Open-air motoring has an appeal that is sometimes indescribable. You can drive a R1-million car and barely anyone will turn to look at the car twice, partly because there are so many cars breaking the R1-million mark.
However, pull up in a convertible and nine times out of 10, people will look at you with barely concealed envy.
And, nine times out of 10, those drivers will assume that because it’s a convertible, it’s probably made for sedate cruising. So, they’re even more surprised when the convertible leaves them behind, spluttering at the traffic lights.
The Saab 9-3 Aero convertible automatic is a fairly sedate-looking car. There’s nothing that’s out of place about the exterior or the interior. It wasn’t designed to be different or bold. It was designed to look good and to easily fit into any crowd. It’s for this reason that it is quite surprising how responsive it is when you put your foot down on the accelerator.
You don’t hear the roar of engines inspired by aeronautical heritage and you don’t feel a kick in the stomach the way you sometimes do with cars that are pushing out a hefty 184kW of power. It makes its 0-100kph sprint in 8,1 seconds seem effortless and that’s probably why people are so surprised to see it pull away in such a hurry.
However, with that amount of power, it makes the problem of its light steering all the more evident.
It’s because of this that you’re not entirely confident of the vehicle when you’re pushing it around bends. Don’t get me wrong. It’s a composed vehicle in most situations, but given its power, you’d expect it to be more confident when you put your right foot down.
The one thing I do love about modern convertibles is how easy it is to get the top down.
It takes an average of 20 seconds for the roof to fold away and the best thing about the Aero is that you can take the top down by using the remote key, which I have to admit is quite impressive.
There you are, walking up to your car with too many packets in your hands and all you have to do is hold down the unlock button and the roof folds away so that you can put whatever you want on the back seats.
However, this being South Africa, it’s never advisable to leave anything on any of the seats whether you have the roof up or down.
The Saab 9-3 Aero has a host of creature comforts such as electronically adjustable, heated seats, dual climatronic air conditioning and a multi-function steering wheel.
A nifty feature on the front seats is that the seat belts are built into the seats so you don’t have to stretch over your right shoulder to reach the seat belt the way you would on any other two-door car with no B-pillars.
Of course, it wouldn’t be a typically Swedish car if it wasn’t safe. The 9-3 Aero has ABS, ESP, EBD, emergency brake assist, cornering brake control, a traction control system and ESP plus on the V6 turbos.
Convertibles, while not always the most practical of cars, are vehicles we always dream of and after a week with the Saab 9-3 Aero convertible, I was reminded of why open-air motoring can be so alluring.
Fact file
Model: Saab 9-3 2,8T Aero
Price: R486 000
Engine: 2,8-litre turbo V6
Tech: 184kW, 350Nm
Top speed: 240kph, 0-100kph: 8,1s
Tank: 64 litres
Services: 10 000km