New 2010 Saab 9-5 unveiled: Photos and Video

Saab 9-5

Saab’s Head of Brand Design says these are exciting times for Saab and that’s quite true actually, as Saab now has a new car and a new owner as well.

GM and Koenigsegg’s deal has been confirmed and 100% of Saab stock will be transferred to Koenigsegg by the end of the year, subject to terms and conditions including funding commitments and transitional assistance for Saab by GM from being a GM brand into a new independent marque.

Saab 9-5

The new Saab 9-5 looks considerably less like its predecessors and it reminds me a little of a large Skoda Fabia with a butt, for some reason. It’s got design cues inspired by the Saab Aero X concept car. The interior is typically Saab with jetfighter cockpit inspiration and the backlighting is all done in an old school green. I think one of the last manufacturers around to use green backlighting was Ford with the pre-facelift Focus, Ranger and etc. Know of any else? But Saab’s green has a much more premium look to it – more jetfighter instrumentation than pasar malam digital clock.

The engine options can take either one of 3 fuels – petrol, diesel and E85 bioethanol. At launch time, the 9-5 will have a 160hp inline-4 turbodiesel, a 220hp 2.0 litre turbocharged petrol engine, and a 2.8 litre V6 turbo with XWD all-wheel drive making 300 horses and 400Nm of torque to help get all those horses down onto the tar. The BioPower E85 engine will be available after the launch – a 2.0 litre unit. Another petrol engine will also be added, an entry level 180hp 1.6 litre petrol.

Saab 9-5

Loads of buzzwords are packed into the marketing brochure – head-up information display (HUD); adaptive headlights (Bi-Xenon Smart Beam); adaptive cruise control; Saab DriveSense adaptive chassis with real-time damping control; keyless entry and starting; dual-zone climate control; dynamic parking assistance, and Saab XWD with eLSD. The car’s entertainment system uses a hard drive for map data and has reserved 10GB of dedicated music storage.

Look after the jump for a video and photos of the new 9-5.

VIDEO: Head of Saab Brand Design talks about the new 9-5

[zenphotopress number=99 album=457]

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Paul Tan

After dabbling for years in the IT industry, Paul Tan initially began this site as a general blog covering various topics of personal interest. With an increasing number of readers paying rapt attention to the motoring stories, one thing led to another and the rest, as they say, is history.

 

Comments

  • jiliv on Aug 28, 2009 at 7:46 am

    Nice…very futuristic design & good range of engine selection too!

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  • Farhat Haniff on Aug 28, 2009 at 8:00 am

    Beautiful. It does remind me of the Skoba Fabia back, especially the C-Pillar and the wrap around A-Pillar and windscreen to bonnet line of Skoda Fabia too. I was never keen on the design of Skoda Fabia, but the design execution here is done well.

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  • KitKat on Aug 28, 2009 at 8:03 am

    Discreet Sweedish design with powaah under the hood, i loike it!

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  • BeemeFreak on Aug 28, 2009 at 8:04 am

    Great improvement from the previous model however the decison to keep the tradition of the aircon vents spoils everyting.

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  • the interior looks quite ok and the technology is quite amazing too..but in terms of exterior looking, SAAB really needs to have another designer..it's ugly..it wont be able to compete with BMW, Merc, Audi n Lexus in terms of luxury looks..anyway, keep it up SAAB..

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  • beautiful car especially the backlight that run throughout the bonnet. very beautiful at night

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  • y saab not famous in Malaysia? i think they r damn nice. not sure bout the performance

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  • American_born_ah_ben on Aug 28, 2009 at 9:04 am

    clean front..

    simple n purely elegant unlike korean n japs who seems to overdo things a bit.

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  • American_born_ah_ben on Aug 28, 2009 at 9:07 am

    this guy is having lipstick on his lips!

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  • painsama on Aug 28, 2009 at 9:20 am

    >>KS said,

    y saab not famous in Malaysia? i think they r damn nice. not sure bout the performance

    ========================

    Because there are Toyota and Honda…

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  • KitKat….u sound like Jeremy Clarkson hehe

    Btw the all black meter cluster looks like airplane…cool without being too fancy

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  • Yoezpo on Aug 28, 2009 at 1:40 pm

    it's like driving a plane!!

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  • chain on Aug 28, 2009 at 1:54 pm

    too bad,in malaysia no SAAB..once but not now..however,i like saab, for its beauty and safety..

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  • dejavu on Aug 28, 2009 at 4:15 pm

    black-ed A-pillars reminds me of M.Astina n S.Swift Sport.

    Overall a very clean design. But really like those cockpit inspired meter panels

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  • laburit on Aug 28, 2009 at 4:21 pm

    we don have SAAB, but we have SAAT…

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  • azrai on Aug 28, 2009 at 4:33 pm

    Look like korean cars with Jaguar's new tail light.

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  • ToyCar on Aug 28, 2009 at 4:43 pm

    what is the reason the front pillar is black color?

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  • 4G63tDSM on Aug 28, 2009 at 4:57 pm

    The Swede is back.

    I don't think they are worried about competing with BMW, Audi and Mercedes. People buy SAABs for being SAABs. (Same like Alfa Romeo customers). Since the 900, they always had thier own quirky look.

    Now SAAB, don't forget the stationwagon.

    The front is pure Saab, but its a pity the rear ended up looking a bit lexus….which didn't quite well as a package.

    Now if they can do something about the 9-3…..(for what its worth the 9-3 Sportscombi looks awesome)

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  • kimi_ on Aug 28, 2009 at 5:00 pm

    Wow….the rear looks like ASTON MARTIN

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  • victor lee the stupi on Aug 28, 2009 at 5:21 pm

    I have no surpraise they (SAAB) inspiring from a fighter…in fact, they are one of the jet fighter producer!!

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  • Superb Car…….. Absolutely Complete…..

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  • tikus on Aug 28, 2009 at 5:33 pm

    Hope SAAB will be back in Bolehland.

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  • lowprofile on Aug 28, 2009 at 6:02 pm

    tikus,

    saab will only come back once they have established a strong sales programme in europe and u.s.

    toy car,

    the blacked out front pillar was an early saab design feature. general motors did not continue it when they took over. other saab design features are the hockey stick rear window design (this i think they have already omitted in recent models) and the 3-hole grille which has somewhat evolved with the edge holes now merging with the headlamps.

    yoezpo,

    saab (the car company) was an aeroplane manufacturer. today saab aviation still makes fighter jets and commercial planes. that is why their dashboard is always dark. it is to reduce glare as that is how pilots like their dash panels. same for the night panel feature which allows pilots and drivers to turn off specific lights on the dashboard so they can concentrate on the speedo only or other meters during night driving. so, their dashboard features will always be aircraft inspired… not sure about the direction taken by the new saab company though.

    KS,

    saab is not popular here because they cost more than the equivalent mercedes and bmw. nothing to do with toyota or honda. they are also more expensive than volvo. another reason is that their cbu status makes them higher in price and this will turn off many would-be buyers. in terms of performance, ;) you have to drive it to experience it. there is a reason why owners fondly refer to their performance oriented turbocharged cars as 'jets'.

    american born ah beng,

    saab design has always been very scandinavian. this means it is clean, simple, functional and elegant. much like ikea. if you notice their designs, they're also simple functional and clean but at the same time being elegant. the swedes are simple people who appreciate nature and simple stuff like that. that's why their design and even volvo design is organic and simple. less fussy and if you notice, their designs tend to stand the test of time better than design-for-the-sake-of-it designs.

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  • yeah…the aircon vents look really old skool

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  • the rear somehow kinds of remind me of the jaguar XF…

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  • mingyuyu on Aug 28, 2009 at 8:51 pm

    The car looks fine and elegent. I think this is the best car ever produced by Saab. Feel sad because cant see it in Malaysia… Haiz…

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  • Wak Rempit on Aug 28, 2009 at 9:21 pm

    Possibly the cleanest design since I can remember or simple ir you prefer, it says a lot about the swedish too (or swedish babes!)

    The engine bay is quite ok given to the typical european demands, I mean 1 engine for soccer moms, 1 for dads and one for the raceboys.

    The meter cluster with the HUD looks like it's zeroing in on a target (jetfighter inspired lah katakan). The interior… combo of black leather, graphite and aluminium.. I like!!

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  • ezmil on Aug 28, 2009 at 10:45 pm

    The dashboard reminds me of another Saab product… The Gripen :-)

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  • alpha0201 on Aug 29, 2009 at 12:22 am

    They have taken some design cue from Saab Aero-X. Brilliant!

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  • lambov12 on Aug 29, 2009 at 12:54 am

    looks like koenigsegg with 4 doors ..

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  • Automotive_Critics on Aug 29, 2009 at 1:14 am

    Nice. Though side panel profile a bit bare without strong character lines but it resembles 5 series. A-pillar and roof lining also reminds me that Godzilla Nissan GTR. Interior is practical and well placed. Overall very nice. Oh ya before i forget, SAAB has been using 6 sigma for determining build datum concept same as it's jet fighter. Proton can purchased it's engineering division if they is up for sale and let go the Lotus.

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  • Cyberkayu on Aug 29, 2009 at 3:20 am

    180hp 1.6 liter petrol~~

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  • farid on Aug 30, 2009 at 8:22 am

    i want it black..put green light up front…now i'm Kato..

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  • shawal ali on Oct 05, 2009 at 9:45 pm

    The brits knows best when it comes to make a car look good (eg. Aston Martin, altho , if im not mistaken the vantage was done by an indian guy from india) however, under that aston's hood is a german engine. , , This new 9-5 looks bloody good, and faithfully a Saab , with that wierd C-pillar , I always HATED SAABs cuz their friggin ugly, except this 1, the aero-X ,and the 9-3 convertible.

    I dont mind driving this car if its priced competitively, and 4s centres are nearby,

    Oh yeah, Paul, does this car still have the butterfly cupholder? its not a car wo cupholders

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  • francis adaku on Dec 21, 2012 at 8:23 pm

    i think it should be more angular

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  • francis adaku on Dec 21, 2012 at 8:26 pm

    more angular like match box

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