Saab 96 V4 - a unique motor car with rallying pedigree!
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- čas přidán 25. 05. 2023
- It might not look it, but the Saab 96 is a car with genuine rallying credentials, having been put through its paces by Erik Carlsson, Stig Blomqvist and Per Eklund. The road version feels a little more sedate, but a Freewheel adds to the driving amusement, as do the very pleasant column gearchange and Ford V4 engine. #saab #classiccars #driving
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Absolutely cannot overstate how much I LOVE these things.
Cant get enough SAABs!
@@DollyBoy_1923
These cars are a beloved part of my childhood....
me to , i am really obsessed of this , can get enough of it
Saab always did things differently, and that's a good thing
Doing too many things differently just for the sake of it ran them out of business though...
@@Tc4ifywell they had to sell to GM and they made most of the bad decisions after that, however, because they made so many of those quirky decisions is probably why they had to sell to GM. But we love SAAB for what they do. that’s what makes them unique, and that’s why we love them
Don't be daft! I hd a 99 and 900 and they were very hard to understand. Very! Awkward instruments, door catches, battery in the engine compartment, crazy front wheel drive/gearbox!!
@@neilritson7445 maybe it was just you?? I had an 87 900 and it was 1 of the best cars I ever owned
I once owned a SAAB 95, the station wagon. It was a fun driving machine. They say that if anything in any car is screewed on with four bolts, on a SAAB there are always five bolts. Always extra safety in a car built by airplane constructors.
Having driven one it's amazing how well these cruise. Not very powerful, but once you get up to speed, you can maintain it with very low effort.
@@Oldsmobile69 The 2 cycles labored going up steeper inclines, much like a 40 HP VW did. Also the gearing on the V4 transmission was taller and could cruise at a higher cruise speed. Doing over 75 in a 46 hp Shrike engined 1966 SAAB was not advisable.
My '65 wagon we would take to the last operating drive-in theater because you could pull in backwards open the back "hatch", unfold out the little trundle seat, watch the movie from the back and enjoy the night air.
How I regret disposing of my ‘95 many years ago. The colour green - pea green? Caused heads to turn. Happy days.
@@tauncfester30221qqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqqq
I won SAAB 96 V4 when i was two, back in 1975.. ok, my mom put my name on the raffle ticket.. We took it to Norway and then traded it for SAAB 99 that my dad had until the mid 90s. Then he bought another SAAB 900, and then traded it for 93 that he still has. It is in immaculate condition, he was tweaked it over the years to be just perfect. Now i know where he got the driving style he has... he rolls a LOT, puts it in neutral and just coasts.
I actually won again from the same company raffle ten years later, this time it was just a weekend holiday... and again, mom put my name in the ticket.
Great looking Saab, a much missed manufacturer.
Excellent review as always Ian.
so true 👍👍
In sweden it´s lovingly nicknamed "the pear half".Especially fitting in this Verona green example.
We used to call it Skorpsåg especially the 95.
@@rimmersbryggeri hahaha that is an excellent name😄
@@AlfaGiuliaQV My Grandpa had 3 95s and my aunt had a 96. My younger aunt drove one of the 95s up a tree.
@@rimmersbryggeri In Finland the 95 was called Tilhi (Waxwing), because the shape of the roof.
@@ElTio.45-70 Yeah lots of different names for them. :)
Saabs were so well engineered. The 96 is such a lovely looking car. So sad the company went bankrupt.
What a wonderful example of such a fine car. As a kid I never really appreciated Saab body design but that was when many cars in the UK were adopting American styles like the MKIII Cortina, Hillman Avenger and Vauxhall VX490 etc. Need less to say that as I got older Saab made more sense but those times have sadly gone. At least I can remember them driving around the UK back in the day pre-restoration as they stood out. Many thanks Ian for bringing back those memories.
I owned a 1972 V4 of this colour. Superb vehicle. Could cruise at 80 all day. Robust, comfortable and quirky.
You overlooked things like the rear seat folds and one can pass very large items all the way through
One of the prettiest cars ever created in my opinion. A popular choice among teachers in the 70's - at my school at least.
So loved the 96, dad bought one new in 72 from Lester Motors in Chadwell Heath Essex, KLK 58K. The dealer had a yellow SAAB 92 in the dealership as a display model. Passed my test in KLK, will never forget that car
And guess what other make Lester Motors sold, Wartburg! It made sense when you think about the two stroke connection
I thought all 92s were green only. Musta looked great though!
It did, saw it in the 90’s still yellow as I recall
One of the few cars that look good when coming towards you or driving away from you.
Between 1978 and 1985 I owned a 1969 Saab 96, and I loved that car. Curiously, when I decided to sell it, as a student at the Rhode Island School of Design, two people became interested in buying it, and it started a bidding war that raised my asking price from 1.5 thousand Dollars to almost 2.5! And in 1987 I bought a mint condition 1965 DKW Vemaguette (station wagon) in Rio de Janeiro, kept it for two years and sold it for twice as much money as I purchased. Which shows that quasi-vintage cars can be a smart investment, other than a lot of fun.
I have driven SAAB since the fall of 1977 when I bought my first one. It was a light blue 1964 SAAB 96 2-stroke 4-speed. The following year I bought my second car, a SAAB 96 V4 from 1967. Since then I was sold on SAAB and have owned more than 50 SAAB 95/96 all year models between 1967-1980 as well as 20 other SAABs such as 99, 99cc, og900, 9000 , 9-3, 9-5. Over the years, I have also had around 30-40 other different car models. Everything from FIAT, Lancia, OPEL, Vauxhall, VW, Isusu, Lada, BMW, Renault, Volvo, Toyota, Nissan, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Mercedes, Dodge. What can i say, I like cars. 😎👍
Was on Madeira Drive to watch the finish of the 1961 RAC Rally. The surviving entrants had to tear down flat out and then carry out a sequence of fancy manoeuvres. We were impressed by the speed of TRs and the works Ford Zephyrs. Then Erik Carlson came screaming down in the SAAB (2 stroke of course) and we thought "He's never going to stop." Obviously braking and accelerating simultaneously he just seemed to go from forward to backward motion without actually stopping. It was a lesson in what could be done with immense skill and self-confidence and not much power.
I remember reading about Carlson´s driving antics in a book about rallying. Eric suddenly found himself going backwards down a hill in icy conditions. His co-driver said he did a quick yank on the handbrake, twitch the steering wheel and the car was again then facing forwards in the direction of travel. He was once stuck in ruts in mud on the safari rally. The pair of them got out, physically rolled the car over until the wheels were resting back on some firm drier ground. At the after dinner rally they were relating this tale to incredulous listeners. At this point Eric and his codriver took everybody outside into the car park and proved it. Saab team rally drivers said one of the problems with the Saab 99 model was that if we roll it we will never get it back on it´s wheels because of the squarer shape.
My first car was a 1967 96 4 stroke. Bought new by my dad, passed on to me in 1975, and eventually died of rust in 1980. The trick with these is to never slow down, ours spent early years doing family trips across Europe, generally all day cruise at 83mph (funny what you remember!!) and later years with me at the wheel in North Wales sticking to that never slow down mantra.
Wonderful car. Love the side view, aeroplane wing section look.
Always loved by architects and designers!
and engineers ;-)
A lovely car, can remember seeing lots of these on the English roads and how stylish were the station wagons.
Finally you got around to one of these! One of the few things that truly fill me with national pride as a swede. Not only was I born and raised in one, but I also took up the torch once I got my license and have been through at least 10 or so V4:s over the years. Currently I've got two that I drive daily, one of each (96 and 95 respectively, the 96 in this same Verona green colour incidentally, although a -72 model when this particular colour was ever so slightly more brown-tinted for some reason), and they are simply my automotive homebase defined, I always seem to go back to them anytime I try out something else. And once you get used to the freewheel, you start to wonder why other cars don't have it.
Minor correction though, and I'm probably not the first to point it out, but this has got to be a -74 as it has the plastic grille and bigger washer fluid container. But who cares really, always such a gas to see a swedish classic and one of my personal all-time favourites being experienced and appreciated by a non-swede.
Oh, and you should of course seek out a 95 for a follow-up video, if only to show off the extra seat in the rear space.
It's a 74 model year from late 73.
Same here! "Automotive home base" is a great way to describe it. Only difference I'm in the US of A. Have owned mountains of them as did bother of my brothers.
As a finn I also spent my first two years in the backseat of Saab 96 exactly like the example here. There were a lot of 96’s on the finnish roads, afterall we built them as well in Uusikaupunki (or Nystad in swedish).
When I lived in Knoxville I had a 1969 GT gray. The most interesting vehicle I have ever owned.
My dad had a Saab 95 (with seven seats) for most of my childhood. He used to tow a caravan with it, often to south of France.
BRILLIANt ! I'm a SAAB man through and through - had 7 in total. I started with a 1963, Bullnose 2 stroke - went like a rocket. Then a 1967 V4 96 - round headlight version. Then a 900 auto, then a 99, then a series of 3 x 900s. The last one I had for 18 years. Fantastic cars - fun and safe driving. Thanks for showing us this gorgeous 96 - brought back many memories. Take care 🙂
The 63 Bullnose went like a rocket?? They had the mildest tuned engine ever used in the 96, only 36 hp. I was never inclined to drive it on the freeway because it was really tapped out at 68 mph. The 36 HP engines did have the best low end torque. Great backroads cruiser at about 45 to 60 mph, it was no rocketship.
Had 2 SAAB 96's one two stroke, one V4. Later graduated to a 9000 turbo, then a 95 2.3 turbo. All marvelous.
It is a very nice car of its time! Very swedish! Smooth drive! Year 2011 was a very sad year. Saab had always been The Avantgarde of the automobile industry.
The Saab design was also a hit among professional groups such as architects or interior designers. The two other car brands that were popular with creative professionals were Citroen and Renault. Your program really warms one's heart. Thank you.
I owned one, in the late 80’s, with the V4 Taunus engine. Most beautiful car I ever owned and the best driver too.
Happy memories. Always fancied a 96. I had four 99s over 25 years, including one from the final year of production (a homologation car built in the Saab Finnish plant). My late missus had another from the same batch at the same time. Wonderful cars.
That 'delicious 1970's shade' would be Verona Green
So as one of the few Americans who's owned a few SAABs of the 95 and 96 models, the longitudinal 3 cylinder, 2 cycle engine wasn't thermosyphon, it had a barely adequate little water pump on the backside of the generator. This is why my '62 was converted to a 1965 40 hp engine, because you got a better water pump on the engine head, powered by the fanbelt directly and you could mount an alternator for more headlight/driving-light power. Those early bullnose 96's got about 30+ MPG (American gallons..) with the single venturi Solex carb, notable because SAAB 2 strokes weren't exactly mileage champions. They do make the best and most interesting noises. Also the black painted V4's were 1700CC, the blue and rarer red factory painted 1500's were not really that much less power than the 1700, the 1700 had better low end power because of a longer stroke.
This is a 1500cc though engine block paint has disappeared or is hiding under dirt. From time to time you see indeed a 96 with a few traces of blue paint remaining.
Yes, I mentioned the water pump, but the layout with radiator behind was because of DKW using thermo-syphon initially.
Remember these being quite common when I was a sprog in London in the late 70s / early 80s. Took no notice at the time, of course. Really must get my time machine up and running and stash one in a barn somewhere.
There is a Saab 95 five blocks down from where I live. I have aged, whereas the Saab 95 looks exactly the same as when first saw it 30 years ago. It moves around, so I know it's a daily driver unlike the passel of Citroens two blocks to the north of me.
What a beautiful example, just love it. Saab really had a unique style of their own.
I had a 1971 Saab 96 v4 four stroke, Definitely a car away ahead of its time. Saab 96 & the 95 had a free wheeling hub in the gearbox, when your Cortina's & Escorts were doing around 24, 26, Mpg, the Saab 96 was doing 33 Mpg with no problem, The teardrop shell had no wind resistance at all, I mean you could save a serious amount of fuel using the free wheeling hub, it was a really good driving comfortable car. If you were at the top of Glenshane pass N.I ( 1000 ft up), & going down hill to Maghera, you could end up covering alot of ground & save alot of fuel. The build quality of this car was excellent & reliable indeed, & gave very little bother at all. Here we are on about saving the Environment & all that, You look at all these Expensive Electric vehicles with all the precious metals they need to work & so on, Batteries that last 8 to 10 years, then they're done because of no range, 99% of lithium ion batteries are nonrecycleable. Nobody uses a free wheeling hub at all now, it's made from Iron ore, Costs nothing, cheap, & free, & saves alot of emissions, pollution, & fuel, if used by a responsible driver. A really great car.
What a beautiful design! The Saab 96 is one of my favorite cars of all time.
I had one in the 80’s, a round headlight one from 1968. I replaced the engine with one from a Ford 17m, 1.7 litre with 90hp, it was suddenly a rather quick car as it was relatively light.
The free wheel was primarily for driving on ice (no engine breaking), on the bright orange 95 estate I owned there was also a thermostatically controlled heated drivers seat that became apparent one cold winters morning, fabulous car.
Indeed, the 95 and 96 had an automatically controlled heated seat for at least the driver. Saab considered that a safety feature.
i own one and i am 21 yearsold. mine had been standing for 25 years. i also live in the netherlands!
I remember seeing 96's on the UK streets and also in rallying and touring cars/rally cross
I loved the free weel, especially when I traveled in Norway. I could role downhill for miles without using the engine. You had to be careful though, and be prepared with the breaks.
My parents bought a new 95 (stationwagon) in 1968.
I took over it in 1984, when i got my license. Trashed the original engine. Then dad and me put in a new one.
It was sold to a guy from a SAAB-club.
I remember it as an excellent wintercar in snow.
Now i have a 1969 Alfa Romeo 1300 gt-junior in the main garage, but i would love to have one of those in the sidegarage again.
I visited the factory in Arlöv around the time this was built. If you get close you will notice that all the gaps in the body are quite big. At the station where the trunk lid/boot cover was fitted they had a huge log and I got to see it in action. If it wouldn't close they opened the trunk and placed the log across it. They then slammed the cover into the log until the gap looked good. I thought this was a quirky SAAB thing at the time but if you start to look at hoods (bonnets) from different old cars you can often see a dent on both sides in the hood frame. I restored a 1968 Buick in the nineties and had to replace the hood. The old one had dents and the replacement was nowhere near. So i went out and picked up a log. When I was done the new hood fit like a glove and had dents on the inside just like the old one and that was thanks to visiting the SAAB factory over twenty years earlier.
Wow, what a fabulous car and that colour, plus column shift, that just makes it perfect!
It's amazing that Saab was allowed to die, always wonderful cars for me.
I've been fascinated by these earlier Saabs since I was a teenager. The last few 1980 models in Aquamarine Blue with Minilite rims were especially gorgeous.
My father had one of these. Still remember the sound of the engine. He loved that car, but the rust took it.
Spent the first 10 years of my life being ferried around in one of these (blue M-Reg).
Our had light brown seats in a kind of suede style. Possibly also edging in fake leather stuff. The thing I remember about the seats is they absolutely stank. Not sure why but it was a musty chemical type smell which I’ve only ever experienced with aged foam furniture innards.
Being a kid I spent my life in the back. No rear doors was probably good from a child safety point of view but not good when said child is about to vomit from the bouncy ride and said smell. Sometimes I was ejected in time, sometimes I wasn’t (and thus contributed to the seat smell). On at least one occasion I can remember I managed to vomit out of the rear window gap (quite an achievement considering how little the windows open).
My Dad always carried a large container of water behind the rear passenger seat. I always wondered what this was for until a hot day in London when the car overheated on Waterloo bridge.
The car seemed impossibly slow as a passenger. Uphill runs with 2 adults and 2 kids seem to impossibly tax it. The sound of the change down, pause and then the time it took to ‘catch’ is drilled into my mind.
I don’t recall the front seatbelts being in the style in the video. But it’s a long time ago. We had none in the back.
What we did have was an AM radio + a speaker in the rear. This seemed like real luxury until I rode in my cousins early 80’s Granada that had a STEREO cassette with FM!
In 1988 the Saab was sold to a local bloke to be his daughters first car. Saw it around town for years after. However neither my sister or I missed it. My Dad got an XR3i (was supposed to have been a 5 door Orion) and this seemed impossibly modern and comfortable. It would also do 100 down the A3. We never gave the Saab a second thought.
So mixed emotions seeing this video. As a kid I hated being in it and was glad to see the back of it. But I can appreciate the engineering.
My first car after I got the drivers licence in the mid-eighties was the 96. The free wheel was fun for about 5 minutes, then I turned it of and never engaged it again. I remember the pedal settup was a bit narrow and a bit off to the side. But still a lovely car!
My family had one of those when I was born, even the colour is spot on (beautiful green) - thank you! 😍👍👍
Loving the wooden planks underneath the boot carpet. The 96 was adjudged to be about the safest car on the road when it was introduced to Britain. They were never outstandingly beautiful, but they have a habit of growing on you. Very comfortable to travel in too. Thanks Ian. 🙂👍
What a beauty! Love Saabs as like Citroen they took their own route in design and for me the quirkier the better. Looks a great little car to drive.
1970s/80s childhood memories galore. Summer holidays driving from Yorkshire to the south of France, first a white K reg (I was too young to remember the reg and I can't find a photo) then yellow MUB602L, then orange 95 estate (seats in the boot, so cool...) HLA219N. Dad died earlier this year but these things were always his favourites, even when later in life he got into a W124/W201 Merc phase. So many memories. Thanks Ian.
What a stunning example of this Saab model. I always wanted a Saab but never had the readies!
I've owned 3 of these all in disgracefully 70's colours, love them. I used to park them back to back as its rear is pure art! The Ford engine hits peak torque low down in revs making it a great drive and a thing of beauty. Ashtrays on the door are classy too! I bid up to 16K on a recent auction for a restomod one in black with lowered roof and 9.3 engine, very sexy, shame they put 9.3 dash in, it sold for over 30k I think.
My last one was a 1977 model! Rubber bumpers. Think they stopped production in 76, it had wipers on lights. Cost £400. I stupidly seized engine and swapped it with my older model, which I bought for £150. Amazing cars, utterly stunning looks.
Surprisingly they build the 96 for 20 years. 1960 to 1980.
@@marcelromijn2227 Good grief! I didn't realise. Thanks. Thinking about it 76 77 was wrong for me to say anyway. I shouldn't post facts on youtube they are invariably wrong 😀
Aww - these were such a big part of my childhood! My grandma had one 1976 V4 in Orchid White (a light pinkish colour) and my dad had a 1973 in some beige/brown colour that we used to call "meatball sause"-brown (can't remember what the colour's real name was). This was in the mid-80s. WIn the summer, we used to go to a small lake in the forest to swim and I remember the car filling up with dust from the gravel road, because the rear wings were rusted through, to the rear seat... The car tested is in the colour Verona green and it is likely I have seen it at the Saab festival at the Saab Museum, since I use to go there each year they arrange the festival (only one hour away from were I live!) - an overdose of good old Saabs!
I had a 96 in 1977 which I loved. I called the colour Sahara Gold but it was more a diarrhoea yellow. It had the free wheel which I tried for a month or two but turned it back to fixed from the safety point of view ( I ended up coasting downhill on the brakes which if they failed I would have nothing to slow or stop me).
The ignition key was situated on the steering column which engaged only in reverse. I remember this because soon after I bought it I went to fill her up at a petrol station and couldn't get the key out to unlock the petrol cap. Eventually some kind older more knowledgeable guy told me it was a Saab thing and to put the gear into reverse. This was true of the 99 and 900s whose key was on the floor between the front seats near the floor based gear change.
Another feature which was far ahead of its time was the back seats would fold flat and you could load long items or even sleep in the back.
It was very reliable until I sold it to my brother when the clunk on disengaging the clutch revealed a worn UJ which broke as he was about to take off into traffic.
Man oh man does this bring back memories. I can smell all the vinyl! The sounds!! Man oh man so many memories.
I love these cars. My father bought a red ca 1958 model when I was a kid, and that was our first car. in our family. - Remember we drove all across Norway from southwestcoast where I live to far north, in Northern Norway where we visit my mothers family. - The Saab took us 3000 km each way without any problem at all. - Ohhh - I miss this car and the attitude it have. - Peace and Love from Norway : )
I could listen to that door opening and closing all day (:
Remember those type of belts being fitted to the Early VW Passat back in the day.
How sad that SAAB is no longer with us!
Pure beauty. Would not ever change this princess for any of modern designs.
The car I came home from hospital in after being born.
Dad was always a big SAAB fan 96 s, 95 s and 99, but he would always talk about how brilliant the 2stroke was and also how one day he would get a Sonnet ❤
Over the years I have owned two SAAB 96 and one SAAB 95. I loved them all. My 95 had 7 seats 👍it was perfect when we wanted to party in the town 30km away. My friends loved this car too.
I had a SAAB 96 V4, in this colour "Verona Green" I lived in Hampshire and drove up to Wimbledon to collect it, in 1972. Kept her for 5 years, mechanically engine and gearbox was perfect.
In that time I only changed the front wings, 15 pounds each ! I electro-zinc plated them both, to stop the rust caused by salt on the roads.
I did use the free-wheel system most of the time, to save wear and tear on the clutch, but I went thru more brake pads. Thankyou for the memory's
I've always loved the shape of these. Truly worth waiting for. Thanks Ian!
In 1980 my first job was with the Warwickshire Archaeology Service. My colleague had an estate version and we were driving to our outpost in Alcester on the back road from Warwick. It was a frosty old day and he was extolling the handling characteristics of said Saab when we slid off to the nearside, got caught in a rut and, not so gently, came to a stop at a railway bridge. The old Roman pottery in the back survived. No mobiles back then so a walk back to the nearest house to borrow their telephone, always in the entrance hall on a special telephone table.
My mate had one of these and he used to drive it like a maniac. I loved it.
That’s a genuinely interesting car - as were all SAABs up until the early 90s.
Superb! My dad had a 95 in the same colour! I really liked that car and remember being fascinated by it under the bonnet. It felt so much better made than any Ford or BL product of the era, and more refined on the road. It was also fantastic in the winter, not surprising really! Wish I could find one now in that condition!
one of my primary school teachers, had one of these. Believe it or not she still drives around in one, to this very day. I don't think its the one she owned back in the 90s though, unless its had a body restore and respray. Hers was a sort of dark bluey green, the one she is driving around now is beige. We all knew back in the 90s it was her, as she was the only one to be driving one, because they were very rare sights. How i knew she owns a beige one now, is that she drove past me a few years ago. It says something for saab, if someone is running around in one, that is close to 50 years old, as a daily. That's shows you how great these are!
Thanks for the great video about this great car. Please, let me correct one thing on Erik Carlsson: His nickname was "Carlsson on the roof", not "Erik" as you mentioned in 11:40. Which of course is a reference to Swedish child's books author Astrid Lindgen's character "Karlsson on the roof".
Ah yes. Thanks for the correction.
There is no other job i want to do in my life except yours. Love these videos Ian. What a cool feature on one of my favourite cars. Keep them coming.
Wonderful episode Hub Nut. Makes me proud to still drive a Saab. Superb condition as well. Cheers from across the pond!
I have owned one of these. A 1968 first year with v4 and last model with round lights. And I absolutely loved it
Thank you for your in-depth explanation. It’s professionally written and very informative. You spent a lot of time on this, I deeply appreciate it.
So Hubnut. Thank you Ian for highlighting all the little quirks and Saabisms on these curious little cars. They've always been intriguing.. you can just tell from the outside they have done things a little differently and youve done a wonderful job highlighting where and why .. for someone that has never come into contact with one of these it was a real pleasure.
Gorgeous car, gorgeous colour and another great video. Thanks both
I love these cars, growing up a friends parents had a 2 stroke one and a V4 one, must be an early love of Swedish cars as I loved the 240s at that age too, great video as always
I adore a 96 - My uncle had a peculiar habit of buying ex-rally cars for street use... He gave his rally prepared Singer Chamois to my grandad and got a VERY raucous 96. With it's full stainless steel exhaust it made a proper racket in 1978...
He eventually sold it and got a beautiful mid-green 99 Turbo. A car I would kill for nowadays.
I knew someone that had one in Yellow with the Ford V4 back in the 90's. It had such a distinct sound. Almost sounds the same as a flat 4.
Very solidly built car,great in the snow & once drove with 4 adults & 2 kids to South Wales from Holmfirth.
I used to have a Saab 96 and loved it. It was fun to drive and great in the snow of western NY. Wish I still had it!
I remember them whilst growing up. I think they were fairly common at one point in the UK. I remember that V4 burble. Interesting cars. I do hope Saab can make a return.
Thanks Hubnut. These never much made it to Australia, so it's good to know a bit more about them.
What a beautiful example. Full credit to the owner. Never really knew much about these although I always knew they were something special. I would LOVE to turn up to a car show in this. 😍
Fantastic cars, I once looked after a very late 96 with the big black bumpers for a customer. It was a very pleasant if relaxed drive, it went well with his 200cc Aerial Arrow.
Beautiful car. Amazing side window mechanism and lovely slim steering wheel. Great video Ian.
YES! I've owned countless 96 & 95s. Where they really shine is in the snow. That one is DREAMY looking!!!
A nice, sympathetic review. They are well-engineered and fun to drive-a great combination.
You know, there is a reason that style of belt went out of fashion... friend had one of those back in the day, it was a hoot!
Saab was murdered by GM, as they have done to so many companies that did nothing wrong, but be owned by GM...
SAAB committed suicide!
They thought of themselves as a top-tier sporty luxury vehicle manufacturer when in reality they were competitors to the top-of-the-range Vauxhall Ford and Renault and Japanese vehicles.
They were never consistently profitable and could never afford the R&D needed to produce a full range of competitive models.
Most of the most successful luxury vehicle manufacturers are divisions of mass-market producers.
GM gave them access to a vast array of components and systems available at a substantially lower cost.
If SAAB had followed VW's example and used shared components where nobody noticed and used unique styling to differentiate it from Opel/Vauxhall models they were based like the different VW divisions use shared components to reduce cost.
They probably would have survived but hubris did them in.
Looks like GM may do it to themselves in the next couple of years, with the decisions the company is making at the moment. Its good to see the CEO is following the great tradition of being a idiot.
@@williamegler8771 You don't know anything about Saab.
Superb little car. Another one I have always liked. Thank you Ian
Excellent video!
Best colour ever!
Hubnuttery at it’s finest 👍
I briefly owned a brown 95 when i was young. The most roly-poly car i've ever owned, by quite a lot. I loved the quirky looks, the sound of it (when my in the long run futile attempts to plaster the hole in the exhaust with Gun Gum for a short time worked), and being a young guy with such an unconventional car. ..but it was a mess, free wheel mechanism including, which led to "interesting" moments when the car would disengage halfway out from a side road, leaving me to frantically having to shift out of gear, and back into gear, hoping it would catch, and bring me forwards.
..but courtesy of of the way my broken brain works, the first thing that hit me when this video started was that my first danish teacher owned a 96 like this one, and that i feel horrible for back then inviting my teacher and her husband to my "konfirmation" as a 14 year old, having not seen her for five years at that time, and almost not speaking to her the whole evening. I do enjoy coming down on myself for previous fuckups or unfortunate moments, and this story actually does make me feel horrible. Anyone have a connection to whomever owns the MIB memory eraser thingie? I'd love to borrow it for a minute or two ;)
Anyways.. Despite unwanted trip down memory lane, i really did enjoy hearing that V4 again. ..and i LOVE the shape of the 96.
Thanks! Great to see a Saab 96. I used to have a red one. The green colour was the best and most resistant against rust. The V4 Ford engine was specially designed for Saab and had unlike the Fords a ballance axel. It also was a very good winter car, because it had a lot of weight on the front axel.
Greetings from Sweden, Gregor
As usual, a very nice peaceful road adventure with a lovely little car! Because you'rea 2 CV driver, you have a very comprehensive nature and love this tiny jewels of the past! Thank you for presenting them to us, to enjoy just a little of their flavour, stories and...sound! I have a 2 stroke Trabant and I now what you're talking about ! 😉
Born October 1973. My first car ride was in one of these a day old. 😃
There's something very Jaguar about those lines front to rear that I've only just spotted. Top vid sir as ever. V4 for the win!!
I had a 1975 model. It had a clock on the Dashboard instead of the “96” badge. It also had heated rear window and head lamp wipers. The gear had to be in reverse to remove the ignition key and so not many SAAB were stolen. Just another innovative SAAB feature. From 1975 (I guess it was) dvmeant that the parking lights had more powerful light an were tuned on automatically when the ignition key was turned on and therefore
From that on every Volvo and SAAB in Scandinavia were fitted with this
And (just forgot) my 1975 SAAB also had heated seat (only for the driver) it turned itself on at 7 degrees celcius. About the free weeling: It was so beloved by the SAAB owners that SAAB tried to put in on the 99 model, too. It was ok with the 1,7 litre engine (1969) but not quite so well with the following 1,85 litre, and was definetly abandoned with the 2 litre. That is what I have been told, but if anybody can clearify please do
Headlamp wipers and automatic controlled heated driver seat came as standard. The clock, heated rear window and reversing lights were optional I think.
I've been waiting a while for you to drive one of these. A 1972 95 wagon/estate is what I learned to drive on and then bought from my parents as my first car. Loved that odd V-4 exhaust burble; that and the 4 speed column brought back many fond memories! It felt solid and secure to drive and it handled everything a New England winter could throw at it... except salted roads.
Our SAAB mechanic recommended avoiding the freewheel on the V4's-- the thought being that it wasn't needed, the transmission was a bit overburdened by the bigger engine anyway, and the shock load through the whole drive train whenever the engine catches up didn't help matters.
That was a lovely example of the breed, thanks for posting!
My dad had a 1959 93 and a green 1968 95. I was a kid but drove the 95 some. It was greeb and with a 3 cyl 2 cycle engine. What wonderful cars! I went on to own many 900s and my wife has a 2007 93 Cambi . Thanks for the look back
Awesome car, awesome video Ian. I have always been curious about these.
😍😍 Love the old quirky Saabs! The green is awesome!
I had a red one in 1978-79 - awsome car.