Probably the greatest Saab that never was, the Saab 9-X was designed by Saab's then design chief Michael Mauer, and announced at the Frankfurt motorshow of September 2001.
Mauer's concept was that for the first-ever, multidynamic sports car combining the qualities of a coupe, roadster, wagon and pickup and transforming them into one extremely obliging compact sports car creation.
ush a button and it's an open-top roadster or fold down any seatbacks for flat, wagon-like cargo space, even extend the rear floor area to accommodate needs otherwise fulfilled by pickups.
The Saab 9-X is powered by a 300hp all-aluminum, 3.0-litre V6 turbocharged engine. Fibre optic headlamp technology and a completely keyless ignition system are insights to the road ahead for Saab.
At the time, in September 2001, Saab
Automobile's CEO Peter Augustsson said, "I regard this car as a statement of intent, It is physical proof that Saab is
embarked on an exciting journey."
The car was intended to spearhead a major product offensive from the Swedish
manufacturer, with at least one new product or concept to be announced
every year for the next six years. This was never to happen.
On the scene just one year after the launch of the Saab 9000, and another product of the small but perfectly formed design department at Trollhättan, the EV-1 was a sports coupé based on the 900 Turbo 16.
But the EV-1, or Experimental Vehicle Number One, was never destined for production; it was developed as a fully functional and roadworthy future design study.
Incorporated into Björn Envall's futuristic styling are solar cells. Mounted inside the glass roof, their purpose is to power an electric fan for ventilation to prevent the cabin from overheating.
The high-efficiency headlamps, despite their diminutive size, illuminate the road better than the (already excellent) standard units.
The front and rear sections of the EV-1 are constructed from Aramid reinforced glass fibre and have the ability to resume their original shape after impact.
The toughest safety standards are satisfied with the lightweight carbon-fibre side impact protection within the doors. Continuing the lightweight theme, the front seats are half the weight of conventional seats but retain fully electronic functionality including the ability to adjust the side supports.
Excepting the modified chassis, front suspension and rear axle, the components of the EV-1 come direct from the Saab 900 Turbo 16. With the 0-100kmh dash over in just 5.9 seconds, the performance of the EV-1 is comparable to some of the best sports cars.
Interestingly, the Saab EV-1 was featured in the film 'Back to the future II', in 1989, and appeared in a street scene behind the De Lorean.
