From the Canberra Correspondent: Saab 900 Turbo

Weird or wonderful? Wonderfully weird, perhaps? I can't seem to be able to make up my mind whether I like Saabs of this era or not.

They're undoubtedly well designed - aesthetics aside, which we'll get to soon - solidly-built and innovative. They have a cult-like following, too, which speaks to their inherent qualities.

I can't disagree with the Canberra Correspondent that they made turbo-charging regular daily-drive, family-type cars mainstream (even if they were almost exclusively daily-driven by the families of architects and gallery owners). They were definitely quite capable vehicles in their time.

But I'm not sure that the looks department of subsequent iterations of the original version held up so well, especially when it came to turning the two-door into a four door. The more recent plastic bumpers didn't translate well, either.

And the cabriolet? Tact dictates that ... .

What I really, really do like, however, are this particular car's green stripes that incorporate additional TURBO decals. Fellow motorists may well have likened Saabs to Ikea furniture or their drivers to the Muppet Show character the Swedish Chef but, deep down, they knew that those five letters - T U R B O - actually spelled bloody quick!

My verdict? I'm a hung jury of one, it seems! I still don't know quite what to think of them.

U M P H

(uppermiddlepetrolhead.blogspot.com.au.)

Photos by the Canberra Correspondent.

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