Saab 9-4X and 9-X star on the Saab stand at the London show – but we've seen both before

Saab at the London motor show 2008

By Gavin Green and CAR reader reporter asp

22 July 2008 23:28

A quiet show for Saab, but then this is a brand with which waiting has become synonymous.

What’s new on Saab's London motor show stand?

They’ve both been at other motor shows around the globe, but new-to-Britain are the 9-X and 9-4 concepts. Both preview key production vehicles.

CAR’s Saab highlight

The 9-X presages an appealing Audi A3-rivalling compact premium hatchback, and is one of the best looking Saabs for years. Read CAR's full report on the 9-X from the Geneva show here. It should see the light in less than three years. After languishing for far too long, Saab is at last starting to regain some of its old swagger. The 9-X is surely a sign of better things to come. Mind you, just after GM finally shows some leadership in managing Saab, there are rumours it may well sell it.

What were they thinking?

Does the world really need another crossover/SUV? Saab and General Motors obviously think so and a production version of the 9-4 is less than two years away. At least it looks better than the rival BMW X3.

The concept car uses BioPower branding, reflecting Saab’s biofuel strength in its home market. In Sweden, most Saabs sold can now run on E85 – a blend of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent petrol. Instead of robbing starving Africans of food – isn’t that how ethanol is now portrayed in Europe? – the biofuel used in Sweden comes mostly from timber pulp, leftovers from Sweden’s huge logging industry.

In a nutshell

They may not be as distinctive as the great old Saabs, but the 9-X and (less so) the 9-4 show that some Swedish creative juices are still flowing.

Click here to go to CAR's London motor show A-Z homepage

To read CAR's reader reporter's verdict on the Saab stand, click 'Next'