Saab has always attracted a slightly eclectic and literate fan base, so naturally we at OutDrive have felt the draw. The official stamp of brand quirkiness, the late Kurt Vonnegut, was the owner and manager of “Saab Cape Cod”. Saab has come a long way from the oil-gas mix, two-stroke, two-door sedans Vonnegut blames for robbing him of a Nobel Prize for Literature in, “Have I Got a Car For You”. Luckily for us, we’re not in a temporally twisted parallel universe where Vonnegut sold the equivalent of a 2008 9-3 Sport Sedan 2.0T, otherwise his excellent non-Nobel literature may never have been penned. Continue reading →

One of the interesting tech stories at the North American International Auto Show this week, that has lacked coverage, focuses on Saab. They showed off, for the first time, Cross Wheel Drive.

XWD as it is known is said to offer capabilities that aren’t available on conventional all-wheel drive vehicles. In addition to providing a variable torque split between the left and right sides of the car, XWD can optimize traction when a vehicle takes off from a traffic light, even in dry conditions.

Steven Shannon, president and chief operating officer of Saab Automobile USA told us that “The beauty of this system is that it does more than transfer torque from the front to the back. It transfers torque from side to side. And with Cross Wheel Drive, zero-to-sixty is going to be faster.”
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First it was Porsche partnering on a cheesy snow sled. Now Saab gets into the winter mix with the endorsement of a ski.

Saab has teamed up with sports brand Salomon to launch a new ski named the ‘Salomon Aero X’. The ski is inspired by Saab’s Aero X concept car that was unwrapped at the 2006 Geneva Show. Or at least that’s what the two companies’ claim, as I fail to see any resemblance at all between the two. The Aero X ski is priced at around $ 1.015.

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Often, one expects a lot from a big event and less so from a smaller program. Sometimes though, the little guy blows the big guy out of the water! When I visited the launch of one of Toronto’s biggest racing events last month, I felt let down. No cars, no flash, no excitement. There has been so much going on lately that I almost backed out of last night’s launch party for the new Castrol Canadian Touring Car Championship. What a mistake that would have been!
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Well, it’s been a busy day so this will be a quick tease. I took the new camera to Remy’s in Toronto’s ritzy Yorkville area for the launch of the Castrol Canadian Touring Car Championship. I took a ton of photos, which I’ll try to get posted tomorrow. For now, have a peak after the break to see friend of The Garage Perry Ianuzzi with Katie the Castrol girl.
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Who even knew that Saab tried their hand at building a Formula Car? It seems they may have even stumped Swade over at Trollhattan Saab. The pic above is from Dewane & he’s got more here.
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