Witnesses of a cult brand - Saab time capsule model year 2010 - 2008
Final! Our excursion into the past of the cult brand Saab ends today. For the time being, because a further writing of the idea is not excluded. With the model years 2010, 2009 and 2008, the last part of the Saab journey through time goes online. The years document dashed hopes, restarts and missed opportunities.
In 2010 the hope lay in the Saab 9-5 NG and the 9-4X. In general - the thing with the X was really big. There was also the 9-3X and Saab pushed towards the lifestyle and towards the long-neglected SUV boom. The 9-4X wasn't the brand's first SUV, as there were the 9-7X and the never-completed before 9-6X.
But there was a striking difference. The 9-4X was designed as a Saab from the start, it was not a fraud like its two predecessors. The brand's first convincing SUV, even if it was built in Mexico and not in Sweden.
Model year 2010 - dashed hope
German Saab fans will now moan again. Yes, the diesel engine was missing, and with that the 9-4X would not have been a success. The truth is, only homeopathic dosages were intended for Germany and Europe. An SUV as an image bearer, because most of the production would have been delivered to North America and especially to the People's Republic of China. The diesel drive hardly played a role there at that time.
The extremely rare German Saab 2010-9X brochures can be found in some versions of the 4 model year time capsule. The fact that the 9-4X was not introduced to the markets is part of the dashed hope.
Model year 2009 – farewell to a long-distance runner
In some time capsules of the model year 2009 are brochures and price lists of the Saab 9-5 - Griffin Edition. It's time to say goodbye to a long-time favorite, the old Saab 9-5, which had to last over 10 years in three model variants. His departure was planned much earlier, but the tragic events surrounding the brand forced him to persevere.
That was good for the 9-5, even if the MK3 version, called chrome glasses, is not the most coherent of all versions of this series. I have to admit, we cheated a bit with the 2009 model year. A price list is in the time capsule with the thick brochure of the Griffin Edition. This actually applies to the 2010 model year, but we didn't want to separate the brochure and price lists, which belong together.
Model year 2008 – the restart
Our last model year to launch is 2008. With the rare Saab Turbo X brochures, it represents a fresh start. The realignment of the brand, whose profile had to be sharpened, began with the particularly sporty Turbo X. The new Saab 9-5 generation and the 9-4X were already in the pipeline - if GM had not faltered as a result of the financial crisis, Saab would have picked up again to restart.
The time capsules, in different versions, are in the Aero X Club Store available, limited and while stocks last. Our time capsules will sell out after the sale ends, but maybe we'll go into extra time sometime?
Even the Saab time capsule boxes (time capsule) themselves are sold out down to the last copy. But there's good news for anyone who's asked. We will have more time capsules produced and offer them as a Saab gift box in the shop. And maybe, in the course of another idea, there will be a second one.
But that's annoying - immediately looked at the e-mail and no longer had the 2010 box.
That also kills us. We thought it would be days before the time capsules were gone. All sold.
Be happy, don't beat yourself up. Isn't the greatest praise from the community for the great action of tearing the capsules out of your hands...
If the hands are still on, it's good 🙂
I think it's because the email notification always comes hours after the article (at least that's how it is for me, maybe the notifications go out alphabetically?). With every article, I always only get the mail when there are already various comments under it - so other subscribers probably received a message earlier (or "proactively" looked for a new article themselves).
That's how I did it with the time capsules. It was great that this campaign was always announced for Friday afternoons - so I was able to secure a copy for 2012 and 2011 in good time, hours before the e-mail came (and all copies were already gone). Just a tip for the future.
The newsletter database is growing and growing - currently faster than ever. Depending on the topic, it can take up to 8 hours for all emails to be sent.
Exactly, that's what I thought too - thanks for the info! Have a nice weekend! 🙂
But the 9-7x is a very nice label fraud! 🙂
Funnily enough, the 9-2X was probably the larger one (false labeling) - almost inversely to the vehicle class, less hand was put on it inside and out. I still find both "Saab" charming somehow ...
You can also think of them as a couple. There is the sporty small car for high demands next to a car for safe driving with large and heavy trailers in a yard. Isn't that exactly the breadth of the model range that Saab aimed for, but never realized with its own models?
Perhaps the 9-2X and 9-7X should have been marketed much more offensively and globally? Maybe you weren't shameless enough?
At that time you would have been represented with 4 model series (9-2, 3, 5 and 7) and in 4 vehicle classes. Unfortunately, Saab has never presented itself as a broad brand with a certain range, at least on the German market. Maybe it would have done the brand good?
I would like the Turbo X catalogue, please!