The Saab 9-5 is Official

While the Saab 9-5 has awaited a redesign (over a decade), the world has passed it by. While an impressive vehicle at launch, the current Saab 9-5 has understandably not wore well with age. The new 9-5 will perhaps be the critical vehicle for Saab's near term success.

The sale to Saab to Koenigsegg from General Motors has nearly been finalized pending some funding deals, and the 9-5 will be the first vehicle to launch under new ownership. Can the new company make Saab a success?

If product were the only thing that had to do with Saab's future success, I'd prospects with the 9-5 are looking pretty good. The 9-5 wears new but still recognizable Saab themes that were shown prominently on the Aero X Concept Car. Homage is also paid to classic Saabs in the roofline.

The greenhouse is one of the standout design features - I've never quite seen one like it. The 9-5 is everything it should be - fresh but yet recognizably Saab. It should do well against competitors like the Volvo S80.

In inside, the "Born from Jets" marketing tagline is apparent in execution: the 9-5 has a cockpit-like design. Furthering the effect, is green lighting and a heads up display that Saab calls "Pilot HUD". Ambient lighting is hallmark of GM's recent interior designs (Cadillac CTS, Buick LaCrosse, anyone) and the 9-5 is no different.

You might have heard about Saab purists have complaining that GM-designed Saab interiors not including the ignition key in the center console. There was actually a functional, safety reason for that unique placement though -  to prevent the key from getting lodged in a drivers knee during a crash.

In the new 9-5, technology has replaced the key with a start/stop button. However, in respect to Saab tradition it has been placed in the center console once again. Things like this make Saab unique. The 9-5's interior is definitely not for everyone (and it doesn't have to be, just to enough) but I like it.

It's unfortunate that Saab has been mismanaged so long. Think about where they would be today with the right products and focus. In terms of advancing the Saab brand, these years have been lost. What I want to know is, what took them so long to get their act together?

This car is the 9-5 we've been waiting for and now it finally is coming, but ironic that it will be launched under new ownership. Kind of like Ford with the Jaguar XF, introducing it only to sell the brand to a new owner right when it was taking off.

We'll see how things fare with the owner. Unfortunately I have big reservations about Koenigsegg's ability to run a car larger company like Saab. This is about the new 9-5 though and from as much as I can tell without a comprehensive review, it looks to be the winner we were hoping for.