All-New 2004 Saab 9-3 Convertible

[kazi]

SAAB Debuts All-New 2004 9-3 Convertible Norcross, GA - Originally inspired by the U.S. market and launched in 1986, the popular Saab Convertible has proven to be a cornerstone in Saab's vehicle portfolio. The all-new 2004 Saab 9-3 Convertible is poised to reaffirm Saab as a market leader in the art of building open cars with rugged four-season, four-seater practicality. Accounting for almost one in three of all convertibles sold in Europe's premium segment last year, and one in five Saabs sold in the U.S., the Saab Convertible has become a modern classic. Revealing the new car at the Geneva Motor Show, Peter Augustsson, Saab Automobile's President and CEO said, "In many ways, our Convertible's appeal goes right to the heart of the Saab brand. It expresses our brand pillars - design, performance, control, safety and versatility - in a focused package. It is a sporty, yet surprisingly practical car." The new 9-3 Convertible is, without doubt, the biggest advance Saab has made in nearly 20 years of designing four-seater, four-season soft tops and is poised to re-affirm Saab's leading role in the premium convertible segment. The all-new Saab 9-3 Convertible's innovative features develop the Saab concept that an open-top car should be "more than a convertible." In addition to its functional qualities, the new Swedish soft-top offers a greatly improved driving experience through incorporating the widely-acclaimed chassis dynamics of the new Saab 9-3 Sport Sedan. By combining its sporty and practical characteristics, it symbolizes the core appeal of the Saab brand. Saab engineers developed the architecture for the 9-3 Convertible and Sport Sedan in parallel and were able to incorporate their demanding requirements for an open-top car from the very start. The result is a premium convertible with a level of structural integrity, build quality and running refinement that positions it at the top of its class. Key to its enhanced abilities is a rigid body structure - almost three times stiffer than that of its predecessor - and an all-new suspension layout. These are the solid foundations on which Saab test engineers have developed the chassis poise, refinement and impressively low levels of noise, vibration and harshness that distinguish a premium-class, open-top car. The new Convertible includes a supplementary "ring of steel" reinforcement linking the front, rear and side structures, helping to compensate for the loss of structural rigidity due to the absence of a roof and also improving ride refinement, handling and crash-impact resistance. Compared to its predecessor, the new car gains 2.0 inches (51 mm) in overall width and 2.8 inches (71 mm) in wheelbase. Despite reduced front and rear overhangs, the overall length of 182.5 inches remains the same as the previous model. The all-aluminum, four-cylinder 2.0-liter engine, configured for 175- or 210-hp, is 33 pounds lighter than its predecessor and is smoother, quieter and more compact. It has a four-valve cylinder head, maintenance-free chain-driven camshafts, counter-rotating balancer shafts, a dual-mass flywheel and an integrated oil cooler. Two manual transmissions are available, depending on the engine. A five-speed manual is standard with the 175-hp 2.0t engine. A new, compact 6-speed manual gearbox, capable of handling exceptionally high torque loadings, is standard equipment on the 210-hp 2.0T variants. A new "smart" five-speed automatic transmission is optional, including Saab Sentronic, a sequential manual gear shift, adaptive to both the driver and road conditions and programmed to fully exploit Saab turbo power characteristics. Crash impact resistance benefits from a series of new structural and occupant protection measures. Safety features for front seats include new seatbelts integrated into the seat frames, adaptive dual front airbags, two-stage side-impact airbags designed to offer protection for both the torso and the head, and Saab Active Head Restraints (SAHR), proven to be effective in helping to prevent neck injury during rear-end collisions. Although rollovers are comparatively rare events, the consequences are quite serious and Saab has installed an active protection system in the new 9-3 Convertible. Its DynaCage concept combines pop-up rear roll bars, front seatbelt pre-tensioning and substantial reinforcement of the A-pillars to help provide an integrated protection system. The "one-touch" soft-top operation requires no manual involvement beyond pressing a button. The roof is hydraulically-powered, with automatic self-latching to the header rail, and deploys fully in just 20 seconds while the engine is running. This is partly achieved by the Convertible's tonneau, which has a unique two-step cycle, being completely raised horizontally and then moved rearwards, parallel to the top of the trunk. Another innovation is a more practical feature: raising the roof automatically raises the capacity of the trunk. The CargoSET (Self-Expanding Trunk) directly links the soft-top's rearmost hinge mechanism to the flexible, "accordion" storage well in the trunk. When the roof is in position, the well is fully retracted, releasing useful storage space. The new Saab 9-3 Convertible will be built in a dedicated new production facility at Magna Steyr Fahrzeugtechnik, near Graz, Austria, and will reach the US market in the fall of 2003 as a 2004 model. http://media.gm.com/news/releases/030304_saab.html Pretty damn nice, IMO.

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[Adröck]

Now THAT'S one bad ass rear wing!

That is a really sweet lookin ride....though I'm not a huge fan of coupe convertibles. It would look sweet as a coupe with a low profile, smooth roofline like that Audi concept!

[yianni64]

It's nice for its market I guess. Not for me. Much rather have something along the lines of a S2000 if I had to wona drop top.

[ur31337]

Wow, that looks amazing

Good work Saab

[boilers]

I really dig Saab's new styling Saw a 9-3 on the road yesterday, looks really good.

[rb6teg]

[kazi]

Originally posted by Adröck
Now THAT'S one bad ass rear wing!

Not a wing. Its the boot for the roof.

[Adröck]

Originally posted by kazi
Not a wing. Its the boot for the roof.

really? I HAD NO IDEA!!!

[98CoupeV6]

That is absolutely BEAUTIFUL. Not my thing though, but damn it is pretty.

[iDs]

wow...i take it in black...

[LuckyDog]

I think it looks great... but I think it would look even better with the Sedan's trunk... I'm not diggin' those taillights.

[Samson]

what do saabs drive like? Like, what are they good at?

[rick]

Originally posted by Adröck


Now THAT'S one bad ass rear wing!

That is a really sweet lookin ride....though I'm not a huge fan of coupe convertibles. It would look sweet as a coupe with a low profile, smooth roofline like that Audi concept!

hahahaahahah you have me do a double take with that

[rick]

Originally posted by Samson
what do saabs drive like? Like, what are they good at?

IMHO, the standard saabs are too damn soft.

take a corner with just a little bit of speed and you are punished with incredible amounts of body roll and understeer.

I haven't had a chace to drive the "performance" models or any of the newer one yet.

This was about 2 years ago.

[99AccordCoupe]

what do saabs drive like? Like, what are they good at?

The drive like the understeering pigs they are. They're good for nothing, only for going back to dealer for service. Of course that was awhile back ago. I hope they've changed over the years since GM now owns them.

[jeffphx]

I'm not a big Saab fan, but very nice. I am getting more impressed with Saabs. How is their reliability? The dashboard has enough buttons to confuse me for months though, I guess I'm just used to H/A and their easy to understand controls.

[98CoupeV6]

Originally posted by jeffphx
I'm not a big Saab fan, but very nice. I am getting more impressed with Saabs. How is their reliability? The dashboard has enough buttons to confuse me for months though, I guess I'm just used to H/A and their easy to understand controls.

Saabs, at least recent ones, are pretty damn reliable. I don't have a JD Powers surve, but I know they're up there.

The buttons take getting used to. While driving the Benz C230 and sitting in the other Benzes in the showroom, it occured to me how easy Honda's are to operate and how every little control is so user friendly. In a Mercedes, this is not always the case - door handles are too small, cupholders suck, etc etc.

[iDs]

is it me or the ignition key is in the center console under the shift knob? pretty cool looking, probably take awhile to get use to too

[kazi]

Originally posted by iDs

is it me or the ignition key is in the center console under the shift knob? pretty cool looking, probably take awhile to get use to too

It's alway's been a saab thing to have the ignition in the center.

[Samson]

Originally posted by kazi
It's alway's been a saab thing to have the ignition in the center.

i really like that....

One of my teachers lived in Chicago a few yrs ago, where she said it was about -30' and she told us that is why she drives a saab. What does this mean? Are they made for cold weather or something?

[rick]

Originally posted by Samson
i really like that....

One of my teachers lived in Chicago a few yrs ago, where she said it was about -30' and she told us that is why she drives a saab. What does this mean? Are they made for cold weather or something?

why not a volvo?

[DVPGSR]

Damnit now my wife is going to want one of these...after I convinced her to get the Pilot. I better get the Pilot soon

This is an awesome car though...very very nice!

[98CoupeV6]

Originally posted by Samson
i really like that....

One of my teachers lived in Chicago a few yrs ago, where she said it was about -30' and she told us that is why she drives a saab. What does this mean? Are they made for cold weather or something?

Misconception. Probably because they're Swedish. All cars except diesels start fine in cold weather, and most diesels are okay until it gets really really cold.

[MrFatbooty]

That's why diesels have glow plugs.

I'd like to see some pictures of this thing with the top up.

[redgoober4life]

Hopefully they're make just a regular coupe out of it. Argh.