Re-posted – I put this one up on site late last week but it wasn’t really the best time for everyone to see it. So here it goes for another run!
——
Kenneth Backlund and Kent Andersson from the Saab Performance Team put on a two-man precision driving show at the recent IntSaab 2011 event, held in Finland.
Enjoy!
—
I had another extraordinary weekend last weekend, attending the 2011 IntSaab event in Finland. These big Saab meetings are so inspiring. The opportunity to break bread with a big group of long-term and hardcore Saab nuts is one that we should all take advantage of at least once. I’ve been very lucky to do events like these several times now, and it never ceases to amaze or inspire me.
Saab needs its core fan base. We need you to preserve the integrity and history of the brand. Of course, we need you to drive Saabs, both old and new, and as part of that it’s our job to make cars that both adhere to and advance the Saab brand in the future.
I want to thank the Saab Club of Finland for hosting an excellent event this year. The organising team and their volunteers made everything run as smooth as silk and you’ve given me a taste for IntSaab events that will linger and grow as we all wait for next year’s event at Spa, in Belgium.
Below is my final gallery of cars. Apologies if I haven’t got your car in there, but hopefully it’s been shown somewhere in the previous IntSaab 2011 postings.
Click to enlarge.
—
I’m not sure why I decided to take these shots, but the detail-oriented side of my inner Saabisti found it very satisfying to do so.
Click.
—
Yesterday we had some brief notes from IntSaab 2011. Today I have access to my photos, so it’s time for some more elaborate postings…..
——
It’s a situation that I hope to rectify soon, for all of us.
This is Simo Lampinen, one of the original Flying Finns. He drove Saabs in rallies throughout the 1960s and 70s with multiple wins and podium finishes in rallies all over Europe. He has spent his retirement from competitive rallying as an administrator and clerk for the WRC circuit (amongst others) and if you’ve not been hit by a car whilst attending a competitive rally stage, you can probably thank Simo for your safety.
Simo did a presentation at IntSaab about Saab rallying and his career with both the Swedish and Finnish Saab rally teams. I missed that presentation as we were still on the road, on our way up to the event. Simo was kind enough to give me a personal encore on Sunday morning and I can’t be more grateful.
Simo has just passed his 68th birthday and still has the energy of a child. He loves a good story and I’m planning to get together with him again to record his story, from his perspective, for sharing here in Inside Saab in the future.
Two of Simo’s competition cars, which are now privately owned, were on display at IntSaab and still get a run regularly.
I can’t let this article pass by without thanking Marco H, who is the man primarily responsible for bringing Simo’s name and career to a higher place in my consciousness. Much appreciated, mate.
——
I also learned yet another way that the Saab 900 was ahead of its time – it has an iPhone holder built in……
——
The Saab Performance Team did their thing, albeit on a slightly smaller scale, on Saturday. Three shows were held during the afternoon at the Nokian Tyre Warehouse, in Nokia.
Kenneth fielding a question as to why they use cars with an automatic transmission…..
I’ve got a lot of video editing to do, but hopefully we should have something to show from the event in the next few days….
——
Most attendees at IntSaab saw the 9-4x for the first time at the Nokian Tyre Warehouse. It was unveiled at the end of the Performance Team show and then parked, and opened for inspection.
We also had it at the IntSaab hotel venue and it attracted people every time the doors (or other parts) were opened…..
——
I didn’t see this Saab 96 custom job at the main IntSaab venue, but it showed up at the Nokian Tyre Warehouse on Saturday afternoon.
The car has had its rooline chopped and many of the panels have been fabricated from fibreglass to get the custom look. A Ford V6 engine (the ‘Essex’ V6, if I understood correctly) has been fitted in the car.
It probably won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but for the amount of work and dedication that’s gone into this, and for the superb quality result obtained, you have to respect it. Amazing stuff.
——
If you’re lost whilst looking for next year’s IntSaab, which will be at Spa, in Belgium, then just look for the guy in the matte black Saab 96 and do as the sign says…..
The Belgians have hosted some wonderful Saab gatherings in the last few years and IntSaab 2012 will be a cracker, I’m sure.
I’ll be providing more details as soon as the whole package is ready for publication.
—
The slow rate of entries from IntSaab was due to the vast amount of activity.
Right now I’m sitting on a ship, heading away from Turku, Finland, towards Stockholm. The Saab 9-4x is tucked away safely in the belly of this ship and will enjoy another run from Stockholm to Trollhattan tomorrow (It’s averaging 11L per 100km for those who are interested).
——
Like the Saab Festival in Trollhattan, IntSaab is one of those significant activities that people should really try to be part of at least once if they can. The variety of cars and people and the depth of stories to be told is just amazing.
I’ve lost count of the number of people I met who bought their first Saab back in the 1960s or 70s. And some of the history on show was just magnificent. New cars, too, though lesser in number. We need to get some of those newer buyers a bit more engaged (which is a responsibility that lies with Saab as much as anyone else).
I’m sure that everyone who attended the event would join me in thanking the Saab Club of Finland for putting on a fantastic event. It can’t be easy to find a venue that can handle hundreds of cars as well as accommodating and feeding hundreds of people. The hotel at Ellivouri did both with aplomb and it made the event all the more enjoyable to have a real, central base for everything.
——
Interest in the future of Saab was high amongst people at the event. Everyone wanted to know who the mysterious Americans were and how things were going back in Trollhattan. What was the future for Saab? Are we going to survive?
It was hard being unable to provide fuller answers, but the message I conveyed at IntSaab was the same as the message here and everywhere else when it comes to Saab matters.
The current issue is short-term. We still have to get through it (and we will) but when we do, the long-term future is very bright. And don’t believe everything you read in the papers.
——
We brought along a Saab 9-4x for the event and the reception it received was outstanding. People were all over the vehicle from the first time we opened the doors.
The Saab 9-4x has been made primarily with the US market in mind, but it was really encouraging to hear a lot of people asking about when it would be available in Europe.
We stopped in at the few Saab dealerships on the way to IntSaab and they were really happy to see the 9-4x as well.
——
Those dealer visits were all part of Saab’s wider contribution to the weekend. There wasn’t a whole lot that we could do with a small team, but I hope we managed to add something to the weekend.
In addition to bringing the Saab 9-4x, we also had Kenneth and Kent from the Saab Performance Team there. They put on a smaller, two-man show that kept the crowd entertained on Saturday afternoon. I’ll be putting together some video from this show (you can see the teaser here if you haven’t already done so).
We also had two Saab 9-5s for people to inspect, and Sauli Naski, who is one half of the in-country Saab Finland team, was on hand to take any questions about the local market.
It was great to be able to bring something from the company to add to the event. The organisers of IntSaab 2011 did such a fantastic job and of course, they do it so that people can share their enjoyment of the brand and the cars that we’ve made over the years. Coming along and adding a little bit of a presence/enjoyment from Trollhattan was a lot of fun, and the least that we could do.
——
I’ll have more photos and stories from IntSaab when I get back to Trollhattan. Right now, my camera (and memory card) and safely locked inside the 9-4x, in the car deck of the ferry. That’s why you’re reading a lot of text right now and not seeing a lot of photos.
Again, thanks to all at IntSaab – both organisers and attendees. Have a great start to the new week and I’ll catch you all when I’m back in Trollhattan tomorrow.
—
Just a quick teaser for you all……. and yes, I was wearing my brown underpants……
🙂
—
Part of today’s program saw us stop in at a warehouse for Nokian Tyres. The Finnish company has around 5,000,000 or so tyres come through this warehouse every year. It can hold up to 900,000 tyres at any one time.
As well as storage for the summer and winter range of tyres, Nokian also has their studding machines at the warehouse.
Here’s how your Nokian winter tyres go from non-studded to studded, in around 60 seconds.
——
Finland! What a place. The language is from another planet, but the countryside and the people are magnificent and I’m soooooo very happy that I’ve finally made it to an IntSaab event.
IntSaab is the gathering of international Saab fans, hosted in a different country in Europe every year and organised by the various Saab clubs in the region. You don’t need to be a club member to attend, but of course supporting your local Saab Club is a good thing and when you see what these clubs put together for IntSaab, you’ll be quite amazed.
I’m here as part of a small Saab contingent, five people, lending a little corporate presence to the event. The feature of this presence is a show by Kenneth and Kent from the Saab Performance Team tomorrow afternoon. We have a few surprises in store for that, so I’ll keep it short on that subject, but it should be a whole lot of fun and IS readers will get to see it all.
I’ve met a number of old friends here already and I’m sure I’ll meet more tomorrow. I was especially excited to meet former Saab works driver and Finnish rally legend Simo Lampinen. I’m going to be chatting some more with Simo in the next couple of days (this is not a challenge – the man loves a story!) and plan on sharing a lot of that here at Inside Saab in the near future.
——
We got here a little late today as we called into a few dealerships along the way. Therefore we missed the presentation by Hanny Berger about Saab’s manufacturing history in Finland (I’ve owned several Finnish Saabs, another reason why it’s so great to finally visit here). We also missed a presentation by Simo Lampinen on his rallying history with Saab.
Tomorrow’s program will feature a tour around the countryside surrounding Ellivuori, including a stop at the Nokian tyre warehouse, where the Saab Performance Team will do their thing. The drive will finish in the afternoon, followed by the awards dinner and (yes, really) a magic show!
Sunday sees the daily parts market continue as well as a big closing lunch.
——
Catching up with people is one of the great things about IntSaab, but of course, it’s a car event and I thought I’d kick off the car coverage with a look at some of the more non-standard sights in the carpark.
Some people add driving lights to their bumpers. Others build them right in. It’s a curious look, but you can’t look away from this Saab 96…..
Click any of the images to enlarge
Saab 96 with custom stripes and a custom garden on the rear parcel shelf……
There is every likelihood that I’ve seen a rear window louvre on a Saab 96 before, but I had to photograph it again.
One of the great things about IntSaab is that all attendees get a goodie-bag, including one of these magnetic rally-style signs for their car, to commemorate their attendance. Many attendees also did a “pre-tour” in Finland on their way to the event, and their signs are marked accordingly…..
Old-school kiddie seat…..
First generation Saab with second generation wheels……
…..and third generation badging…..
Interesting roof apparel part 1….
Interesting roof apparel, part 2….
Aussie Aussie Aussie!!! I had the good fortune to meet the other Aussie at the event, John G from Brisbane. John’s in Scandinavia on a family holiday, fortuitously timed to coincide with IntSaab.
I hope these aren’t like notches on a cowboy’s belt……
This is not a standard colour….. in fact it’s anything but standard, it’s literally outstanding!
There is lots of camping and caravanning going on this weekend. More campers, below….
Inside one of the Saab 95s. Signatures on the door panel include that of Erik Carlsson….
Toppolas are popular again this year…..
….. and whilst I’ve seen plenty of Toppolas on 900s before, I can’t recall seeing a 99 with one on it. From Holland…..
And a curious detail on the 99….. click to enlarge….
I spoke with the owner, Tom, and whilst he has a couple of Saabs imported from the US, this isn’t one of them. A previous owner found the badge somewhere and stuck it on the car.
IntSaab 2012 is already being advertised at the 2011 event. Next year’s IntSaab will be held in Belgium and knowing how crazy the Belgians are about their Saabs, this is going to be one cracker of an event. Start making plans now…..
Our final series of images for today involve this modified Saab 96. You could change the name from Ninety Six to Nine-V-Six if you felt like it…..
——
Stay tuned for more from IntSaab 2011 tomorrow……
—
