One of only 99 - Saab 9-3 Deauville Cabriolet
Exclusive and noble. The Saab 9-3 Deauville Cabriolets give an idea of where the development of Saab could have gone. They get their name from a glamorous French seaside resort. But that steers the track in the wrong direction. Because contrary to what the name suggests, the exclusive series is a purely Swiss matter.
Deauville - small and sophisticated
Deauville is located in the heart of Normandy on the Côte Fleurie, the flower coast. The city enchants with a marina, a horse racing track and sophisticated villas from a bygone era. The heyday of the seaside resort began about 100 years ago with the opening of the casino and two luxury hotels.
Deauville became a meeting place for industrialists, artists and fashion designers. Well-known personalities such as Yves Saint Laurent, Coco Channel and Andre Citroën were guests. A bit of Deauville shine for Saab too. That could have been Hirsch Performance's idea. In 1999 the Deauville series celebrated its premiere at the Geneva Motor Show.
Limited to 99 copies, each of which can be recognized by a number on the glove compartment lid. In this case, the lid could sound disrespectful. Because Hirsch refined the interior with many specially made parts made of mahogany wood. Mahogany with inlays was found on the glove box, on the door handles and of course on the dashboard.
Is that still a Saab?
Even the door sills are made of solid mahogany. With Deauville lettering and if you didn't pay attention when getting in, you ruined the expensive work. Since the Swiss never tended to half measures, there were also special leather inlays in the doors to round it off.
The interior was finished. And you asked yourself, is it still a Saab, or is it going in a much higher direction? An impression that was probably intended.
Hirsch rims in 17 ″ format and a lowering set rounded off the appearance. Black lacquer and a beige leather interior exuded a sophisticated nobility. There was a special Saab 9-3 Deauville Prospectus for the Swiss market and probably most of the 99 copies remained in the Confederation.
Sophisticated price of the Saab 9-3 Deauville
The price was also sophisticated. Hirsch wanted to see CHF 61.900 in the account. At that time, the equivalent of DM 75.647 was hefty for a 150 hp turbo, which could be breathed in a little more hp for an extra charge. For comparison: For this money you got an open 328 with additional equipment and a serious six-cylinder from BMW.
The CHF 13.500 that a Swiss car dealership is asking for a Saab 9-3 Deauville Cabriolet seems downright cheap. Number 95 of 99 copies is in a beautiful, well-kept original condition. Its mileage is manageable at 77.000 kilometers. The open Saab still exudes exclusivity today.
It is suitable as an investment or as a dignified convertible for a trip to Deauville in the summer. Then when we have survived the corona pandemic.
A customer of the dealership also saw it that way. Because no sooner was the post written than the Saab was sold. Good vehicles have no downtime.
With pictures from Küng Classics
A simple beauty that unfortunately no longer exists today. External appearance: LESS is MORE
The Trent to trim everything to SPORT, unfortunately, did not pass SAAB without a trace and sometimes defaced the ingenious timeless Scandinavian design.
The 9-3 I convertible is my favorite among Saabs anyway. I not only find the missing rear spoiler really good, but also the narrow “bumpers”. For me a more delicate, finer line in the convertible.
Thanks Tom because I didn't know this equipment yet. She is wonderful, this Deauville convertible.
I can well imagine that this car has not been on sale for long. Congratulations to the, or the, new Bisitzer.
28, not 2….
It's just great that there are even two owners (No. 2 and 67) of these extremely rare and wonderfully elegant vehicles among the blog readers - two out of 99!
That shows how much the blog is read and how important it is! I remain optimistic that Tom will present us with a concept in December that will continue - with an uncomplicated contribution made by all readers that shows the appreciation of the blog!
Are there more Deauville owners among the blog readers? Please report! 🙂
Greetings from number 28, who already has 200 km on the clock without any problems!
I have to correct myself, CHF 9.300, KM 52.300 were the data for the vehicle in 2016. Accordingly, the retail price has risen well in the meantime ...
I can still remember the vehicle because I almost bought it myself. A little more than four years ago the car was for sale in the showroom of a small but fine, family-run Saab dealer in Switzerland. Unfortunately, for private reasons, I couldn't just shut down quickly to take a look at the car. It was also sold to someone else quite quickly. At that time the price was CHF 10450.-, the KM was 65807 km ...
the wood is beautiful, but you can no longer take careless passengers with you
Greetings from number 67! Indeed, a very noble vehicle that I always enjoy getting into and somehow don't want to get off again. And practically every day, because it is used as an everyday car. Or for holidays, to southern France (there was a summer report here, thanks for the bracelets 😉), Italy, Austria or of course Sweden. A vehicle for connoisseurs with the punch you need when you need it. Or just completely relaxed after 600km at the gas station at home, thinking that Paris would still be a destination ...
Spoiler Alert (@Ebasil)
I think you get more approval than you think. To spoil something or somebody ...
The spoiler already has the spoilage in its name. The worst by far are German and so-called premium brands. Anyone who has ever seen an Audi A7 in an inner-city parking lot with the spoiler extended will know what I mean ...
Nobody knows why 1,8 tons of cars need increased contact pressure on the rear axle to park at Aldi. And anyway, the filigree construction doesn't look like it is good for more than 5 kg.
The point and purpose of spoilers seem to be to spoil something that would be better without spoilers. Unfortunately, this also applies to Saab - but at least limited. The really colorful flowers sprouted and still sprout others ...
What I would like to know myself is whether you can remove the wing from a convertible in the aero version or not? What does it do at what speed? Open? Closed?
I think you identified a detail here that engineers at Saab had unusually little to report on ...
Have a nice weekend
Very chic and very extravagant! And despite the nobility, no aero (which I personally like much better anyway, at least from the outside, I don't like the rear spoilers, neither on the 9-3 I, nor the 9-3 II or 9-3 III, nor the front and the Massive rear view with "swanky" exhaust pipes are far too "unimpressive" for me with all convertibles, but the tastes are - fortunately - different and so I'm definitely in the minority here.)
From the inside, all the wood looks very old-fashioned and antiquated, which in turn has charm. The price seemed way too low to me, no wonder the piece of jewelry was gone so quickly.
Many thanks to Tom for this interesting tip! I'm always amazed and never stop learning how many highly interesting special models there were. I had never heard of this deer series.
Have a nice weekend with all Saab friends!