Saab Restyles 9-3. No one is fooled, but it is still the General's best car.

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Spied: 2008 Saab 9-3 Convertible facelift

Earlier this month, spy photographers brought us the first images of a prototype 2008 Saab 9-3 Wagon, expected to go on sale later this year. Now, photographers have snapped images of the 9-3 Convertible, which will receive a similar restyling.


The car's new nose is inspired by the Aero-X concept car, which will be used as the basis for all upcoming Saab designs. Other trademarks from the concept include the smaller side grilles and a v-shaped hood.

Expect some chrome in the grille and also a chrome strip on the upper side of the headlamps. Both the front bumper and the bumper in the back are new, and together with the missing décor stripes on the doors as well on the bumpers, it gives the new 9-3 a cleaner look. The shape of the rear lights will remain the same, but there will be optional LED lights.

Rumours are also circuiting about a special high performance model, called the "Black Turbo." Delivering 300 hp and four-wheel drive, this model aims to put Saab in league with other prestige brands like BMW and Mercedes.
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Linky.

Let's hope the 9-3 doesn't soldier on as long as the 9-5, though, as I'd hate to see the car twist in the wind like the 9-5 (named after the year it debuted, or at least close to it) is.
 
Are you joking? The present 9-3 came out in 2003, and the convertible didn't come out until 2004. The A4 you presumably would rather have in this class debuted in 2002, you'll remember.

As for the thread while I would argue with the characterization of GM's best car, it's definitely a very good product - Saab's only very good product in the last decade, in fact. Actually I liked the 9-2X and 9-7X, but no one else did so it doesn't really count.
 
I don't know if it is still GM's "best car" (IMO, that goes to the CTS or Aura), but it is still a damn-good one. A friend of mine just bought an '06 Malibu MAXX, and when he was first looking at it, he was rather surprised that it was actually the same car underneath as a Saab 9-3.

I've always liked the 900/9-3 lineage, and I'm glad to see the minor updates coming. I just wish Saab would just go off the deep end for once and "out-crazy" the competition like they used to.
 
YSSMAN
I don't know if it is still GM's "best car" (IMO, that goes to the CTS or Aura), but it is still a damn-good one. A friend of mine just bought an '06 Malibu MAXX, and when he was first looking at it, he was rather surprised that it was actually the same car underneath as a Saab 9-3.

I've always liked the 900/9-3 lineage, and I'm glad to see the minor updates coming. I just wish Saab would just go off the deep end for once and "out-crazy" the competition like they used to.
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Why is the vectra all of a sudden in contention for GM's best car now that its rebadged as a pontiac?

Are you joking? The present 9-3 came out in 2003, and the convertible didn't come out until 2004. The A4 you presumably would rather have in this class debuted in 2002, you'll remember.
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It has, I must be thinking of the 9-5 then, or was there a saab similiar looking to the 9-3 that was called something else?
 
Poverty
Why is the vectra all of a sudden in contention for GM's best car now that its rebadged as a pontiac?
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I believe the deal is that, at least in America, we have gone without the "true" Vectra for such a long time, and now that it is here, it is actually a surprisingly good car. The Saturn Aura, Pontiac G6, and the '08 Malibu all put an interesting spin on the Epsilon chassis, and although I think the general consensus is that Saab has put it to use the best out of the GM companies, the 9-3 is just too "quirky" (and that is a good thing) for the average folk to call it their best car...

...Or thats the way I see it...

I suppose that I did forget about my beloved Zeta cars, which will by-far be GM's best product line by year's end. Until then, I still vote for the CTS and the Aura (Vectra), and there is always the obvious choice of the 'Vette, but thats just too-easy to pick.
 
M5Power
As for the thread while I would argue with the characterization of GM's best car, it's definitely a very good product - Saab's only very good product in the last decade, in fact. Actually I liked the 9-2X and 9-7X, but no one else did so it doesn't really count.
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Saabarus are pretty good looking. I want those two tone seats for my car.
 
M5Power
Actually I liked the 9-2X and 9-7X, but no one else did so it doesn't really count.
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I liked them, but they weren't so much Saabs as they were other cars with Saab front ends.
YSSMAN
I don't know if it is still GM's "best car" (IMO, that goes to the CTS or Aura), but it is still a damn-good one.
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Nah. The 9-3 is put together much better than the CTS quality wise. I'd say that the Aura is a better value car, whereas the Saab is a better car at the expense of greater expense.
 
Toronado
Nah. The 9-3 is put together much better than the CTS quality wise. I'd say that the Aura is a better value car, whereas the Saab is a better car at the expense of greater expense.
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I completely understand where you're coming from, and I do agree somewhat. The good news is that GM's car line is a helluva lot better than it was even seven years ago, and although the 9-3 may be the better Epsilon car overall, it is in good company when it comes to its sister models.

Would I buy a 9-3? Maybe, maybe not. I've looked at them many times before, and although I certainly do like them, I just don't seem them as a justifiable purchase against my Volkswagens that I love (just as much as GM of course). That isn't to say I wouldn't like one... I've always fancied the old 9-3 Viggen, however, the new 9-3 SportCombi with the 2.8L Turbocharged V6 would be an interesting buy. I'll take mine in back with an optional set of BBS wheels please...
 
That actually pretty much sums up GM's current predicament; the Vectra, a car that has never been class leader, even when new, can become the company's greatest new model when it's brought over to North America. Seriously, a 2003 Vectra won COTY over here? GM is hailed for having some brilliant epiphany?

Anywho, I want to love the new 9-3 ever since it broke cover, but I can't get over the fact its arguably lost its Saabness by being associated with all the other cars on its platform. Yes, I hear the Saab guys really worked on the small details to make it different, and it certainly feels different inside than the Aura, but it doesn't appeal to me the same way the last-gen Viggen did.
 
SlipZtrEm
Anywho, I want to love the new 9-3 ever since it broke cover, but I can't get over the fact its arguably lost its Saabness by being associated with all the other cars on its platform.
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The same arguement could be made for every Saab made after 1994.
 
What have they done?! The 9-3 in my driveway is handsome. THAT isn't. Ah well, hopefully It's as fun to drive as the current generation. (I've been driving a 2003 9-3 since my lexus died a year ago) I love the Current 9-3. It handles like a Go-Kart, and has a good driver position. Nothing is too far out of reach, and visibility is great. My only gripe with the design is how noisy the air resistance going down the highway is. I might as well have my windows open.


My physics teacher, upon learning that I drive a Saab, told me that there's a right way to do things, a wrong way to do things, and the Swedish way to do things. The car in this thread isn't the Swedish way.


Sidenote: When taking the Saab I drive in for service once, I looked around in the showroom. I inquired about the 9-7x. The girl who was "helping" me was only a couple years older than me, and didn't seem to know much about cars. I made the comment that while it is very nice looking on the inside and out, it's still a Chevrolet Trailblazer. She said I was totally wrong, and that it was a totally different vehicle.
"Okay, I'm sorry Maam, It's really an oldsmobile." :dopey:
 

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