There was much sadness when SAAB was declared bankrupt – we have a number of fans of the marque here at ViaRETRO, and while I’m not particularly one of them, I do have a soft spot for the 92/3/5/6 series, as well as the 99 – I remember driving a 99 Turbo back in the early ‘80’s and being thoroughly impressed. Later SAAB’s however have never done it for me – too heavy looking, and I’ve never quite understood the almost cult-like following cars such as the 900 and 9000 attract. Nevertheless, I do get a thrill whenever I see that familiar tear-drop shape at a classic event, and this week’s Prime Find is probably as fine an example of it as you’ll find anywhere.
Starting with the company’s first automobile, the 92 as far back as 1949, SAAB gradually evolved the series over the next 31 years, going from 2-cylinder 2-stroke 754cc and just 25bhp to V4 1498cc and 68bhp power, courtesy of Ford.
Famous for its aircraft, SAAB’s car operation – while having less overlap with the aviation side than the company’s marketing might have you believe – certainly utilised the knowledge base from the aircraft division in developing the advanced aerodynamic shape that became a familiar sight all over Europe and at rallying events in particular – Dave Leadbetter covered this with a Prime Find SAAB 96 rally car a couple of years ago.
The 96 was a success on the roads too, no doubt helped by its motorsport victories – something the company built on with the higher performance Sport and Monte Carlo versions – around the world, gaining a reputation for ruggedness and reliability as well as advanced engineering.
The 96 was the ultimate version of the series, but it too evolved significantly from launch in 1960 until its eventual demise in 1980.
When first introduced in 1960, the 96 sported the same simple – only seven moving parts! – robust 2-stroke engine as the 93, but capacity was soon raised to 841cc and power output up to 42bhp, delivered – as with its predecessors – to the front wheels. The SAAB’s aerodynamic efficiency was way ahead of any of its competitors; it’s drag coefficient was between 0.30 and 0.32, astonishing for the time. By comparison, the technically advanced NSU Ro80 of 1967 had a Cd. Of 0.36, the somewhat less advanced VW Beetle 0.48. This helped to explain the ability of the SAAB to achieve a top speed of 83mph/135kmh with such a small engine.
However, 1967 saw a major leap forward for the 96 as engine capacity almost doubled when the V4 1498cc engine from the Ford Taunus was installed under that high streamlined bonnet. For the next decade, the 96 used this engine, producing 66bhp, to remain competitive – top speed now was over 90mph/145kmh and 0-100kmh was reached in 18.5 seconds, but the company didn’t stop there.
While it was becoming clear that the 96 was showing its age, SAAB wasn’t quite ready to consign it to history yet, and in 1977 – despite Swedish emissions regulations – a couple more bhp was added. In the US, different engines were offered as emission controls there also had an impact, to the point when the 96 was withdrawn from the American market in 1973.
A mechanical quirk that remained constant throughout the SAAB 92-96’s life was the inclusion of a “free wheel”, an eccentric feature that basically enabled coasting and so improving fuel economy, but also necessary for the two-stroke – less so the later four-stroke – engine to lubricate itself. It also made engine braking impossible unless manually disengaged, not a straightforward thing to do.
Throughout its 20-year lifespan, nothing else looked or drove like a SAAB 96, although it did have rivals in the small/medium sector. In the early ‘60’s, these might have included equally idiosyncratic cars such as the Auto Union 1000 and Renault Dauphine (the former also with a 2-stroke engine), the VW Beetle, perhaps Ford’s Anglia and later, Escort/Taunus 12, Opel’s Kadett, but by comparison, these were mostly quite conventional cars, and I would argue it’s unlikely that anyone really interested in the SAAB would buy any one of these, though I could of course be wrong (not unusual).
Of course, as the ‘60’s and ‘70’s progressed, despite increases in engine size and improved performance, the 96 began to lose ground compared to say BMC’s many versions of the ADO16 in the ‘60s and particularly the growth of the hatchback market led by the VW Golf in the ‘70s but its unique styling never grew old.
Which would you choose – a SAAB 96, or one of these alternatives?
In April 1968 CAR magazine did a side-by-side test with the Triumph 1300TC – not a car I would have thought of as an alternative to the SAAB – and performed quite creditably, beating the Coventry car for top speed, but a little slower to 60mph, and matching it in most other departments except rear-passenger space, the sloping teardrop body compromising this somewhat compared to the more upright Triumph.
Over the years, numerous detail changes were made externally such as to the bumpers, larger tail lights, longer bonnet and engine bay to accommodate the larger engine, rectangular headlights instead of round ones, but throughout its life, the general shape, superbly aerodynamic from the beginning, was left as it was.
547,221 96’s were built over an almost exactly 20-year period, establishing SAAB as a volume manufacturer and for over a decade the car was sold alongside the 99, which was a very different car for the company, taking it into more conventional and more middle-class executive territory.
So to our Prime Find – on sale with a dealer in Surrey, it’s by some way the most expensive 96 currently for sale in the UK and probably in Europe. It does, however, appear to be an outstanding example, and is described in considerable detail on the dealer’s website; indeed, the dealer lavishes superlatives on this SAAB, claiming it to be in almost concours condition.
First registered in Sweden on January 1st1961, this is a very early 96, and has had just three owners, the first until 2010, when some 25,000 Euros were spent on a full restoration – this at a time when a mint 96 could be bought for well under £10,000…
This is a 2-stroke, 3-cylinder 841cc car, so it won’t win many traffic light grand prix, except perhaps against a Beetle or 2CV. Nevertheless, performance via the three-speed column change is reasonable.
Inside, thanks to its completely flat floor, the SAAB is surprisingly accommodating, and can seat four or even five adults reasonably comfortably, although headroom at the back is limited for taller passengers. Our car has an interior to match its immaculate exterior- door cards, seat trim, headlining all look to be in excellent condition. Indeed, this car is thoughtfully colour co-ordinated both inside and out – subtle green accents abound around the car, giving points of interest to what would otherwise be a potentially dull expanse of mid-beige/sand. For example, the wheels are painted in Bottle Green, subtly yet smartly linking this 96 back to the original 92, which when it was first introduced, came in Bottle Green only, using paint that had become surplus to military requirements. The chromework is claimed to be “faultless”, the wheels “in beautiful condition”, the chrome bumpers “pristine” – you can see the full advert here.
The odometer under the cool strip-line speedo reads only 8,209km, almost certainly on its second time around, though this is not confirmed in the advert. This would still be a negligible total for a car as rugged as the 96 – 108,000km over 60 years would be just 1,800km per year.
The dealer is asking £19,995 for this SAAB 96 – a high price for any 96, but if it lives up to the description, this is a car that will give its next owner years of pleasure both to drive and to show and should need only routine maintenance to keep it in its current excellent order. There are a decent number of this enduringly popular car in the UK still, 355 on the road, another 158 SORN, of which 120 are of the same 2-stroke variety as our Prime Find but I doubt that many are in this condition.
As usual, we have borrowed a few of the (many) photos of the car from the dealer website, and also as usual, regardless of the claims made for this 96, we recommend arranging an inspection prior to purchase.
With our Saturday instalment of Prime Find of the Week, we’re offering our services to the classic car community, by passing on our favourite classic car for sale from the week that passed. This top-tip might help a first-time-buyer to own his first classic, or it could even be the perfect motivation for a multiple-classic-car-owner to expand his garage with something different. We’ll let us inspire by anything from a cheap project to a stunning concours exotic, and hope that you will do the same.
Just remember – Any Classic is Better than No Classic! We obviously invite our readers to help prospective buyers with your views and maybe even experiences of any given model we feature. Further to that, if you stumble across a classic which you feel we ought to feature as Prime Find of the Week, then please send us a link to primefindoftheweek@viaretro.co.uk