RideLust

Taking the top titles at Sunday’s U.S. RallyCross were a Saab and a Ford station wagon.  No, your eyes do not deceive you!

(Photo courtesy of RallyAmerica)

19 year old Finnish driver, Toomas “Topi” Heikkinen, took the honors in the AWD A Main race at the last U.S. RallyCross championship event of the year in Millville, NJ.  Heikkinen piloted an Eklund Motorsport-sponsored 600 hp 2010 Saab 9-3 Aero Sport Sedan to victory over the increasingly European competition, which included the 2009 and 2010 FIA European Rallycross champion, Sverre Isachsen of Norway.

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If you’re truly an enthusiast, there’s no such thing as too much information about your car. Who wouldn’t want to watch the assembly process of their pride and joy, if given the chance? For the hardcore among us, it’s the automotive equivalent of watching your wife give birth, but without all the blood and gore and screaming. Saab, known for their quirky automobiles (Ignition in the center console? Reverse to remove the key? Torque steer as a selling point?) and rabidly loyal fan base, is taking steps to do just that.

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Yes, it's a Saab.

In the ’80s, two of the world’s most wonderfully quirky car companies had a tryst. Saab and Lancia (Fiat) locked eyes across Europe and fell madly in love. Or maybe Lancia had too much brännvin at a bar in Stockholm and took Saab back to its hotel room. Either way, the two swapped engineering expertise and design to create a platform that underpinned hundreds of thousands of European cars. The venture was known as the Type 4 Project and the resulting chassis was used in the Saab 9000, Fiat Croma, Lancia Thema, and Alfa Romeo 164. As part of the deal, Saab got to sell Lancia Deltas in Sweden, rebadged as the Saab 600 (pictured above). Saab designer Björn Envall also worked with legendary Italian automotive designer Giorgetto Giugiaro to pen the Saab 9000. If only the relationship could have extended beyond that one-night stand. Just think of the incredibly awesome and explosively unreliable automobiles we’d have today.

Recently rescued Swedish sensation Saab just keeps struttin’ its stuff. First there’s news that Spyker, the quirky Swede’s savior and parent company, is nabbing leftover engines from BMW to throw in future Saabs. Now photos of the new Cadillac SRX-based Saab 9-4X have seeped out into the Internet. The fanatics over at Saabs United posted the photos a few days ago. The 9-4X was engineered when Saab was owned by GM and is basically a re-bodied SRX. Still, it has Saab style and should be equipped with the company’s potent turbocharged 2.8-liter V6 and AWD. The turbo 2.0-liter inline four may also be an option. The 9-4X is expected to be officially released at the upcomming Los Angeles Auto Show.

Source: Saabs United

Pass the Akvavit…

Saab will be holding a press conference today and it is rumored that the announcement will be fascinating news for both Saab and BMW enthusiasts.

The two manufacturers have reportedly entered into an agreement for BMW to supply a 222 hp engine to Saab for the 2012 Saab 9-3SS.  The engine is still under wraps as it hasn’t yet been utilized in any current BMWs.  Reports have indicated that this new 9-3 is to be available as a sedan, vert, wagon, and hatchback, and that it has been designed under the helm of Saab’s new design director, Jason Castriota, a former Ferrari P4/5 and Maserati Gran Turismo designer.

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CEO, attorney, and automobile designer, Victor Muller has worn several hats throughout his career.  He can add a halo to that list.  Muller, CEO of Saab Spyker Automobiles N.V., has been rightly credited by legions of Saab enthusiasts as the savior of the Swedish marque.

As a former Saab owner who has had a serious RideLust for the Spyker C8 since the day a lucky bazillionaire first drove one into the sunset, for me, Spyker’s acquisition of Saab, back in early 2010, was a striking moment of blissful surprise.  I couldn’t have been more thrilled if I had received a Nobel Prize on my birthday while it rained gold coins and Johnnie Walker Blue.  The Saab enthusiasts I knew were speechless with absolute delight.  After the ups and downs, the near-success of the Koenigsegg purchase of Saab and its devastating conclusion, and the months of worried nail-biting thereafter, the acquisition was truly a dream come true.

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Sometimes when life gets a bit much, the best way to clear your head is to go somewhere far away and drive like hell.  And now that it’s summer, there aren’t any acceptable excuses for staying home.

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It’s Sunday!  Time to relax, grab a beer, work on your car, do anything the hell you want to do because it’s the WEEKEND!  The world is your oyster.

Here are some fun vids perfect for Sunday relaxing.  Sit back, crank up the volume, and enjoy.

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Photo: Dan Strohl / Hemmings Auto Blogs

Love Saabs, and can’t wait until Spyker works their magic with the legendary brand? Longing for a 900 Turbo project car, just like the one you used to drive? We’re here for you, or more specifically Saab of Belgium is here for you. Go to their website, and you can download a paper model of the classic Saab 900 Turbo. Print it on card stock, break out the aquavit, scissors and glue and have at it.

Special thanks to Dan at Hemmings Auto Blogs for finding this. Hell, he even had the patience to build one. I would have, but I’m out of aquavit.

In the beginning, Saabs were sleek, teardrop-shaped machines that sliced through the wind. Behold the SAAB 92001, or Ursaab. It’s the product of postwar aircraft designers, pure form following function. And it’s gorgeous.

The Ursaab was designed in the late ’40s by a team of engineers at aircraft manufacturer SAAB, led by the incredibly named Gunnar Ljungström. The thing had a monocoque chassis, 108-inch wheelbase, and 50-percent less drag than any other car produced at the time. It was powered by a transverse mounted two-stroke engine driving the font wheels. Seems run-of-the mill today, but this was 1946, a time when most cars rode on ladder frames and bullied their way through wind.

The original 92001 clocked 329,000 miles in testing, mostly on rutted forest roads in Sweden. Three years and several prototypes later, the Saab 92 went into production.

Saab savior Spyker says that they want to return to those streamlined roots for the upcoming Saab 9-2 luxury compact. I can’t wait to see what they come up with.

Source: Autoblog