Saab 9-3 ePower Archives

Video: Saab 9-3 ePower

A month or so ago we were running a few test rides in our Saab 9-3 ePower vehicle at a Swedish event called Almedalen.

Once the Saab 9-3 ePower returned to Trollhattan, I jumped in for a quick ride and we decided to shoot this short video of the car in action. The video was shot just outside our technical department here at Saab. I’ll have more to share about the 9-3 ePower and my ride in it soon.

We hope to have a test fleet of these electric vehicles out on Swedish roads in the near future.

—

Saab zero emissions ePower vehicles at Almedalen

Almedalen Week is an annual political and interest group love-in held in picturesque Visby, on the island of Gotland off Sweden’s east coast.

During this year’s Almedalen Week there will be a display of electric vehicles, and of course the Saab 9-3 ePower will be included in that display. Moreover there will also be two more Saab 9-3 ePower vehicles available for people attending the event to take for a test drive (or more accurately, be taken for a test drive – only Saab staff at Almedalen are allowed to drive but visitors can go for a ride).

This is not the first time an electric Saab 9-3 has graced Almedalen Week. In fact, the Saab 9-3 ePower’s genesis in the form of the True Electric 9-3 Convertible was on display at the show back in 2009.

The Saab 9-3 ePower is a collaboration between Saab Automobile, Boston power (battery partner), Electro Engine (battery management), Innovatum (project management) and Power Circle (electrical expertise). You can also see a background article on the construction of these zero emissions vehicles, which are based on the Saab 9-3 SportCombi.

The Saab 9-3 ePower vehicles will be on display at Almedalen Week from July 3 to 7 and whilst we’re not there personally, we will try to bring you more coverage from Almedalen this week.

Saab Zero Emissions EV fleet under construction

The Saab 9-3 ePower Concept was first introduced at the Paris Motor Show in September 2010. Now, a fleet of vehicles based on that concept is under construction at Saab’s factory in Trollhattan.

Off to the side of Saab’s main production line is a room called Frickeboa, which is a multi-purpose facility that we’ll learn a bit more about in future entries on this site. Think of it as a combination of a prototype production line and training facility.

Right now, Frickeboa is being used to hand build Saab’s test fleet of zero emissions vehicles. The particular vehicles you can see in this article are intended to be used for validation testing inside the company. The final fleet vehicles will go out later this year and be used extensively by a select group of drivers, with feedback from the process being used to further improve the technology.

The Saab 9-3 ePower, the basis for these test vehicles, uses a lithium-ion battery pack and a new, advanced battery management system to deliver 200 kilometers of zero-emissions driving with the convenience of a full sized family wagon.

The Saab ePower is the first electric vehicle from Saab and is a result of a co-operation between Saab Automobile, Boston Power (batteries), Electroengine in Sweden AB (battery management system), Innovatum (project management), Power Circle (Sweden’s electric power industry trade organization) and the Swedish Energy Agency (partial financing).

Here’s a look at what’s happening on the build right now…

Saab 9-3 SportCombi bodies awaiting their fit-out as zero emissions electric vehicles.

Parts awaiting fitment are stored off to the side of the Frickeboa production line. Each crate has a label denoting an individual ZE vehicle from the production run.

A couple of vehicles on the line…… think of Frickeboa as a smaller, but fully functional version, of the main production line.

And a closer view of the same vehicle…..

A view of the battery case inside the vehicle. It goes down the middle of the car, allowing for optimal weight distribution and forms a divider between the two rear seats.