Having driven modern Saabs, let me throw this out there... the engine and trans 'puter in these things is smarter than half of the drivers I know, and takes a few hundred miles to learn your driving style. Even our '04 behaves quite differently after a week of my driving vs. my wife's. You didn't say how many miles you …
Front reminded me of an Acura TSX, rear of a Pontiac. Nice enough, but nothing memorable. The auto really killed it. This one won't bring this old Saab enthusiast back to the fold.
Just in time for the X Games, Saab sent us one of their limited edition Turbo X sedans. Decked out in a snazzy all-black paint scheme, the Turbo X also features unique front and rear fascias and a set of very handsome wheels to help differentiate it from its 9-3 siblings.
Saab certainly put effort into making the car look like a performance sedan. So, was its appearance a reflection of its character or just a facade? We were very eager to discover the truth about the latest from Trollhattan.
The spec sheet was certainly promising: Nearly 300 horsepower driving all four wheels gave us visions of a well-built EVO fighter with comfy seats. In practice, however, the Turbo X didn't really impress us dynamically. Blame the automatic transmission, but "quick" wasn't an adjective we'd use to describe the Turbo X. Unfortunately, we wouldn't use the phrases "great handling" or even "fun to drive," either.
At least the interior was pretty darn comfortable. Plush leather seats offered enough support to match the car's grip. The honest-to-goodness carbon fiber interior trimmings had the rare ability to look classy and performance-oriented at the same time. Still, without a bit of performance to back it up, it felt a bit cheesy.
Saab says they'll only build 600 examples of the Turbo X, so if you're a die-hard Saab enthusiast--and you don't mind the performance disappointment--you'd better hustle.
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