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Vector-ious comeback
Saab 9-3 has a sporting personality and evocative emotional appeal
By Bob English
Thursday, September 25, 2003
As a longtime Saab fan - I owned four in a row during the '80s and early '90s - I must admit to having "gone off" the brand for a while. The cars seemed to have lost their personality and individuality under the paternalistic guiding hand of owners General Motors.
Even a trip to Sweden for a sneak-preview drive of the new 9-3 sedan last year didn't exactly rekindle the fires of enthusiasm to any great degree. Well, maybe there was a slight, smokey smouldering going on after a day at the wheel, but definitely no open flame. Gone were my old favourite hatchbacks, replaced by a more conventional 4-door sedan.
But I've just spent a week with a 9-3 Vector and, while I still think the car has become a bit too "global" and less "Swedish" than it could be, I must admit I enjoyed the drive. This neatly styled, 4-door sedan with its willing turbo power, 6-speed gearbox, good handling and brakes, along with a roomy, well-equipped cabin and useful-sized trunk, is definitely a worthy alternate choice to the likes of BMW's 3 Series, Volvo's S60 and Audi's A4.
And yes, part of its appeal is due to the fact that there's still some Saab DNA floating around the 9-3's vitals. Cars, like everything else, have to change with the times, but reminders of the past, such as the ignition key on the centre console, aren't a bad thing and do add to the emotional appeal.
The 2003 Vector test car was priced at $43,500 and came with options worth $3,600, bringing the total as tested price to $47,100.
Standard on the Vector (there are also lower priced Linear and Arc models) is the 210 hp, high-output motor and 6-speed manual gearbox, plus 17-inch wheels and tires, anti-lock brakes and front and side airbags. Also included are power windows, mirrors, etc., fog lamps, automatic climate control with electrostatic filter, cruise control, electronic stability control, heated leather seats and a good quality stereo. The options included a touring package consisting of electronic parking assist, Bi-Xenon headlamps, 6-disc, in-dash CD changer and rain sensing wipers, plus a sunroof and metallic silver paint.
Matching its sporty and stylish exterior is an interior I found very attractive, and also fairly roomy with plenty of leg and headroom and comfortable space for two (three if necessary) in the rear seat, which splits 60/40. Trunk space at 425 litres tops the Volvo and Audi, but falls shy by 15 litres of the BMW.
The instrument and control layout flows in front of the driver and down to the console in typical Saab style. Everything is visible (instruments are large with attractive bright bezels) and easy to reach, although the profusion of buttons can require a little more attention than is perhaps best. A rectangular screen presents trip computer and audio info, while a wide, shallow display below handles climate control information and outside temperature display. The wheel is a little utilitarian looking and the stalk controls for signals, lights and wipers still have the cheap feel I recall from my first experience with the car. Sometimes the small things can let down a good overall design. Seats are well designed, supportive and comfortable, interior sound levels low, the mirrors and windscreen washers effective and those Bi-Xenon lights are great.
The Vector is built on GM's global Epsilon platform and suspension is by MacPherson struts at the front and a 4-link system at the rear. A lot of time was spent tuning-in driving feel and handling that engineers felt represented the Saab standard. In fact, it handles and rides better than any Saab I can recall. Steering effort is good and response, while maybe not at BMW levels, is also fine, as is braking. This is one of those cars that simply feels good to drive and more than lives up to its sporty image.
Powering the Vector is a high-pressure, turbocharged, 2.0-litre, double overhead camshaft, 4-cylinder engine that produces 210 hp at 5,500 rpm and 221 lb-ft of torque at 2,500 revs. This gets to the front wheels via that 6-speed manual, which shifts surprisingly well for a front-drive car.
I thought the Vector would be quicker than the zero to 100 km/h in 8.8 seconds I recorded, but then maybe I wasn't caning it hard enough off the line. I've seen sub-eight-second numbers reported. There's always a sweet spot where engine revs, clutch engagement and tire grip come together to produce the best launch and sometimes it takes a bit of experimentation to find it. The car is in its element, however, once you're underway, where the flat torque curve produced by the turbocharger allows it to accelerate strongly in every gear. Overall driveability is good too, something that was often lacking in turbo-motors in the past.
Saab was among the first automakers to espouse the turbo and has done a lot of work over the years to make it work effectively. The result is very little turbo-lag - hesitation in throttle response often noticeable while the very high revving turbocharger (upwards of 100,000 rpm) spools up and begins to deliver boost. There is very little of this effect with this motor, particularly beyond 2,500 rpm or so, which is why it feels so lively through the gears. The engine makes an odd, active but breathy sound at idle, which isn't unappealing.
In the final analysis, however, Saab, and other Euro manufacturers too, needs to pump up the power a bit when faced with the 255 hp Nissan Maxima and 240 hp Honda Accord. Barely breaking the 200 hp mark, like the 9-3 and most of its rivals, isn't cutting it any more.
Immediate competition:
Audi A4, BMW 3 Series, Cadillac CTS, Mercedes-Benz C-Class,
Volvo S60
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