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Re: Saab Engineering Posted by Justin VanAbrahams [Email] (#32) [Profile/Gallery] (more from Justin VanAbrahams) on Fri, 17 Apr 2009 14:44:41 In Reply to: Saab Engineering, Sarah, Fri, 17 Apr 2009 14:17:44 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
If you are looking for marketing propaganda, I'd look for the "Engineering Features" books published in the '80s about the 900 and 9000 cars. Really good reads. You should be able to find copies on the bay without much work.
Truthfully, though, Saab's "quirky engineering" kinda died back in the '60s. The 99s and later cars were largely conventional automobiles. Sure, they had some unique/odd features like the body structure, backwards-mounted engine, floor-mounted keys, and dual-diagonal braking systems, but I think you'd be hard pressed to classify any of this stuff as "superior engineering." Sure, there were good reasons for all these features, but they aren't inherently better, just different.
IMHO, the real innovation (rather than design difference of opinion) Saab had was turbocharging passenger cars to boost economy and not performance - way ahead of its time. Up til that point and for many years after turbocharging was as much a bandaid for bad engines as "icing on the cake" for performance. Saab really had a different spin on the whole thing, one that only in very recent times has gained industry acceptance.
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