Now
that Saab has established itself as a slightly funky yuppie alternative
to the BMWs, Mercedes, and Audis of the world, with a line of powerful
and expensive sports sedans and even (egads!) a rebadged Chevrolet SUV,
it's easy to forget just how bizarre and counter-culture Saabs once
were.
Back in the 1960s, when huge, rear-wheel-drive
American cars ruled with their blunt-object V-8s, Saab was serving its
miniscule cult of fans with tiny front-wheel-drive cars powered by
two-stroke engines (envision the smoky, ZING-ZING-ZING engine in your
weed whacker). Even once Saab decided to go conventional, the company
replaced the two-stroke with a V-4--a design so odd that virtually no
other semi-modern manufacturer has dared to use it.
In
those days, nobody could have accused Saab of having a performance
image; speed was virtually the last thing anybody could have associated
with a Saab, the swoopy but strange Sonnett (no doubt a future object
of Car Lust) notwithstanding.
Everything changed for Saab with the 99--the car that launched the company into its own modern era.
With
the 99, Saab paved the road for its breakthrough 900--the 99 had the
same bulletproof turbo-ready four-cylinder engine, the same practical
sedan shape, the same outrageously hunchbacked profile. All of these
things married Saab's legendary quirkiness with a genuinely useful and
fun car.
The
Saab 99 was significant for more than serving as a progenitor for the
900; it was a performance car in its own right, with a sterling rally
record that catapulted Saab into the consciousness of motorsports fans
across the world.
I've always had a feverish sickness for
the Saab 900--more on that later--and would dearly love to have a 99 as
well, either in hatchback or EMS sedan trim.
These photos are courtesy of
Saab 99.org--a good source for info on the 99.
- Chris H.
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