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Minnesota SAAB Club Newsletter

January, 2008

 

Happy New Year!  I hope everyone had great Christmas and New Year celebrations.  I'm happy to report that it is a good time to be a SAAB owner!  Do you feel the same?  Get out there and support your local club.  Call up one of your SAAB buddies and go grab a beer.  Have a problem or a project that you've been putting off?  Go ahead and reach out for a little help!  Now's the perfect time to get those projects squared away so that you can drive your favorite SAAB this spring!  The best is yet to come--let's make 2008 the greatest yet! 

 

This month we will be meeting at the Green Mill Restaurant located on the north side of Rosedale shopping center in Roseville.  Due to the increased food and beverage minimum at Major's, combined with fluctuating meeting attendance, we will now be meeting the first Thursday of every month at The Green Mill.  They have always treated us well when we needed a place to meet, and I'm sure that will continue.  They also have a brand new menu that was released December 1st, and have agreed to extend their happy hour specials into the atrium for our benefit.  Happy hour runs from 4-6 and 9-11, and consists of $1 off many drinks, many appetizers for $4.99, and remember that they have pitchers!   

 

Meyer Garage is still in business!  They are using the smaller adjacent race car garage to perform service.  The best way to help is to send your business their way -- if you need some service done, or are looking for a different new or used SAAB, give Marty a call today at 1-888-722-2246. 

 

This month we will be swapping SAAB stories as usual, and will also be discussing how to make our club better!  New ideas for programs anybody?  Ideas for fun club activities?  Let's get some fun new things lined up for 2008!  There will also be a show and tell of what NOT to do to your SAAB, along with a couple of cool SAABs in the parking lot.  Read on to learn the latest in the SAAB world and about the Art In Motion exhibit this summer with Michael Jekot! 

 

Velocity:  The Art of Motion


June 28-August 3, 2008

http://www.hopkinsmn.com/_hca/velocity.html

 

FOR RELEASE: 2007-12-06

2008 Saab 9-3 Sport Sedan, SportCombi and Convertible

Drive Away with 2008 IIHS Top Honors

DETROIT — The Saab 9-3 Sport Sedan, SportCombi and Convertible have earned the 2008 Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s Top Safety Pick Award in the midsize category.

This is the fourth consecutive year that the 9-3 Sport Sedan has brought home IIHS top honors, an unique achievement in the luxury segment. For 2007 the 9-3 earned the Top Safety Pick Award, in 2006 the 9-3 earned the Top Safety Pick – Gold Award and received a Double Best Pick crash-test rating for 2005.

The institute began testing convertibles in 2007. In the inaugural year, the 9-3 Convertible earned a top spot. This is the second year running that the Saab 9-3 Convertible earns the Top Safety Pick Award – one of two convertibles and the only soft-top convertible to earn a top spot.

The Institute rates vehicles good, acceptable, marginal, or poor based on performance in high-speed front and side-impact crash tests plus evaluations of seat/head restraints for protection against neck injuries. Winning vehicles must earn good ratings in all three tests and offer electronic stability control.

“The Saab 9-3 performed well in front and side crash tests and the Saab Active Head Restraints provide state-of-the-art protection against neck injuries,” said IIHS President Adrian Lund. "The addition of electronic stability control as standard equipment confirms Saab’s commitment to vehicle safety.”

IIHS is a nonprofit research and communications organization funded by auto insurers. The Institute's research focuses on countermeasures aimed at all three factors in motor vehicle crashes (human, vehicular, and environmental) and on interventions that can occur before, during, and after crashes to reduce losses.

Saab is a division of General Motors Corp. Saab Automobile USA is the importer and/or distributor of Saab 9-3, 9-5 and 9-7X automobiles for Saab Automobile AB, Sweden. For the 2008 model year, Saab makes XM Satellite Radio and OnStar standard on its entire line-up. Additionally, all new Saabs have no-charge scheduled maintenance, and the Saab 100,000-mile Powertrain Limited Warranty. Visit www.saabusa.com for more information.

# # #

http://media.saab.com
Saab 9-3 Range Accolades

 


Transitioning Saab Sees Little Chance of Near-Term Sales Gain – WardsAuto.Com
By Herb Shuldiner, Dec 5, 2007

BOSTON – With demand dipping because the brand is in a transition period, Saab Automobile U.S.A. sales will finish the year shy of 35,000 units, General Manager Steve Shannon says.

Retail deliveries will be down about 5%, Shannon says. But fleet sales will near 1,500 units, buoying the total volume close to 35,000 vehicles. Saab sold 36,349 cars and trucks in the U.S. in 2006.

Shannon says GM expects Saab to be adversely affected by “industry headwinds in  2008.” Industry sales will run below trend next year, somewhere in the range of 16 million units, he says, forecasting Saab sales will do no better than equal this year’s volume.

The General Motors Corp. brand currently has only three models in its portfolio, the 9-3, 9-5 and 9-7X.

The new 9-3 launched in mid-October, too late to significantly boost volume for the year, says Shannon, on hand here for the New England International Auto Show.

“We still don’t have the number on the ground we’d like,” he says.

Also, ’07 models sold down in a very orderly way – too orderly for some dealers in the Northeast who ran out of inventory too early, he says. The few remaining ’07s carry $4,000-$5,000 incentives.

Starting price for the ’08 9-3 sport sedan with a 210-hp engine and 6-speed manual transmission is $28,385, including destination charge. The no-cost maintenance policy for three years is proving to be a big attraction for buyers, Saab says.

There are 240 Saab dealers, a number that doesn’t seem excessive to Shannon. About 80 dealers are exclusive. The remainder is split equally, half dualing with other GM brands and half with other European marques.

All-wheel-drive 9-3 models don’t arrive in the U.S. until second-half – bad news in the Northeast, Saab’s biggest market and where AWD is a favored option.

The AWD system is sourced from Haldex AB and offers pre-emptive engagement of the rear wheels to optimize traction. It also includes an active limited-slip rear differential that allows variable torque transfer between the rear wheels.

The 9-3 accounts for 70% of Saab’s demand, and Shannon expects that ratio to continue.

Showroom traffic should increase when the Turbo X goes on sale in early April, he says, although the car, which made its North American debut at the Boston show, is a limited-volume model. Saab will build only 2,000 units, with just 600 allocated to the U.S.

Some dealers already have taken deposits on the Turbo X but officially aren’t allowed to place those orders with the factory in Trollhattan, Sweden, until mid-December. The car will be available as a 4-door sport sedan or 5-door SportCombi model. Shannon forecasts the average transaction price will be about $45,000.

Shannon doesn’t foresee the brand’s product portfolio expanding dramatically near term. However, he says there will be two additional models coming – a small car and cross/utility vehicle.

The CUV is expected be built in North America and hit the market within two or three years. Shannon declines to say what platform will be used. Press reports indicate Saab’s CUV, likely to be called the 9-4, will share the same Theta Epsilon platform that underpins the new Saturn Vue and will spawn an upcoming CUV from Cadillac. The Cadillac model, to be called the BRX, reportedly is targeted to replace the Cadillac SRX in 2009.

The CUV likely will replace the Chevrolet TrailBlazer-based 9-7X SUV in the Saab portfolio.

The small car will come later and be positioned below the 9-3 in both size and price. “It’s something that will be very highly styled,” Shannon says. “It could be the most expressive Saab in a sporty vein, but functional.”

Saab’s U.S. chief says the small car probably will be built in Trollhattan, but he doesn’t confirm reports the model will launch in the 2008-2009 timeframe or that it will be based on GM’s Compact Vehicle (Delta) Architecture that underpins the Opel Astra.

Despite the high value of the Swedish crown, Shannon says Saab still could make a profit on the car here in the U.S.

That 4-model core portfolio will be adequate to take Saab into the next decade, Shannon says.

 

 Historic SAAB Wins at Elkhart Lake Vintage Rally!


After a scramble to locate a last-minute replacement for the ailing Jon
Davis, Marty Adams filled in as driver. Marty is a Saab dealer in Iowa
(Meyer Garage and Iowa City Saab) and is quite familiar with Tom Donney's
SAAB 92.

I drove the car for a few laps at Road America. While the Corvettes and
Porsches were loafing around the track, it was all I could do to push the
25 HP SAAB 92 up the famous hills at RA. The speedometer read just over 100
on the downhill slope between turns 2 and 5. (Speedometer was in KPH, of
course.)

We had some trouble keeping up the speeds on the uphills and the twisties
in the Kettle Morain area, but managed a good enough score to win the
Vintage Trophy.

Will write more and post some photos later.

Thanks to Trio Motors in Flint, Michigan; Marty Adams for filling in on
short notice; and especially to Tom Donney for allowing us to flog the
oldest SAAB in America!

And thanks to the spirit of Larry Williams for riding with us all weekend
and urging us on.

Tim Winker, publisher

VintageRally.net
The Source for Vintage and Historic Rally Information


http://vintagerally.net
A rare 1950 SAAB 92 is set to compete in a renactment rally in Elkhart
Lake, Wisconsin, home of Road America Raceway. The driver/navigator team
is
nearly as historic as the car. Jon Davis of Houghton, Michigan, will be
behind the wheel, while Tim Winker of Twig, Minnesota, will try to keep
the
team on time. The 2007 Elkhart Lake Historic Rallye celebrates the 55th
anniversary of the SCCA sponsored Monte Carlo style rallies held in
conjunction with open road sports car races during 1951 and 1952. The
rally
will be held on October 5 and 6, 2007, and includes a tour of the
original
Elkhart Lake race course that used public roads.
 
1950 was the first year that SAAB produced cars, and this is the earliest

92 known in the U.S, the 218th of only 1246 Saabs to roll off the
production line in Trollhattan that year. SAAB did not begin importing
cars
to the U.S. until the introduction of the model 93 in 1956. This 92 was
imported to the U.S. by a private owner. When it was purchased by Saab
enthusiast Larry Williams of Waterloo, Iowa, it bore a small dash plaque
from the 1952 Elkhart Lake Rallye.
 
Williams found the rusty 92 at Trio Motors in Flint, Michigan, where it
had
been sitting for over 25 years. He acquired it in 1991 and dragged it
home.
He was able to get the car's 750cc, two-cylinder engine unstuck and even
running, then went on to hand fabricate many floor and body pieces that
had
rusted out. The car had been repainted grey at some time in its life, and

much of that was flaking off. Williams was able to get down to the
original
green paint on much of the car, but bare metal was sprayed with black
primer. That is how the body still appears today.
 
Once it was safe to drive on the street, he drove it to a Saab Owners
Convention in Wisconsin, a 500 mile round trip. In a true test of faith
in
the 92, Williams ran it around the autocross course at the convention.
 
After Williams passed away in 1998, the SAAB 92 went to Tom Donney,
another
Iowa Saab collector. He, too, has driven the 92 to Saab events, including

Saab Owners Conventions in Hilton Head, SC (1998) and Troy, Michigan
(2007). On a recent trip to Sweden, Donney acquired many parts to do a
restoration of the 92, and intends to bring the car closer to original
condition over the next few years.
 
= = = = =
JON DAVIS - Former SCCA ProRally Champion Jon Davis ran his first rally
in
1959 in a Triumph TR3. He later switched to the more robust SAABs and
took
many trophies in both two-stroke and V4 SAAB 96s. When SCCA instituted
the
ProRally Championship in the 1970s, Davis was one of the first to get
involved. He ran a very competitive Saab 99 for many years, but the car
suffered regular engine problems due to aftermarket parts. Davis was one
of
the first to compete in the Production Class, driving a Saab 99, and
captured the National Championship in 1980 and 1981, with Harry Ward as
his
co-driver.
 
TIM WINKER - Tim Winker's rally career began when he was a student at the

University of Minnesota in 1969. He competed locally for many years, and
occasionally ventured across the country for a National Rally. Over the
years he has also raced cars on the ice and road race courses, driven and

co-driven on stage rallies, and navigated on several prestigious
endurance
rallies such as One Lap of America, Alcan 5000 and Targa Newfoundland.
Winker was also part of a Saab factory organized team of journalists that

drove a Saab 900 to a world speed record at Talladega International
Speedway in 1996, and set the fastest lap during his stint at the wheel.
Tim Winker
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Vintage Ice And Gravel Rally Racing Association
[ V. I. A. G. R. R. A. ]