MotorWeek | Retro Review: '99 Saab Viggen

It may be the fastest production Saab... actually built by Saab.

[@gregblanchard3438]

Awesome Saab..i worked at a Saab dealer when this car came out.. unreal amounts of torque steer but boy was it fun to drive. RIP Saab...and thanks Motorweek for this great look back:)

[@Mr.Schitzengigglez]

I was a valet when this came out. You are definitely right on the torque steer.

[@richsackett3423]

Which is a real drag because the 900/99 had zero torque steer.

[@del7i540]

Steer clear, it's slow and too many problems with turbo, electrical and with the irritating voice of that cheesy public tv dude.

[@1rstGear]

I was a young twenty something tech when these came out at the dealer. I was just moving over from the Saab side to the Porsche side. Loved these cars. We used to pdi these and the. Tell the customer to come get your friggen’ Viggen….😂

[@qmto]

5:04 It was nice of Shia Labeouf to stop by to demonstrate the seat function for Motorweek.

[@jgs014]

qmto that’s not Shia. He was born in 1986.

[@DrewLSsix]

Jorge Santana. Yeah, and Keanu Reeves isnt a centuries old immortal lol

[@aricsnyder5882]

qmto lol would have never thought until you said..

[@DoctorTauri]

Jorge Santana r/woosh

[@MkF3175]

he looks like Shia Labeouf...but actually its Shia Labeouf who looks like him...he came first before Shia...

[@palebeachbum]

I'd love one of these now! That blue color is gorgeous.

[@banpowel9784]

Forgot to mention. At 100 mph it seems to glide, hard to explain, but amazing

[@J1I9M7M4Y]

Yeah, 200km/h feels like 90km/h.. Very stable and no drama what so ever.

[@05Forenza]

Yup, my 2006 9-3 Aero is similar. Super planted at very high speeds

[@TheBTG88]

Drive my 2001 every day. Still looks contemporary, is plenty fast and is a real pleasurable 'analog' drive.

[@stevewilliams1834]

When I worked for GM I got to drive a Viggen convertible on the GM Proving Ground. The vehicle was fund to drive but it had Torque steer out the Ying-Yang, it was hard to keep on the road. Saab always made faster cars than most people thought. From 40mph - 70 mph, 2006 9-5 Aero was faster than 2006 Porsche 911 Turbo! Saab was one of the Best cars that GM never how to market. There constant fights between Saab and GM over product development, GM wanted Saab just change the Button and Badges of a current GM model and nothing else and call it a Saab, Saab ignore this and went on to overengineer a vehicle (usually great cars) that lost money on every car they sold. You would think there were some happy medium.

[@chrisdooley1184]

A friend of my father had one and the dealer at the time suggested a quaife differential which all but cured the torque steer and made it amazing out of corners as well. He said it was the best $1,000 installed he ever spent on a mod.

[@vanmeures3689]

it comes in manual transmission only ! yes that s a great company!

[@williamegler8771]

Probably one of the reasons SAAB failed. Didn't offer models customers wanted to buy. By offering a automatic transmission in this model they would have appealed to many more buyers.

[@initialyeet3951]

@@williamegler8771 check out Regular Car Review’s story of the Life and Death of Saab

[@ExecuteBrandon]

Autos are better for turbos. 😂

[@ILovedThe90s1]

Too bad Saab is no longer building cars - they were a really unique company.

[@TJC450]

There's that club music again lol!

[@deloreanman14]

+TJC450 It was the 90s....what can we say?

[@Bryan-on3cg]

I always thought that was the best "review" music they had...

[@rixille]

I like it. Anyone know what it is, or is it just some custom edited song for the show?

[@matthewlibanio8227]

It's makes the the bloody 9-3 Viggen even cooler. What an awesome looking car.

[@mrpayne1974]

Sounds like a 1980s porn background music!!!😭

[@techexplorer9382]

Nice Car ! A car before its time , would look good today with current cars. Thanks Joe

[@vanmeures3689]

+TechExplorer only if you compare it to the US makes...Other European cars had the same technology if not more...

[@bingoberra18]

Actually Viggen means like "the thunderstone". In scandinavian viking times people found old axe heads in the soil and thought that these axes had striken down from the gods with the lightning. While in reality they had been laying buried in the ground since the stoneage.

[@SuperDougiedoo]

If GM had done what Tata has done with Jaguar they could’ve done something special I reckon.

[@briansukhu4392]

Yes, leave the design to Saab, just pump cash into the company not platform and parts

[@pontiacGXPfan]

The poster child for unruly tugging from the steering wheel!

[@upeedinalamb5297]

Lambs love this hot hatch. Plenty of room for us in the cargo area.

[@goldenretriever6261]

Golden Retrievers like to put their heads out the back seat windows.

[@Iceman-xx1kh]

Imagine this same car with today's technology! Beautiful car.

[@dougedoug2105]

Imagine the price tag... $38k in 1999 dollars adjusted for inflation equates to just over $59K in today’s money! Beautiful Car but Ouch!

[@thedood7471]

Worth it for the safety features alone

[@vwmatt33]

I miss the Real SAAB!! I'm still pissed at GM for gutting and killing SAAB

[@cpufreak101]

vwmatt33 was part of their bailout sadly, and the buyer unfortunately got forced to back down in court. I do believe a company called NEVS owns Saab now, and they are putting the 9-3 into limited production, here's the catch though... A: only sold in China and Sweden (and I believe also Norway) and B: it will be a fully electric car only

[@jacobfleming565]

Saab only lost money even when Saab was still Saab they made almost no profit and where about to go out of buisness

[@romyan5382]

Saab would've died earlier otherwise, be thankful that at least they got a artificial heart for some years.

[@anpenguin9463]

GM killed SAAB because SAAB was told to change the body parts and the badge of some GM cars at the time (Cavalier for example), but they went sooooo far that it costed GM a whole fortune. And they pulled the plug for good. It's sad, really.

[@porkchopexpress6969]

This was a gm Saab

[@gordonramsay7814]

Had a 2000 95 Aero 5 speed and it was so nice and quick. Similar engine but made a little more power. Regret selling that one.

[@recpro7847]

I had a 98 900SE a couple years ago. This was the car that brought me to love European engineering.

[@enes6591]

There are only 2 left and you will have 100 of them. You're a really rich man :-D

[@jacobbeck7774]

I have a '98 900SE. Love that car.

[@Edward-kb8iz]

I had one of these back in the days. Faster than everthing in Sweden at the time.

[@philliplyn2692]

Loving this one thank's for sharing very important information giving blessed love to all knowledge is power hopefully everyone pays attention keep up the good work Saab one of my favorite cars wow throw back 🙏🙏🙏🇯🇲🇯🇲🇯🇲💪💪💪

[@MandusahRamirez]

I love the Motorweek Background Music when they review a fun car lol

[@Porsche996driver]

No squat or dive, it looks amazing in those high speed braking tests. Saab’s were stealthy and could be easily tuned to run like this Viggen Thunderbolt.

[@quackman]

Beautiful esp in that paint!

[@adamcargeek]

"racy silver" what.

[@kurt8327]

This seemed more like a Saab commercial than actual review.

[@j.manning2759]

Awesome video I just picked up a 2000 9-3 for $1500

[@shopwithaaron]

A friend of mine had the 1993 turbo coupe and sold it last year....moved up to BMW 2011 I series convertible...loves the upgrade!

[@georgesnyder5337]

Seems unrelated to the SAAB Viggen- but amazing story.

[@Courtney1992]

they don't build cars like this anymore

[@Schlomothebest]

What about the Hyundai Elantra?

[@Sotisesnygg]

@@Schlomothebest Hyundai lmfao

[@Los_Chanchulleros]

Comparing an European car with something made in Asia 😂😂😂

[@pierrecolombo4654]

@@Los_Chanchulleros And not any european car 😉

[@Los_Chanchulleros]

@@pierrecolombo4654 yes, those Saab can be only compared with another European car, the SEAT Leon cupra with a VR6 and AWD.

[@ericmiranda9841]

Shia Labeouf in Motorweek.

[@lincolnparc8897]

Eric Miranda I was just about to type the same thing! lol!!!

[@christophermorales1509]

In the beouf!

[@blackericdenice]

I fell n love with Saab after driving a 87 9000 turbo doing 135 mph with 3 friends n the car. I think that car was under rated at 160 hp.

[@rixille]

Keep in mind though that these Saabs are pretty damn light though.

[@banpowel9784]

These cars on the motorway???? I mean even today against modern vehicles, absolutely awesome, it's like a fcking rocket, I covered 100s of miles and couldn't stop, it was so addictive, you really have to drive one to see what I mean.................stunning stunning stunning

[@mczenk5095]

They sure are amazing, I love my 92 Saab 9000 turbo

[@thedood7471]

Yes I have a 2002 Saab 93 SE TID and I relate 100% to the motorway driving experience

[@joshkindu3063]

this car is such a beauty! looking to buy a saab as my first car this summer 😁

[@ErwinSchrodinger64]

I was just enjoying the video until I heard of the Mitsubishi supplied 2.3 Liter turbo with the horsepower rating (which are actually good even by today's standards). Not trying to get side tracked here, but why on Earth do companies like Mitsubishi supply automakers with incredible engines, like the one shown for the Saab, but don't utilize them in their own automobiles? I could only imagine how this engine could of saved automobiles like the Mitsubishi Eclipse.

[@thestig572420]

I believe he was referring to the manufacturer of the turbo.

[@maxipads1441]

The Turbo is a Mitsubishi. Engine is Saab/GM

[@jamesonneumann825]

225hp crank on these cars was a bit low as they often dyno'd 210-225whp.

[@kirbyswarp]

+Maxwell Castro It's Saab's very own H-series engine. Not much GM there...

[@Kingsoupturbo]

+Jameson Neumann That makes sense given a 2.3 running 20psi of boost on probably a moderatly well flowing Mitsu turbo

[@homoerotic85]

Motorweek, would you by chance have a review of 2003 (or first gen) SAAB 9-3 SE Turbo Convertible?? Would love to see that if available!

[@wantapgt]

Lol "industrial strength turbo" haha as opposed to regular strength turbos?

[@nutsackmania]

+wantapgt lol hurrrrr so funny you should quit your day job!

[@CEOkiller]

I miss Saab...

[@chriscornelius2518]

I have heard of people getting 300 thousand miles out of 1980s 900s. I know the turbo 900 was very quick and fun to drive.

[@aeropilot4419]

Chris Cornelius I put 407k on my '84 900, no engine rebuild, just proper maintenance. Bulletproof engine (non turbo).

[@oliviersavard8676]

Holy shit 39k USD in 1999, I thought it was 10k less expensive. With inflation it's the price of a nicely equiped Grand Sport Corvette or a GT350 Mustang.

[@atomsmash100]

That was a good looking vehicle!

[@manfromnantucket9544]

What a cool car, looks like a lot of fun. Wish I could say the same about '07 Eclipse GT. Speed isn't everything folks!

[@kyoakland]

I remember these when I was in high school I used to like him but I was so wrapped up in Mustang 5.0 s

[@patrickmichaellangan576]

The Viggen is my FAV Saab. Too bad Jerry Seinfeld never got to drive this in Seinfeld.

[@apocalypznow]

Saab made great cars. I was lucky to own one. Too bad they're gone forever.

[@TGoff-fz7yh]

Great car. Wish I still had mine. Sure don't miss this style of TV presentation though. Yack...

[@kondor99999]

Always wanted this car.

[@eoinmaclean6478]

Back when CD players were luxurious! Most cars had a cassette player or no media whatsoever aside from the radio.

[@624radicalham]

This is so awesome. Curious why you've mentioned before that some recordings are in tricky formats? What kind of formats were used in the 80s ... (Beta?) Thanks in advance!

[@siemenstraffic]

They used Sony U-matic

[@xavsadovsky4727]

Super saab!!!

[@Jim-nt7xy]

Thanks GM for running the great brand into the ground.

[@joshuac4772]

Man I wish I could find a nice example. Seriously underated car.

[@thetreblerebel]

Looks like it handles well, I kinda like it

[@baileybehzadi2308]

I want to find one of these! Own a Saab 9-5 wish they still made cars

[@aricsnyder5882]

Best SAAB ever, used to think the 99 turbo. Aka 900 turbo..

[@jasonmorrisby169]

Beautiful

[@5r248]

Was that the sound of the tires screeching when the driver shifted into 2nd @ 2:09? That’s a lot of torque!

[@soundseeker63]

Yeah it probably was, the torque output increases from 184 to 243 lb/ft from first to second gear! 😯 You would definitely feel it.

[@potatopotato8360]

I feel like im clubbin'

[@laddtryck]

I have a tuned base model one of these with 200hp (265 soon). I couldnt be happier.

[@DriftTaxi]

It's so funny, watching all of these Motor Week videos, I can see how Americans really did kill the manual transmission.

[@desmondmitchell5387]

I remember this review and episode

[@DStabs720]

Do you have a review of the 1997-2004 Buick Regal GS? The supercharged 3.8 v6 is a torque monster.

[@kupidzheart]

+David S yes..........yes they are

[@anewzack78]

i've owned one of those too. I prefer the saab. Its funny because the L67 was a bit better on fuel lol.

[@anewzack78]

saabs are more tuner friendly. Its SO easy to make 350 bhp (280ish whp) with them. But both the GTP and saab, the weak point is the transmission. With just a piston swap in the B235 engine, it can handle 600 bhp quite easily with enough fuel/turbo.

[@kirbyswarp]

@@anewzack78 I got 24.8mpg city in my saab when I daily drove it. 32.0MPG on a long trip going 85-90mph. Usually 35 mpg going more reasonable speeds.

[@anewzack78]

@@kirbyswarp sounds about right

[@garywolf8309]

Where can you get one of these?

[@joshd9442]

5:00 shia lebeefs does road tests?

[@georgedoughly6344]

This SAAB is Awesome

[@smakfu1375]

Man, at 48, this video suddenly makes me feel old contemplating that something from 1999 is "retro".

[@ravipeiris4388]

Amazing car.

[@TheSuperMotoHooligan]

Sweet machine...

[@1995RangeRover]

Still want one!

[@lexburen5932]

this was a very advanced car even in 99". not many other manufacturers could beat this car in its class.

[@mysock351C]

1:25 nice old-school GM mass airflow sensor there.

[@fields1]

Thank you to General Motors for killing SAAB. SAAB was the coolest car company ever. First to really make turbo gas engines common, safety concious but not boring like a Volvo, cool ignition switch location and night panel. GM couldn't let them do their own thing so sales fell, then GM dumped them for next to nothing but kept shackles on what they could or couldn't do. The end of Saab was a sad day.

[@xXDeViLRape]

If only they knew back then what a fine and rare piece of art the viggen is today. In Sweden, this car is pure fucking gold. The love for it cannot be described. I sure wish i had one..

[@Keiji1978]

John Davis seems excited in this video

[@CeeStyleDj]

Anyone own one of these and remove the electronic torque limiters? What was your results? Man... I used to want one of these when I was young. Almost forgot about it.

[@PANTYEATR1]

this car looks great! too bad SAAB isn't around anymore, these are nice cars.can we get a review of the 2000 Volvo C70 coupe?

[@jakobholgersson4400]

Saab live on through NEVS. Also, Volvo supposedly considering to start a new, more youth oriented brand. Speculation is that that's why Saab (the aircraft manufacturer) doesen't want NEVS to use the Saab brand name anymore.

[@julianarjah1175]

still don't understand them, what does Volvo have to do with Saab?

[@-fuk57]

Be sure to check the elbow patch stitching on your tweed jacket; here comes the '99 Saab 9•3, Viggen!

[@anewzack78]

"ecotec 2.3L" WAT lol btw this they under rated the power numbers on purpose with these on purpose. They'd dyno around 260hp or so

[@dr.lyleevans6915]

260 hp at the wheels? Dang.. that’s ~300 bhp You’d think it would run faster than 7.0 0-60, but then again, Motorweek is infamous for its slow acceleration times. I’d bet with some minor mods it would pull 400 hp

[@anewzack78]

Dr. Lyle Evans yep. A gt2871 and larger injectors will make it kiss 400 pretty easily AND spool quite quick still (~3k)

[@ubiased23]

Very good looking car with excellent practicality as a coupe hatchback. It reminds me of the Volvo C30 hatchback. I prefer the Saab because it is larger, and it has more daily use. They are extremely hard to find, especially in good shape.

[@s_pink]

Dream car

[@daytonasayswhat9333]

Cool music.

[@patrickmichael3384]

This Viggen is my personal FAV Saab ever. If the NBC sitcom Seinfeld had existed just one year longer, Jerry Seinfeld would’ve bought one.

[@joebeastyg5686]

Why were cupholders such a task in the 90's? Every car I had back then (Probe, Laser, LHS, Cherokee Classic) had very few, if any, usable cupholders. Some were so cheap and flimsy with the way they folded (Chrysler LHS) out while others just weren't practical. And the Laser? I remember having to buy one of those plastic holders that you had to hope fit the door frame. I was a teen and sojust remember what a pain in the A that was. Today I have a 12 year old Navigator with more cupholders than I need. Newer cars have lights in the damn holders, and some cars even have coolers for your road sodas. I know driving habits change but cupholders seem pretty basic and an easy enough addition to any car cockpit. It's not like a major technological breakthrough I'm talking about here, either.

[@DigitallFlesh]

I think the 90s techno music is fitting for the car and review because the car deserves that respect for how ahead this car really was. It looks like SAAB had a hand in this review to me.

[@dalewasson5919]

It was also used in the Pontiac Aztek review

[@CeeStyleDj]

Man...These were expensive! ( especially for the day!)

[@tobitella1432]

These power specs still keep up with sports sedans today

[@thedood7471]

I can attest to that

[@tobitella1432]

@@thedood7471 Just one month ago I bought a 440 hp sports sedan so I actually stand corrected 🤣

[@gregorypappas766]

The music though, I didn't understand that haha

[@dalewasson5919]

They used the same music from the Aztek review but this came before it

[@chillil321]

was that Shia Labeouf showing the interior?

[@henrymccomments]

I found a very good one for 15k Still holding great value

[@seinsmeld13]

Too bad they are gone. Hopefully they will be back soon.

[@TassieLorenzo]

$38k in 2000... were Saab of America out of their minds!!?? What an outrageous price!! :/

[@iconictk2878]

TassieLorenzo hey the jeep Cherokee in 1994 was 42k.

[@anewzack78]

but a more boring vehicle and not very tuner friendly. Easy to up the power in a SAAB. Its already turbo charged. Free DIY tuner software, etc.

[@shanekonarson]

TassieLorenzo and they are still worth like 20k ! The SAAB would be safer then all cars mentioned in these comments ! They spent heaps of money in safety before most car companies did !

[@BJtheBassist]

@@anewzack78 these spank the USDM M3s. (E36)

[@guinnessharvey4476]

If only GM treated Saab the way the Chinese treat Volvo. Give them funding but don’t meddle with their engineers and designers. Amazing how the fortunes of these two great Swedish marques have turned out.

[@fortune300]

This engine in that GM crap platform is like throwing pearls for pigs..

[@kirbyswarp]

Also 0-60 was about 6.5 seconds, even though MotorTrend got 6.1.

[@boostedsaab2757]

That's not bad.... Not fast but not bad. Keep in mind 50-80mph was the strong point for any Saab, not much could compete at those speeds. Add some mods? Strong point becomes 50-100+ depending on the mods

[@jimlevin4843]

And its fwd!

[@kirbyswarp]

@DesertBMW this isnt a 0-60 car but I wouldn't call 6-7 second 0-60 slow, escpecially by 1999 standards.

[@medianexchanges]

rare as can be

[@alfamonk]

nice engine but the chassis on these was still the crappy GM Vectra platform.

[@vibingwithvinyl]

+alfamonk True, although the (OG)9-3 was much improved over the (NG)900.

[@KingCast65]

+alfamonk Yup. You needed the VRK Viggen Rescue Kit.

[@dancelittlesquire]

I just wanna know why the soundtrack sounds like I’m the middle of a McDonald’s lololol

[@BennysBenz]

Holy cow that guy really looks like S Labouf

[@thekhakiobserver3128]

Beautiful classy vehicle, prolly needed rwd

[@mayamanign]

SAAB RULES!

[@Nichen]

I didnt know Shia Labouf was working for Motorweek in the late 90s