The banner above is an advertisment - if it asks you to download software, please ignore.
Site News - 3/26 M Car Covers (by State of Nine) | 12/12 Make Amazon Pay Saabnet!
Date: Wed, 24 Nov 1999 10:30:06 -0500
From: Angela Archer <archangelnopsam.com>
Subject: Re: Saab losing it's identity ?!


Nicely put... <g> I just want to remind folks that I don't intend the following remarks to be inflammatory. Kindly put away your napalm supply or save it for another occasion. As this news group is a forum of sorts, please note that this is just my humble opinion and two cents' worth. I don't think such a disclaimer would be necessary, but it might be a good idea nevertheless. Having said this, here's the message: I bought a Saab because I wanted a car that reflected my own values as well as my true personality, not what I want others to think they see. Although I believe therein lies the gist of my posting, I wanted to mention that the Saab line to me represents a practical, performing, reliable, and sexy, stylish family of cars. Although I easily had the choice, I didn't _want_ to drive an Audi, Volvo, or BMW. They are, in my opinion, fast becoming the rage of those who feel a need to conform to a kind of vague "in-crowd" and impress, and to do so can't be bothered to do their homework by shopping around. The myth of their superiority is rapidly fading with the growing number of well designed competition from the U.S., Japan, and, of course, the "other" Swedish manufacturer, Saab. This is not to detract from their history of quality or performance, nor do I say that these aren't good cars, but they may not be the _best_ cars for a given individual, based on their real needs, desires, and lifestyles. Also, I enjoy the relative obscurity that makes for a certain mystique about the Saab, something lost on many people it would seem. When I visit a trendy area of this or any other city, it's obvious where the mass appeal lies with upper income earners: just look for anything that isn't an SUV and you'll predictably see the Bimmers, Audis, and Volvos aplenty. On a positive note, however, if a lower mass appeal seems to translate to a lower theft rate, so be it, and so it seems that Saabs are much less often the target of thieves. It is a bit sad, though, that Mr. and Ms. J. Public wind up seeing so many of these same makes of vehicles in films and on television that they would seem to be the standard if you want to create the air of living glamorously. Ironically, some of these same folks can't really afford the price tags, but I guess that's just the nature of the human beast. As an item of trivia, strangely enough, popular comedian Jerry Seinfeld often sported his convertible Saab on his hit N. American sitcom. I was surprised that it wasn't yet another BMW rag top. Maybe he had some sound advice on his choice of vehicles from someone impartial. Of the Saab drivers I know, and from what I've seen in this NG, I am more likely to see enthusiasm, sanity, practicality, understatement, appreciation of quality, safety and design, and a certain amount of eclecticism as being more representative of the Saab driver philosophy. With reliability, safety, an understated elegance, and with power and performance to spare, I'll keep banking on Saab to give me my money's worth... Regards, Michael Gabriel Gavin Haslett wrote: > I really don't think so... Saab has a history even with GM of bucking > the GM trend and not bowing down to what GM management wanted. I heard > recently that GM had asked Saab to build an SUV and the engineers at > Saab refused on the basis that an SUV wasn't what Saab did... they do > cars. > > Think of Saab as like the John Delorean of the modern GM... they don't > necessarily do things the way GM management like... but GM leave them > alone because whether they like it or not, Saab still bring in the money > and build DAMNED fine cars. Just read up a little on the history of the > GTO to see what I mean by that analogy! > > Saab will always retain its identity as far as I can see... they have > to. They're still breaking new markets... and doing very well at it > too... but still the majority of Saabs are sold to Saabophiles like the > people in this NG. In fact Saab has one of the highest rankings as far > as repeat customers... got to say something for the quality of their > cars. > > Me? Well, when my 900 finally bites the dust (many moons from now if > I can help it), I'll definitely buy another Saab. I love it, my SO loves > it... and it's a fantastic family car at the same time as being a > performance machine. Quite a delicate balancing act, and done better by > Saab than any other manufacturer out there. > > As an aside... car magazines often rate Saab lower than say BMW because > most magazines are written by performance car enthusiasts. The Saab > lacks in performance next to its peers until it gets up to highway > speeds... but it handles at least as well as a BMW and provides better > hauling ability than most SUV's. Practical performance... something I > don't think anyone does like Saab or ever will. Saab's been doing it for > a LONG time... and they've got it right IMO. > > -- > Gavin Haslett > thumper_svxnopsamo.com > http://www.geocities.com/thumper_svx > "Ahhhh... Mountain Dew... nectar of the geeks!"

Return to Main Index
StateOfNine.com
SaabClub.com
Jak Stoll Performance
M Car Covers
Ad Available

The content on this site may not be republished without permission. Copyright © 1988-2024 - The Saab Network - saabnet.com.
For usage guidelines, see the Mission & Privacy Notice.
[Contact | Site Map | Saabnet.com on Facebook | Saabnet.com on Twitter | Shop Amazon via TSN | Site Donations]