A Saab That Seems Too Familiar

Is it real? No, it’s a concept with a four-seat coupe meant to preview Saab’s future powertrain and design directions.

What they said: “This car shows how our concept work can be carried forward into a compact format,” said Anthony Lo, director for advanced design of General Motors Europe. “It has a number of features which we will be developing further, such as the new driver-focused design theme, the importance of clean, uncluttered surfaces and the easy, seamless connectivity inside the car.”

What they didn’t say: It seems like every year Saab trots out a rakish concept car that’ll never see a dealership, and if this one feels familiar, that’s because its basic shape made its debut with the Saab 9X concept . If Saab ever did produce a two-door (aside from its 9-3 convertibles), we guess we know what it would look like.

What makes it tick? A 1.4-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder that makes 200 horsepower and 207 pound-feet of torque when running on E85 (85 percent ethanol, 15 percent gasoline). There’s also a mild hybrid system that can shut down the internal-combustion motor at rest, and a solar panel on the roof does its (small) part to recharge the batteries.

How much, how soon? It’s not for sale, and never.

How’s it look? Sleek, clean and very Scandinavian. Saab calls the 9-X BioHybrid’s silhouette a “shooting brake,” and no doubt G.M. is keeping an eye on Volvo C30 sales to see if the market has room for a second Swedish two-door.

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