The 200-horsepower V6 engine provides plenty of power. It revs freely and makes good sounds. Driving a Saab smoothly can be a bit of a challenge at times. Part of the Saab character demands that the engine be allowed to rock back and forth freely on its transverse mounts, creating a strong moment in the drivetrain as it does so, and making on-throttle and off-throttle transitions less than smooth.Saab's 3.0-liter V6 is tuned to offer a much broader torque range than the 2.3-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine. Therefore, it's much more pleasant to mash the throttle on this wagon at any rpm and let the automatic transmission deal out the power smoothly and quietly. It delivers solid performance, and you it's easy to get better fuel economy than the EPA rating of 25 mpg. The steering is well weighted here, accurate and not too much overassisted at highway speeds, but more so at lower speeds and in parking maneuvers. Saab went to an independent rear suspension on this wagon to increase the load width in the cargo bay, and got a lot better handing in high-speed corners in the bargain. The anti-lock disc brakes are more than up to the job on this wagon.
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