Saab almost banish GM hangover to achieve Swede success

TURN the key in the new Saab 9-5 Aero and an animated aeroplane appears in the heads-up display projected on the windscreen and then disappears again.

The Swedish firm might be going places since its take-over by supercar maker Spyker earlier this year but, as far as maintaining links between its heritage in the automotive and aviation industries go, this alone is proof that Saab intends to honour its past in its post-General Motors future.

But all isn’t quite as it seems.

Although the 9-5 is the first vehicle to be launched by Saab since the take-over, it is actually the last of the cars to be developed by the firms previous owners GM and the evidence is immediately apparent.

Familiar GM architecture is prevalent

The interior architecture—the steering wheel, the indicator stalks, the controls for the dual-zone climate control and the sat nav system—are all familiar from the Vauxhall Insignia.

Similarly, the two-litre, four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine in the 9-5 Aero Turbo tested here, was previously found under the bonnet of the successful rep mobile.

Priced from £26,495, the 9-5 is aiming slightly higher than your average Insignia and, in the spec tested here, the bottom line is £31,195.

Thankfully, it looks like a more premium offering on first appraisal.

As impressive as the Insignia was, after the lacklustre styling of the Vectra, the pebble-smooth panels of the 9-5 are far classier, adding to the sense of the 9-5 being all of a piece and organically formed in the best Scandinavian tradition.

New 9-5 has a fresh, distinctly Swedish, appearance

Details like the gloss black A-pillars—which create the appearance of a floating clamshell roof—and a wraparound light bar linking the two rear lights are a refreshing break from the BMW and Audi norm.

Overall, its a shape that has the look of a premium concept car while remaining distinctly Saab.

It’s a big car. At 5,008mm long, the 9-5 is bigger than a BMW 5-Series and rear seat accommodation is plentiful as a result.

The leather trim of my test car, coupled with an array of soft green ambient lighting, ensured that the interior is a relaxing and stylish place to be.

Up front, the centre console, which is neatly divided between driver-oriented controls and more basic passenger quarters, is topped with a broad grille containing air conditioning vents.

Interior features more aeronautic design cues

Despite the presence of a touch-screen sat nav system, there’s a plethora of buttons but this simply adds to a vaguely aeronautic feel.

Further likening the 9-5’s cockpit to that of an aeroplane is a Night Panel button, which turns off all the extraneous interior lights, leaving little but the speed dial illuminated.

It’s a system which I’ve only seen employed to darken the cabins of passenger jets during late night landings at big city airports.

As for passengers, the Saab offers all the creature comforts of a BMW or Audi at a lower price point, although the absolute sense of excellent build quality is lacking due to some lesser quality materials from the GM parts bin.

Driving the 9-5 Aero revealed that it had even more in common with its GM stablemate than the German standard setters.

The Aero's refined, but its controls lack polish

Although the ride proved extremely supple and the overall refinement offered was above that found in the equivalent Insignia, there is the same tardy clutch and inconsistent acceleration which left me perplexed after an early drive in the Vauxhall with the same engine.

Turbo lag seems to plague low speed, low rev progress but with a healthy 220bhp and 258lb.ft. of torque the two-litre turbo blesses the 9-5 with healthy performance. A sprint to 62mph takes 7.9 seconds and the top speed stands at 149mph. Motorway cruising is a comfortable, laid-back affair as a result.

An even more potent 300bhp 2.8-litre, turbocharged V6 is also offered, as is Saab’s XWD four-wheel-drive system, but the 9-5’s demeanour is not that of a sports saloon and the combination could prove a mis-match as a result.

With a claimed average fuel consumption of 33.6mpg and 198g/km CO2 emissions for the four-wheel drive two-litre I tested—mid-twenties proving the reality—I suspect the more frugal 180bhp 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol or 160bhp two-litre turbo-diesel options will prove the more popular.

Still waiting for the true new-generation Saab

Style-wise the Saab 9-5 Aero looks fit to herald a new era for the Swedish company and it’s heartening to see the handsome saloon emerge from the takeover turmoil earlier this year.

But some of the features that made me take an initial dislike to the Insignia Turbo are present in this Aero Turbo version, taking the edge off an otherwise classy and well-specced alternative to the obvious premium sector choices.

Let’s hope the cars produced under Spyker’s reign at Saab do a better job of banishing the GM hangover.

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