Cars - Saab 99

	Cars - Saab 99

The 99 was an automobile produced by Saab between 1968 and 1984.

On April 2, 1965, Gudmund's day in Sweden, the Saab board started Project Gudmund to develop a new and larger car to replace the Saab 96. This new car became the Saab 99, designed by Sixten Sason and unveiled in Stockholm on November 22, 1967.

The first 99 prototypes were built by cutting a 96 lengthwise and widening it by 20 cm - this created the so called Paddan (Toad).

As a disguise, the first 99 was badged 'daihatsu' as that name could be made up out of letters available for other Saab models .

Although Saab engineers liked the two stroke engine it was decided that a four stroke engine was necessary and the choice was a 1.5 L (later 1.7 and 1.85 L) engine from Triumph, the same Triumph Slant-4 engine used in the Triumph Dolomite, but with a Zenith-Stromberg CD carburetor developed specially for Saab. 48 Saab 99s were equipped with a V8 from Triumph, but the idea to use a V8 was dropped in favor of a turbocharged engine. The engine ultimately used in 99 was a four-cylinder in-line engine that was tilted at 45 degrees, basically half of a V8. The engine produced 87 hp DIN (64 kW) at 5500 rpm. The engine was watercooled, but unlike most cars of the time it had an electric cooling fan. Due to a trade restriction the USA models had a special front facia with two round headlights instead of the single rectangular unit it had in other markets. The "US front" then became a popular item for car customisers in Europe.

Early 99s carried over the freewheel transmission from the Saab 96, but the freewheel was removed with the introduction of the 1.85 L engine.

The car was wide and low and the suspension gave it handling that was very good for the time. The Cw value was 0.37 while other cars of the time had 0.4 to 0.5. The chassis was also designed for safety.

Wheels magazine wrote in a July, 1978 road test of the 99 turbo "Compare the top gear times and you'll see that the Turbo is almost as fast between 60 km/h and 160 km/h in fourth gear as any five-seater in the world." and Modern Motor of August 1978 wrote "It is necessary to drive the car to believe that such a seemingly endless surge of strong acceleration is possible from a 2.0 L engine in a far from lightweight car."

A police version 99 is shown on a Swedish postage stamp. The hood/bonnet of the 99 (and also the 900) caused problems for the police. Since it wraps around the paint had to be extended up on the hood and not restricted to just the fenders as on other cars.

Models

EMS - Introduced in 1972, the EMS (Electronic Manual Special) was a sportier model that was only available in a two door version. It had a stiffer suspension and was sold in a silver colored metallic paint. The engine had 1985 cc displacement giving 110 hp DIN (81 kW) and a top speed of 170 km/h (106 mph).
SSE - Sold in the USA to satisfy demand while the EMS was not yet available there. The SSE had a black vinyl roof cover and an automatic transmission built by Borg-Warner.
X7 - Introduced in 1973. A very basic model only sold in Sweden. The car had no self-repairing bumpers and it also had the same seats as the V4 Saabs, only with no heat. A simpler climate control system was also added. The clock, cigarette lighter, glove compartment and the rear window defogger were also dropped.
GLE - Introduced in 1976.
L - Luxe. A budget model introduced in 1973 that came with the 1.8L Triumph engine.
GL - Grand Luxe.
GLE - Grand Luxe Elegant/Extra. The top model, equipped with fuel injection, power steering and an automatic transmission.
GLs - Grand Luxe Super. It is the same as a GL but with two carburetors instead of one.
Turbo - Introduced in 1978. The Turbo S was a special model with factory mounted water injection, giving an extra 15–20 hp. In 1978 there was a very limited edition of a little over 100 five door 99 turbos. They were only available in cardinal red metallic.
Finlandia - A limousine version of the Saab 99 GLE combi-coupé with a 25 cm longer wheelbase was introduced in 1977 by Valmet in Uusikaupunki (Nystad), Finland and was called the "Finlandia". It was only sold in Finland. The first year had a short extension piece between the front and rear doors. In 1978 the wheelbase was only 20 cm longer than in the standard model and all doors were stretched by 10 cm. Two late 99 Finlandias were fitted with a turbocharged engine at the factory. The tradition continued with the Saab 900
Finlandia in 1979.

History

The 99 was first shown on November 22, 1967. The first production cars came in autumn 1968.

In 1970 the interior was given a facelift and became more luxurious. The exhaust system was now made of aluminum. In March, the 99E Automatic was introduced. It had a 1.7 L engine with electronically controlled fuel injection, giving 95 hp (70 kW). A four-door version was also introduced.

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Cars - Saab 99

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