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Friday, May 21, 2010

Review: Saab 9-3 Turbo X | The Truth About Cars

Review: Saab 9-3 Turbo X The Truth About Cars

1 comment:

cars admire said...

Boost lag isn’t bad. From 3,000 to 5,000 rpm, the turbo six’s smooth, effortless grunt would do a V8 proud. Rev the engine before releasing the clutch, and the car launches strongly and— thanks to the all-wheel-drive system— without wheelspin. While the Turbo X is not blindingly quick, you’re soon up to cruising speed. Even at full throttle, the DOHC mechanicals barely manage to be heard over the prominently throaty exhaust. While cruising, the soundtrack is all exhaust, whether you want it or not. After a few hours on the road, not.

The Turbo X’s shifter is awful. The throws are long, the action dreadfully imprecise. There’s easily enough room between first and second for another ratio. Unless you rev the engine nearly to the redline, the powerplant drops out of its powerband. And even if you do rev to red, the powertrain bogs as you engage second. Meanwhile, fourth, fifth, and sixth are so close together that one of them is redundant. And yet the stick is still preferable to the Aisin autobox