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546 – Saab 9-5 shrugs off snow

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20 January 2011

Bryan Hatter, former Saab MD, and his Saab 9-5 AWD

Bryan Hatter, former managing director of Saab, with his Saab 9-5

Business Car Manager Editor’s Blog: former Saab MD blogs

BRYAN Hatter, a former managing director of Saab with whom I keep in touch, recently took delivery of a new Saab 9-5. Bryan has kindly blogged for us before about his cars. He submitted a first report on his Saab 9-5 2.8T XWD Aero in Blog 512 Bryan Hatter on his new Saab 9-5. Now he provides an update.

Bryan Hatter blogs: I thought an update of impressions over the winter might be interesting.

You wouldn’t think that low-profile tyres on 19 inch wheels would be much to write home about with all that snow.

Well, 24 hours after the main snowfall and I’d shovelled some away to let the gates open, it was decided to see how the new 9-5 XWD reacted to these conditions.

First, I ventured out in my Saab 9-3 and the front-wheel drive performed as expected, but still got stuck on a snow ridge at one junction.

My wife declined my suggestion that I should then try the 9-5. No, she was going to try it for herself.

Reversing out of the garage onto deep snow and then turning round she proceeded to move off without a sign of wheel spin. I was most impressed.

An hour later she returned with a broad smile, saying that if that was what XWD four-wheel drive was all about she wouldn’t want another car without it.

The warm-up during sub zero temps was extremely quick, as were the heated seats.

Since then it has done motorway work in the appalling rain of recent weeks and the car continues to reinforce the feeling of being firmly planted on the road. One option that would be useful is a blind spot warning system.

The brakes are reassuringly powerful and progressive and the rain-sensor wipers are great at judging just the right speed. The headlights give a good balance of spread and penetration.

Like Saabs before, one of this car’s strengths is comfortable and stress-free journeys

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Ralph Morton

Ralph Morton

Ralph Morton is an award-winning journalist and the founder of Business Car Manager (now renamed Business Motoring). Ralph writes extensively about the car and van leasing industry as well as wider fleet and company car issues. A former editor of What Car?, Ralph is a vastly experienced writer and editor and has been writing about the automotive sector for over 35 years.

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