In February 1998, a beautiful Saab 900 Talladega (Saab 900 2.0 Turbo Coupé Talladega with the rather rare color Cayenneröd) left the car dealer in Nyköping, Sweden. Equipped, among other things, with light leather upholstery and a glass sunroof, this car was a dream come true for many Saab enthusiasts at the time.
The car was purchased new by the seller’s father in 1998, and it is a 1998 model year. The car was equipped with all of the necessary equipment. When his father desired a convertible but thought it was too costly, he fitted a glass sunroof.
Shortly afterwards, the car was handed in to the well-known Saab car-tuner Rolf Uhr (Nordic Tuning) and fitted with a Stage 3 package, which means race catalytic converter, 2.5-inch exhaust system and an output of 235 hp. Probably then, in that tuning house Nordic Tuning, Saab’s original wheels were replaced at the same time with even more beautiful Hirsch’s 6-spoke 17-inch alloy wheels.
Practically, after this tuning intervention, the car stopped and was parked in a garage, and so for the next 20 years until this auction last week when it was sold for an incredible 30,000 euros. The odometer stopped at 624 kilometers, so the car is practically new, in salon condition, with top sports upgrades.
The auction started earlier this month, and started quite intensively. The auction company’s estimated value of $12,500 – $18,000 was already passed several days before the end of the auction and the winning bid was twice as high – 320,000 swedish kronor ie. $36,000.
900 Talladega was a tribute to Saab’s endurance test at the American oval race track Talladega Raceway. Then six Saab 900s drove 100,000 miles in a row at an average speed of 226 kilometers per hour.
At the same auction, a Saab Sonett II was also sold for a record SEK 370,000 ($42,000). Ten years after the Saab bankruptcy, these cars are only becoming more and more interesting, and more expensive.
I owned a Canadian NG900Se 4door 1998. Regret selling it. Heated rear seats back then !!