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By Glen Waddington
25 February 2008 12:24
Saab's been a bit cash-starved for a while, so the 9-3 Turbo X is the first new product from GM's Swedish outpost for some time. Don't get too excited: it's not a brand new car. But its advanced four-wheel drive system and twin-turbocharged V6 take the 9-3 into new territory.
The Turbo X comes as a four-door saloon or five-door Sportwagon but it's very much an on-roader. It's also a special edition to celebrate 30 years since the first Saab 99 Turbo, and only 500 of the 2000 to be built will be available in Britain. You can order one now for £32,495 and expect delivery from April, or wait until this September for the series-production Aero XWD. Prices for that are yet to be announced, but it's mechanically identical except for the optional rear e-LSD that's standard on the Turbo X, and it lacks the Turbo X's cosmetic enhancements (dark satin chrome, rear diffusor, sexier alloys and faux-carbon cabin inlays).
The twin-turbocharged 2.8-litre V6 is good for 276bhp and a whopping 295lb ft of torque spread from 2150rpm to 4500rpm. Naturally, it's quick if a touch thirsty: 5.4 seconds for the 0-62mph sprint and 155mph flat out, in return for 26.4mpg and 254g/km.
It's certainly been around for a while but last year's facelift – the moody grille is its most striking aspect – helped the 9-3 achieve its best-selling year yet. And if any brand ever suited four-wheel drive, it's Saab. Expect to see this hardware rolled out on the forthcoming 9-4X SUV.
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gbs125 says
RE: Saab 9-3 Turbo X and Aero XWD CAR review
No reliability issues at all with my 3 yr old 9-3 convertible 2.0t. Sure, it's not the "Ultimate Driving Machine", but it's a great car for cruising along in and enjoying with the roof down, and far comfier on a long journey than either the 3 series or A3 I've owned. Yes, the Germans do have better built interiors, but the Saab's is far from bad. Add to that excellent dealer service, (and not at all as arrogant as I, and friends, have experienced with Audi dealers on several different occasions - which lost them the sale of an A4 cabrio to my Saab), and it is an all-round enjoyable ownership package.
16 June 2008 13:37
beren says
RE: Saab 9-3 Turbo X and Aero XWD
A decent review - and most of the points are spot on. I looked into the 9-3 and compared it to Audi and BMW and landed on a Turbo-X. We'll see how it works out as I don't have it yet, but I found the performance of the 9-3 aero and the price hard to resist. The "X" makes the deal even more clear vs. the "xi" or a "quattro". beren
01 May 2008 02:33
nuffield says
dame edna experience
The botox and Dame Edna glasses treatment works better than the 9-5, jury still out on the back end in colours other than silver. £32k new now, £16k no doubt after a year. Saab need to give us the excitement they used to deliver, old school 900 Turbos still bring a smile to your face when you see one and still look modern and fresh
01 April 2008 22:10
RustyTowers says
Time for GM to off-load....
Dogs dinner is about right... SAABs design direction is at best quirky and believe me, after owning two of the current convertibles back-to-back (SAAB replaced the first one!), they have * major * reliability issues. A Skoda Octavia VRS would be a better long term purchase!!!
11 March 2008 08:58
Peter B says
Yuk!
It looks like a dogs dinner to me. SAAB have lost their way so badly. What was once the manufacturer of innovative, quirky, solid cars, with an upmarket image, is now the maker of 'hotch potch' cars that are neither here nor there. I mean, look at the front of the 9-5 - it's laughable. Add to this the fact that SAAB reliability and quality is also dodgy. I fail to see the point. Clearly Volvo have done much better under Ford ownership than has SAAB under GM.
08 March 2008 13:59
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