As a swede, it's always fascinating to see Saabs talked about overseas and much as I love Saabs myself, I always have a hard time wrapping my head around the notion of them being exotic. Here they have obviously always been part of everyday life. Even so, the OG 900s, as abundant as they once were, are not that common a sight even on our roads these days, almost having joined the exclusivity club of the 99 and 96/95 by now. I drove through this winter in a really beat-up 900 -84 which couldn't have been more crummy if it tried, but it never failed me. Just goes to show how over-engineered they were back then.
Well said. Yeah, they are quite rare here nowadays in the part of the US I am in. I think I’ve maybe seen 4-5 on the roads randomly (obviously more at our Saab meets though)
So when I was a kid my uncle owned a brand new 1983 Saab 900 Turbo white on burgundy cloth he added those fun wheels much like the black one In the beginning of this video and I am telling you there is no other car that sounds quite like a Turbo Saab!!! Nice job Jacob
Long time Saab original owner here. I owned a 1990 SPG and a Carlson AirFlow. My first car was a 99 EMS in orange with the Super Inca wheels. I swapped out the stock interior with that of a 900 turbo leather. We also owned a 9000 Aero and a 9000 turbo. I stupidly sold my Saabs to get into Porsches. While I still own my Porsche cabriolet there isn't a day that goes by that I don't miss my Saabs. My neighbor owns a 1990 Saab SPG convertible that only has 60,000 mi original. She's also the original owner and has all the books and records including the window sticker. She wants $22,000 for it. It's very very tempting as the convertible SPGs were very rare. One thing you forgot to mention was that the 900 turbo had the absolute most comfortable seats ever invented in the history of the automobile. I did many a long journey in that car and those seats were like a little piece of heaven. Thank you for bringing to light these wonderful wonderful cars. We miss you Saab. ❤😢
Nicely presented vid, Jake. The 900 is definitely iconic. The front engine/ front wheel drive layout was to exploit the weight distribution for improved winter traction over the driven wheels. The relatively even drive shaft length makes for an absence of torque steer. Double wishbone front suspension is another key to informative feedback from the road and is part of what makes these a joy to drive.
spot on, Ian, thanks! I dare say the 900 was the best handling FWD car of its time, far superior eg. to the nose-heavy Audis and the VWs of the 1980s with their primitive suspension. But the triumph of the transverse engine for front-wheel drive was unstoppable, the packaging and space economics are simply superior. So already the 9000 and later the 900 NG got the much more mainstream transverse layout. Ah, and one more thing: The OG 900 may offer the quickest Clutch replacement of all cars ever, thx to the weird configuration ;-)
What I wouldn't do to have my '83 900 Turbo back. Black 4-door 5sp with saddle leather interior. I still enjoy my '07 9-3 2.0t ragtop, but hearing the engine note and the little turbo whine in this video brought me back. You didn't mention those funky seat belts of yours though. 😂 Goofiest seat belt phase in years. My '91 Accord had them, too. Thanks, Jacob! I'll check out the Bluetooth widget, I need a new one for my old Toyota 4WD. Not on Insta though. 🤷🏻♂️😢😅
I also have an '88 Malachite Green turbo 5-speed! thanks for saving one of these rare beauties, I believe Malachite Green was only two years, '88 and '89.
The banker/industrialist and patriarch of the Wallenberg family, Marcus Wallenberg (1899-1982), owned a Saab 900 in the late 70s/early 80s. The same family that owned Saab aerospace/defense & cars (still own the former)
Dude, you have to do a video on replacing the headliner on this car...Would be very informative, as my SPG desperately needs one too...(I've heard it's a very time-consuming job)
I got a video, or maybe like 3 when i do it, but no sunroof in my car. Not so hard, i got the original cloth on, use good glue m3 rubber and vinyl 80 spray glue.
I always hear people confused as to why the engine is laid out the way it is... I've always believed that it was done to make the clutch more easily serviceable. I'm not aware of any other vehicle where you can change the clutch without removing the transmission from the engine - and certainly none other that you can do without jacking the car up (or removing the engine!)
I also thought that was the reason (or at least part of it), but wasn’t confident enough in the reason to state in the video lol. I figure that there’s gotta be another reason besides just that
Will never sell my ‘91 SPG. The exhaust derives a lot of the sound from its uneven exhaust headers. My Dad also owned a 900 (before moving on to a Series 1 9000 turbo). He is 6’3” and had no issue sitting in the car. The seats (including manual) have the ability to be lowered. Check that yours is fully lowered.
Looked this car up because it’s in the book Men Without Women by Haruki Murakami, which is as adapted into Drive My Car (2021) Very interesting car, was definitely also wondering if it was manual transmission, the movie never showed us the interior of the vehicle except small glimpses here and there, which mostly stayed on people’s faces Super cool stuff!
Where i live in the home country of the saab, even here the 900 is getting very rare and a 900 T16 is almost impossible to get because the ones left are either projects like my own or at collectors. Know people whom want one but they just cant find any.
Love that fact that you use a Swedish front plate , how ever it's from a saab 9-5 u should get plates from a 900 instead, but awsome channel bro tumbs up!
thanks! Im not sure what the reasoning was behind the name difference. I figured it would be a trademark issue, but that wouldn’t make sense since later model Saabs had aero trims
@pederfallbom the reason is that at the time of the release of the Aero model, another company (GM I believe) owned naming rights to the word "aero" which it had used on one of its vehicles. Hence, SAAB USA had to come up with an alternative designation. Quite how they arrived at Special Performance Group, I have no idea! But that is what it stands for.
The automatics really sucked, I ripped the auto out and swapped my c900 vert over to a 5-speed because my auto had the infamous 900 hard shifting from 2 to 3......for the record the most useful and spacious hatchback I've personally ever driven was a 9000 Aero.
Mine is still auto but runs smooth - I drive a Honda odyssey in the winter so I am very used to the auto pickup. The 900 turbo once the lag comes in accelerates very differently
If that’s distracting, you probably have a hard time focusing on anything 😅 this car has come a long way in two years of owning it (see the playlist on my channel if you don’t believe me) It’s on the list, and I’ll get to it eventually.
As a swede, it's always fascinating to see Saabs talked about overseas and much as I love Saabs myself, I always have a hard time wrapping my head around the notion of them being exotic. Here they have obviously always been part of everyday life. Even so, the OG 900s, as abundant as they once were, are not that common a sight even on our roads these days, almost having joined the exclusivity club of the 99 and 96/95 by now. I drove through this winter in a really beat-up 900 -84 which couldn't have been more crummy if it tried, but it never failed me. Just goes to show how over-engineered they were back then.
Well said. Yeah, they are quite rare here nowadays in the part of the US I am in. I think I’ve maybe seen 4-5 on the roads randomly (obviously more at our Saab meets though)
What I wouldn't do to own a 1986 Saab 900SPG manual. I once owned an '86 C900 Base Model (purchased new) and had it for 17 years.
nice!
So when I was a kid my uncle owned a brand new 1983 Saab 900 Turbo white on burgundy cloth he added those fun wheels much like the black one In the beginning of this video and I am telling you there is no other car that sounds quite like a Turbo Saab!!! Nice job Jacob
Awesome! Hope this video brought back some memories for you!
Long time Saab original owner here. I owned a 1990 SPG and a Carlson AirFlow. My first car was a 99 EMS in orange with the Super Inca wheels. I swapped out the stock interior with that of a 900 turbo leather.
We also owned a 9000 Aero and a 9000 turbo. I stupidly sold my Saabs to get into Porsches. While I still own my Porsche cabriolet there isn't a day that goes by that I don't miss my Saabs.
My neighbor owns a 1990 Saab SPG convertible that only has 60,000 mi original. She's also the original owner and has all the books and records including the window sticker. She wants $22,000 for it. It's very very tempting as the convertible SPGs were very rare.
One thing you forgot to mention was that the 900 turbo had the absolute most comfortable seats ever invented in the history of the automobile. I did many a long journey in that car and those seats were like a little piece of heaven.
Thank you for bringing to light these wonderful wonderful cars. We miss you Saab. ❤😢
They are dearly missed as a brand, you’re right! Thanks for watching 🙌🏼😁
totally agreed
l owned saab 900s and 9000i at that time
last few model years they came with airbags, those pilars are reinforced, as are the doors. very safe cars, specially for their time.
yes, of course! top gear dropped one upside down from 8ft up and they could still able to open the door.
@@AutoAutopsy cheers! totally forgot about that episode :)
Nicely presented vid, Jake. The 900 is definitely iconic.
The front engine/ front wheel drive layout was to exploit the weight distribution for improved winter traction over the driven wheels. The relatively even drive shaft length makes for an absence of torque steer. Double wishbone front suspension is another key to informative feedback from the road and is part of what makes these a joy to drive.
thanks! great information here. That makes total sense!
spot on, Ian, thanks! I dare say the 900 was the best handling FWD car of its time, far superior eg. to the nose-heavy Audis and the VWs of the 1980s with their primitive suspension. But the triumph of the transverse engine for front-wheel drive was unstoppable, the packaging and space economics are simply superior. So already the 9000 and later the 900 NG got the much more mainstream transverse layout. Ah, and one more thing: The OG 900 may offer the quickest Clutch replacement of all cars ever, thx to the weird configuration ;-)
What I wouldn't do to have my '83 900 Turbo back. Black 4-door 5sp with saddle leather interior. I still enjoy my '07 9-3 2.0t ragtop, but hearing the engine note and the little turbo whine in this video brought me back. You didn't mention those funky seat belts of yours though. 😂 Goofiest seat belt phase in years. My '91 Accord had them, too.
Thanks, Jacob!
I'll check out the Bluetooth widget, I need a new one for my old Toyota 4WD. Not on Insta though. 🤷🏻♂️😢😅
Thanks! 🙌🏼 if possible, maybe you could find one cheap to add as a second car/project! 😄
Another great post. I no longer have a Saab in the fleet, it’s time to sort that!
I think so 😉
When I have space and money for a second car, this is the first thing I’m getting! Looks awesome🇸🇪
Good choice! It’s a fun car
I also have an '88 Malachite Green turbo 5-speed! thanks for saving one of these rare beauties, I believe Malachite Green was only two years, '88 and '89.
Great color!
Me and my Red SPG thank you for making great Saab content videos and a SPG tee shirt I wear with pride, Cheers!
Right on! Thanks Kyle 🙌🏼😁😁
The banker/industrialist and patriarch of the Wallenberg family, Marcus Wallenberg (1899-1982), owned a Saab 900 in the late 70s/early 80s. The same family that owned Saab aerospace/defense & cars (still own the former)
fun fact!
Dude, you have to do a video on replacing the headliner on this car...Would be very informative, as my SPG desperately needs one too...(I've heard it's a very time-consuming job)
Its definitely on my list of things to do! 👍🏼😁
I got a video, or maybe like 3 when i do it, but no sunroof in my car. Not so hard, i got the original cloth on, use good glue m3 rubber and vinyl 80 spray glue.
I always hear people confused as to why the engine is laid out the way it is... I've always believed that it was done to make the clutch more easily serviceable. I'm not aware of any other vehicle where you can change the clutch without removing the transmission from the engine - and certainly none other that you can do without jacking the car up (or removing the engine!)
I also thought that was the reason (or at least part of it), but wasn’t confident enough in the reason to state in the video lol. I figure that there’s gotta be another reason besides just that
Great car! You should have mentioned that the vert' is one that never lost any value and is still out there with the cool (but not cheap) 80s cars!
Hmm, it seems as though the verts have followed the similar depreciation/appreciation curve the other 900’s are
I wish they still made the Saab, best design for a family car
Me too :((
Will never sell my ‘91 SPG. The exhaust derives a lot of the sound from its uneven exhaust headers. My Dad also owned a 900 (before moving on to a Series 1 9000 turbo). He is 6’3” and had no issue sitting in the car. The seats (including manual) have the ability to be lowered. Check that yours is fully lowered.
Thanks for the tip! Mine are fully lowered unfortunately :(
Looked this car up because it’s in the book Men Without Women by Haruki Murakami, which is as adapted into Drive My Car (2021)
Very interesting car, was definitely also wondering if it was manual transmission, the movie never showed us the interior of the vehicle except small glimpses here and there, which mostly stayed on people’s faces
Super cool stuff!
Nice! I thought I had read somewhere the movie car was an automatic, but i could be wrong
Where i live in the home country of the saab, even here the 900 is getting very rare and a 900 T16 is almost impossible to get because the ones left are either projects like my own or at collectors. Know people whom want one but they just cant find any.
That’s a shame :( the projects need to be bought and saved before they’re scrapped
Even rarer here in Sweden because of our climate and road salt. Less of that in southern Europe and in USA.
@@pederfallbom every country with the "rust belt" makes it quite rare around those parts.
Love that fact that you use a Swedish front plate , how ever it's from a saab 9-5 u should get plates from a 900 instead, but awsome channel bro tumbs up!
Thanks!
Great video! To a Swede like me the top version is 900 Aero. Dont know why you call it SPG in the USA?
thanks! Im not sure what the reasoning was behind the name difference. I figured it would be a trademark issue, but that wouldn’t make sense since later model Saabs had aero trims
@@AutoAutopsy Yeah its wierd. SPG sounds off I think. Aero is a true SAAB thing and stems back to its aeroplane heritage
@pederfallbom the reason is that at the time of the release of the Aero model, another company (GM I believe) owned naming rights to the word "aero" which it had used on one of its vehicles. Hence, SAAB USA had to come up with an alternative designation. Quite how they arrived at Special Performance Group, I have no idea! But that is what it stands for.
@@ianbrade7754 Ok thanks for the clarification. Odd chioce of name but sets it apart in the same way Saab wanted with the Aero name👍
good videio, but isn't the FM transmitter terrible sound quality? It's bad enough we've all accepted terrible sound quality with streaming vs. CDs
it won't be as good as true bluetooth/aux, but it's good enough for me when I cruise this car around
I wonder if my 1990 900 turbo convertible will ever be worth more than $10k.
Are you taking this one to SOC?
I’ll be taking my 9-3!
You should lift the headrest
Thanks for the reminder. It fell down a bit 😬
Cool vid
🙌🏼
Quirky as in genius in this case.
nailed it
The automatics really sucked, I ripped the auto out and swapped my c900 vert over to a 5-speed because my auto had the infamous 900 hard shifting from 2 to 3......for the record the most useful and spacious hatchback I've personally ever driven was a 9000 Aero.
Nice! I only drove mine a handful of times with the auto before I did the swap
Mine is still auto but runs smooth - I drive a Honda odyssey in the winter so I am very used to the auto pickup. The 900 turbo once the lag comes in accelerates very differently
I read that some 900s shift from 2-3 hard if you accelerate as if for an overtake in second by design?
I almost bought a Saab 900 SPG. I chose a Datsun 280Z instead🏁🏁🏁👍😁
Those are sweet 👍🏼👊🏼
@AutoAutopsy Going to be picking 1 of those up very soon. I had one 8yrs. ago, got lucky and found another 🏁🏁🏁😁👍
Get that headliner on the sunroof taken care of!! So distracting!
If that’s distracting, you probably have a hard time focusing on anything 😅 this car has come a long way in two years of owning it (see the playlist on my channel if you don’t believe me) It’s on the list, and I’ll get to it eventually.