Well, I do miss my 2000 9-3 hatch, but we still have a 97 NG900 to haul with. And I do love the handling on my 2003 Linear with sport launch and touring packages. It is a grown-ups car, but then I'm a year from 40 so what the heck.

The distinction between hatch and wagon is subtle. I never understood why hatches were considered lowbrow and wagons were considered high end. A Golf could be considered a very short wagon for example. And certainly there are a number of hot hatches that don't flex and are pretty safe. When I look at what's out there the thing that strikes me is the angle of the hatch and its relationship to crash protection and rgidity. The 9000, C900, NG 900 and 9-3 all had a very steep hatch. This puts the rear roof edge far from the rear bumper line and makes it pretty hard to design a rigid cage. The NG900 and 9-3 tired to solve this with the huge bar that whent across the back seats, but ultimately that was good for side impacts and not for rigidity in a handling sense. As the hatch becomes more vertical (i.e. becomes more like a wagon), the roof line gets clost to being above the bumper line and it becomes more like a box and is easier to make rigid.

The new 9-2 will be a hatch, but is really a sport-wagon a la the Audi allroad etc. This gives it a fighting chance at being more rigid that the classic Saab designs. Many people consider that the 9-5 wagon handles better than the sedan and I've heard the same for the Bimmer 5 series wagons. So it is possible to make an excellent handling vertical hatch (also called a wagon !). BMW's hatch never got good reviews and it has a steep hatch as well.

posted by 65.93....

• Hatchbacks, Hatchbacks, Hatchbacks..., KeithCT, Sat, 10 May 2003 05:12:14
  • Re: Hatchbacks, Hatchbacks, Hatchbacks..., Marc Fails, Sat, 10 May 2003 18:41:54
    • What's your other car ?, Ravi, Sat, 10 May 2003 19:52:27
      • Re: What's your other car ?, Juan P., Sun, 11 May 2003 06:32:09
        • 384647 km to be precise, Ravi, Sun, 11 May 2003 12:28:24
          • a guy i worked with did Woodstock to Mississauga, Trev, Mon, 12 May 2003 07:46:42
      • 240,000 on a 1997 ??? Did I read that right ???n/m, Trev, Sat, 10 May 2003 19:57:48
  • Re: Myth, myth, & myth....., zeke, Sat, 10 May 2003 12:44:53
  • 9-5 handles better than 9000? NO I don't think so. n/m, saw, Sat, 10 May 2003 10:48:37
    • 9-5 handles better than 9000? Yes it does., Ravi, Sat, 10 May 2003 11:29:30
      • I admit you do have 2 more SAAB driving years than me, saw, Sat, 10 May 2003 12:26:03
        • Ravi is absolutely correct, the 9-5 out handles...., TKC, Sat, 10 May 2003 17:17:57
        • Re: I admit you do have 2 more SAAB driving years than, Ravi, Sat, 10 May 2003 12:32:40
      • In theory, the all-independent of the 9-5 should be..., zeke, Sat, 10 May 2003 11:52:39
        • Re: In theory, the all-independent of the 9-5 should be, Ravi, Sat, 10 May 2003 12:26:35
          • Hrmmmm.., JasonS, Sat, 10 May 2003 15:18:37
            • Re: Hrmmmm.., GM, Sat, 10 May 2003 17:32:00
              • discretion .. the better part, JasonS, Sat, 10 May 2003 18:16:23
          • Re: In theory, the all-independent of the 9-5 should be, GM, Sat, 10 May 2003 12:35:30
  • Saab's hatch had a 'flaw', Ravi, Sat, 10 May 2003 09:46:58 <-- Viewing This Message
  • Re: Hatchbacks, Hatchbacks, Hatchbacks..., DDM, Sat, 10 May 2003 09:41:13

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