[Guibo]

"BOSTON — Saab is going full-speed ahead with development of an all-new subcompact car based on the achingly rakish 9-X BioHybrid concept unveiled at the 2008 Geneva Auto Show this spring. A 2010-ish production version, likely called 9-1, will compete with the likes of BMW's Mini and 1 Series, not to mention the Volvo C30 and Audi A3. But a senior U.S. executive tells Inside Line one point of contention is how many doors the 9-1 should have.

...the appeal of the Audi A3 and 1 Series, both pretty fine cars to drive, has been severely limited by its high prices. Saab wants to avoid these pitfalls with the 9-1.

'I don't think anybody's nailed it yet,' he [Roger McCormack, Saab Automobile USA's marketing director] said of the current models in the premium compact segment. McCormack said the challenge is to find the right balance of size, fuel economy, price — and body style."

The whole article:
http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do...ticleId=126467

9-X BioHybrid:

[OrientBlauZHP]

I like it; it will be interesting to see if SAAB even makes it.

[stefan]

Anyone else get "bar of soap" looking at it?

[NJKSC27]

Originally Posted by stefan

Anyone else get "bar of soap" looking at it?

i dont know about bar of soap but comes to mind

[Jumpman]

I know that's not the actual 9-1, but damn, that's ugly.

[Guibo]

"McCormack said the challenge is to find the right balance of size, fuel economy, price — and body style."

Yeah, let's totally bypass build quality, performance/power, handling, and overall driving dynamics when developing a 1-Series competitor.
If Saab wants to be taken seriously as a player in the premium compact segment, they need to expand their scope. And are they really a legit premium marque anyway? They seem to be really lacking in performance & luxury models, with a considerable reliance on GM platform sharing. It will be no surprise if they undercut the "competition" by thousands of dollars.

[atr_hugo]

That looks more like a C30 competitor than a 1 competitior.