1991 SAABCS 2.3i 4AT (150 HP)

Vehicle Overview

If someone would put in a blender an Italian platform, a GM engine, and a Giorgetto Giugiaro design, the result would be Swedish. And that was the Saab 9000 CS.

The 9000 was introduced in 1984 but it was upgraded in 1991. The upgrade was so intensive that it could have been named a new generation. But it was the exterior design that showed the connection with the 1984 model.

The Saab 9000 shared some of its body panels with the Fiat Croma and Lancia Thema. The doors were identical. Only the door handles were different. But that’s where the shared components ended. The Sweedish car featured a sleek front with horizontal headlights that matched the company design language. In the back, the U.S. version didn’t feature lights on the liftgate, since the regulations didn’t allow a brake light on them. On the European models, the two taillights were connected via a red light strip across the back panel.

Inside, the Saab 9000 featured a specific dashboard with a big center console tilted toward the driver. The night-panel function shut off all the lights on the instrument cluster and left only the speedometer lit. As usual, the ignition key was placed between the front seats, next to the handbrake, and the gear-stick. In the back, there was enough room for three adult passengers.

The Saab was known for its turbo-powered engines and, in 1992, it introduced the 2.3-liter turbocharged unit that offered sports-cars performance in a family-oriented vehicle.