Saab 9-5

The car I would like to present to you today is the Saab 9-5, an executive car produced by Saab of course, in order to replace the Saab 9000. The first generation of the 9-5 was produced in 1997 (with the Saab 9000 leaving the scene in 1998), but the pictures in this gallery are all of the second generation 9-5, which I personally think is a lot better looking.

The name 9-5 (it is actually pronounced nine-five rather than ninety-five) can be a bit confusing, because Saab had already built a 95 in the past: a seven-seater, two-door station wagon made from 1959 to 1978.

Anyway, the second generation Saab was presented at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 2009, with production starting in June 2010. Although the car itself had been developed under the ownership of GM, it would be the first car to be launched under the ownership of Spyker Cars, the Dutch car make who took over Saab after problems arose within the company.

Alas, Saab's business issues proved to be too much, and production of the Saab 9-5 was ended in March 2011. The Saab 9-5 would become the last produced Saab, ever.

Personally I think that's a real shame: not only were Saabs reliable and good-looking cars, the company also tended to have a real focus on vehicle safety, often exceeding safety norms without needing to. As a result, (most) Saabs were built like tanks... I've always considered the 9-5 as a bit of a tough, even "military" car - if you take a good look at the first picture, I hope you'll see what I'm on about...