Autoblog: Saab fans save the last 9-3

[SaabWorld]

Filed under: Classics, Sedan, Europe, Plants/Manufacturing, Saab


Congratulations are in order: Saabs United has raised enough money to buy the last Saab 9-3, what is likely to be the last Saab of any sort ever produced. The group will be installing the car in the Saab Cars Museum on a permanent loan, as well as donating the additional money it raised during its fund drive.

Forgive us for being just a bit cynical here, but it's really a shame this particular car is so mundane. It's a Saab 9-3 Aero Griffin, a run-of-the-mill sedan that's a direct descendant of the 2003 model year 9-3. Based on the global General Motors Epsilon platform that also spawned the similarly extinct Pontiac G6, the 9-3 is arguably the car that killed Saab - or at least failed to save it - as GM was never able to sell enough of them or derive enough profit from the ones it managed to move in the U.S. to make a go of the brand.

We're sure all Saab enthusiasts agree that the marque certainly deserved better treatment than it got from Detroit, and when we look back in fond remembrance on Saab, there are any number of models that will come to mind before we think of the final 9-3. Most of them are included in our historical Saab gallery.Saab fans save the last 9-3 originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 10 May 2012 11:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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[rpiereck]

They have a point on it being a rather mundane car, but most likely it was the last car put on production order at the factory, so it just worked out that way. I don't care too much if a mundane Saab represents the end of the brand, however, as a Saab is a Saab is a Saab.

[nordwulf]

It would have been nice if the last one was a completed car that made it all the way to the end of the production line when the factory was still running. This one was half made and finished by ANA. It would be nice to have a "made in sweden" convertible, an Aero SportCombi or a nicer color. But it is what it is. It's nice to see so many people made donations.

[rpiereck]

What would be ironic would be if the last Saab ever made was a 9-4x, Made in Mexico. Nothing wrong with Mexico, but it's just not Sweden.