92 PHOTOGRAPH BY JOHN ROE ~ DECEMBER 2019 ~ CAR AND DRIVER
The classic Saab 9 00 wasn’t everything, but it certainly was a lot. Sports car, sports sedan, convert-
ible, hatchback, rally machine, family wagon, and the non-Volvo choice of college professors. What if
Saab hadn’t fallen into a convoluted GM and Spyker bankruptcy rathole back in 2011? What if the
brand were as strong today as it was in the ’80s? Designers from FCA, Ford, and Nissan sketched their
visions of what a Saab 9 00 might look like today. —7\U[=RN_YRf5bZN[- Alfonso Albaisa
Senior Vice President, Global Design,
Nissan Motor Company
“In the mid-to-late ’80s, I went home to visit
my folks and sister in Miami and saw my sister
pull up in her new 900. In a bay of sameness,
her silver-blue hatchback had an undeniably
memorable silhouette. Three months later,
I came back after winter semester, and as I
arrived at the house, my dad gently pulled up
in his Saab 900 convertible.
“As electrification brings more
freedoms, I believe even an all-polycarbonate
Saab e900 would strike a memorable
gesture.” - Brian Nielander
Chief Designer, Performance, Passenger Cars
and Utility Vehicles; FCA North America
“Drawing inspiration from the clean
lines and forms of the Aero X and 9-X
concepts, I imagined a halo car for
Saab in the form of an electric 2+2
coupe.The overall theme incorporates
signature Saab design cues, such
as a unique roof and glass treatment
as well as clean and subtly sculpted
body sides. The detailing is understated
and refined, and it of course wouldn’t
be a Saab without a turbine-inspired
wheel design.”
- Anthony Colard
Exterior Designer, Ford Motor Company
“I tried to capture the recent
design language from Saab
and progress it, keep the
design clean in contrast with
the very busy and overcom-
plicated automotive land-
scape of today. I think that a
coupe-wagon vision would
have been a great high-level
entry for Saab to differenti-
ate itself from competitors,
such as the new Panamera
GTS, for example.”
132What If...
Saab
Were Still
Around?