425
true. but at least now the 9-3 has a new engine w/250+ hp
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looks like a ugly toyota to me and the taillights are the worst part about it
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Hhmmm, I'm iffy on it. It seems everyone comes out with similar designs all at once. This trunk/tail lamp combo isnt' unlike the Passat, new IS, Lucerne, or Alfa's new 159. The worst part is, it's not particularly impressive.
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Saab flagship facelifted - - SOurce: Autocar
Saab's ageing 9-5 has been given a major makeover ahead of the introduction of a new German-built replacement, despite the current car’s surprise record sales.
These scoop shots received by autocar.co.uk's scoop shots show.that the latest facelift in the car’s seven-year history adds new lights, bumpers, bonnet and wheels, with the nose in particular taking its cues from the bold 2001 9-X concept car. Inside, the dashboard moulding stays the same but it’s lifted by new instruments and controls, new air vents and revised seats.
The chassis has also received attention in an effort to close the gap to the German class leaders, with a wider rear track among the changes, and the 9-3’s 150bhp 1.9 becomes the only diesel engine option. The all-new 9-5 follows in 2008, based on the same front-drive platform as the next Opel/Vauxhall Vectra.
These scoop shots received by autocar.co.uk's scoop shots show.that the latest facelift in the car’s seven-year history adds new lights, bumpers, bonnet and wheels, with the nose in particular taking its cues from the bold 2001 9-X concept car. Inside, the dashboard moulding stays the same but it’s lifted by new instruments and controls, new air vents and revised seats.
The chassis has also received attention in an effort to close the gap to the German class leaders, with a wider rear track among the changes, and the 9-3’s 150bhp 1.9 becomes the only diesel engine option. The all-new 9-5 follows in 2008, based on the same front-drive platform as the next Opel/Vauxhall Vectra.