Saab 9-5 Model History

Saab's flagship vehicle, the 9-5 arrived in the United Sates for 1999 as an all-new product from the Swedish auto brand. A successor to the 9000 model, the 9-5 came as either a four-door sedan or a wagon. The premium vehicle was noted for possessing a highly-aerodynamic sedan body featuring a 0.29 drag coefficient and the first application of ventilated seats in a production car. Turbocharging was applied to four-cylinder and six-cylinder engines of the 1999 Saab 9-5. For 2000, new Aero trim models featured an enhanced, turbocharged 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine delivering 230 horsepower (a 60-horsepower improvement over the base model). The turbocharged V-6 version of the 9-5 was discontinued after 2003 but output from the four-cylinder engines for 2004 had climbed to 250 horsepower. Styling was refreshed on the Saab 9-5 for 2006 and the wagon would begin to be known as the SportCombi. With Saab's future under parent company General Motors in question, a 2010 model year Saab 9-5 was a completely new vehicle. The six-cylinder engine option returned to the 9-5 while all-wheel drive first its debut. The final Saab 9-5 was sold in North America during the 2011 model year.