1994 - 1998 Saab 900 - Exclusivity Has Its Price
I've always had a soft spot for Saab. Not the way my heart goes out to a scruffy mutt because somebody just needs to love it, but because the odd automaker has built some pretty amazing cars over the years.
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| 1998 Saab 900 SE Convertible. (Photo: Saab) |
Way back in 1976 my Dad and I fell for a silver 99 EMS at the local auto show. We test drove it shortly thereafter, a stimulating drive only spoiled by a rock that cracked the windshield while scaling a twisting mountain road at high speed. I was so impressed that in 1983, when my first business started to make money, I immediately went to my Saab dealer and bought a brand new black on black 1984 Saab 900 Sport - I wanted but couldn't afford the Turbo. Both were phenomenal cars for their time.
A decade later, and then under the partial ownership (50%) of General Motors, an all-new compact Saab entered the market. Despite GM's history of homogenizing every brand within their umbrella, they kindly left the Swedes alone, other than donating the Opel Vectra platform and a few key mechanical components to help update the beleaguered automaker's fortunes.
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| 1996 Saab 900 SE Convertible. (Photo: Saab) |
The new 900's chassis was made more rigid while its sheetmetal split the air with less aerodynamic drag, but no one would have trouble trying to pinpoint the car's lineage. For all intents and purposes the redesigned 900 looked like a refined version of the car it replaced, improved with slightly more room within its restyled interior. Its enhanced ergonomics included better visibility too, one of the old car's weak spots.