Shanghai November 26 (Gasgoo.com) Swedish carmaker Saab, now owned by Dutch auto maker Spyker, will start selling cars in China, Russia, Brazil and Mexico in the first half 2011. Its small luxury crossover, the new Saab 9-4X will probably be the first model to be put on the Chinese market, where SUVs are the most beloved, xcar.com reported Friday, citing Adrian Hallmark, Saab's executive director of sales.
The 2012 Saab 9-4X, which made its world debut at the 2010 LA Auto Show last week, will go on sale in the U.S. market next May starting at $34,205 and be sold in Europe and other markets in August 2011.
The volume version of the Saab 9-4X has a very similar appearance to the Saab 9-4X BioPower Concept, both adopting a fashionable wraparound windshield and having a hockey stick waistline and prominent grill. Besides, both cars feature the bi-xenon headlights, dual exhaust system and the standard18-inch alloy wheels.
With regard to its power system, the 2012 Saab 9-4X is available with two engine options-the 3.0L V6 naturally aspirated engine which delivers maximum power of 195kW/265hp and can accelerate from zero to 100km/h in 9.0 seconds, and the 2.8L V6 turocharged engine which produces maximum power of 221kW/300hp and peak torque of 400Nm, and takes only 8.3 seconds to accelerate from idle to 100km/h.
Both engines are mated a 6-speed automatic transmission. On top of that, the new car is equipped with Saab's XWD all-wheel-drive system enabling torque distribution between the front and rear axles to be adapted to the changes in dynamic axle load, while the electronically controlled limited slip differential (eLSD) can transfer up to 50% torque to the rear axle to gain the maximum traction.
