Saab launches luxury estate

Put your dogs and kids in the back but keep it clean

By PH Staff / Wednesday, 1 June 2005 / Loading comments

Saab's new mid-sized premium estate, the 9-3 SportWagon, arrives for sale in the UK on 1 September 2005.

Top of the range is the new £27,795 Aero unit with a 2.8-litre V6 from GM’s Australian Holden factory but with a Saab-designed turbocharger. Power output is 250bhp with 258lb ft of torque. Saab GB expects it to account for between 10 and 15 per cent of SportWagon sales.

Four other specification levels, Linear, Linear Sport, Vector, and Vector Sport, will be available, with seven engine options, five petrol and two diesel. Petrol engines include a normally aspirated 1.8-litre unit with 122bhp and three turbo-charged four-cylinder units in 150bhp, 175bhp and 210bhp form. The two diesel units are 1.9 TiD with outputs of 120bhp and150bhp.

The wedge shaped five-door Saab SportWagon provides 419 litres of cargo area space with all five seats in position. 1273 litres of space is available with the rear seats folded. A twin rear load floor allows a further 20 litres of secure storage space. The 60/40 split rear seat also has a ski hatch. With the front passenger seat back folded there is a maximum ‘load through’ carrying length of 2.65 metres. Saab has produced a wide range of accessories for the SportWagon in keeping with its ‘lifestyle' use.

Saab reckoned it will be competing with the Audi A4 Avant, BMW 3 Series Touring, Jaguar X-Type Estate and the Mercedes C-Class Estate.

GM sees Saab as its premium brand in Europe and, said GM, it has benefited from the closer ties with the parent company, especially in the UK, where Saab increased its company car and fleet markets sales. So far this year Saab’s UK sales are up 39 per cent and GM claimed it to be the fastest growing premium brand during the last 12 months.

This year Saab expects UK sales to exceed 25,000 units, an all time record. The UK is Saab’s third largest market in the world behind the USA and only just behind Saab’s home market of Sweden. Saab expects its world sales in 2005 to be around 130,000 units, 3,000 more than last year.

Corporate comment

Saab boss Jan Ake Jonsson said at the international launch in Sweden of the new SportsWagon, "We at Saab now have all the ingredients to be successful as we have GM’s global organisation behind us so we can utilise all their design, development and sales resources. In the past we have had a too limited portfolio of models but the SportWagon is the first new model to extend our range. Future models will allow us to grow our sales with incremental business.

"There are now three key elements to the Saab brand, progressive design, sporty driving, but with a focus on environmental issues, and functionality of our products. Safety has always been and important factor for us and all our current models and the new SportWagon have Euro NCAP five-star ratings. My mission as managing director is to take all these elements, to mould them into ever model we make and to develop the Saab brand to be the best premium range in the world. The new SportWagon will become our best selling model worldwide"

UK boss Jonathan Nash said, " This sector is growing and we have arrived with the SportWagon at the right time. The premium estate sector in the UK is worth around 75,000 units and I eventually want 10 per cent of that in a full year. This year to the end of April, UK premium saloon car sales are down 11 per cent but the premium estate car sales are up 16 per cent. I expect this new range to achieve between five and six thousand UK sales next year but this year we will only have 2,250 units to sell unless I can persuade Saab in Sweden to let me have more. I think UK fleet customers for the new Sport Wagon will account for a little under 50 per cent of sales against the 9-3 Saloon where fleet business takes 55 per cent of availability".

"In its first full year of sales I expect the SportWagon, which has a £1,000 price premium over the equivalent 9-3 Sports Saloons, to account for 50 per cent of total UK 9-3 registrations" said Nash.

Saab was formed in 1937 to build aircraft has been part of the GM family for 15 years. They built their first car in1949. UK sales started in 1960. The first estate car from Saab, the 95, was produced at the end of 1959 and it had versatile seating for two, five or seven people. The four millionth Saab will roll off the production lines this month.

Prices

UK on the road prices start at £17,995 and range up to £27,795 for the Aero 2.8T. Best selling model will be the150bhp low emission Vector 1.9 TiD priced at £22,845.