Yes, you read that right – The world’s second oldest Saab can be yours, if you participate and win the current auction held in Sweden. The well-known Swedish auction website “Bilweb Auctions” announced a set of cars that will be auctioned in early September, and among them was a real pearl – according to the auctioneers, it is the Saab 92 (0004) as the oldest (operative, in use) Saab car in the world.
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Saab 92004
This is supposedly the absolutely oldest Saab in traffic with chassis number 0004. Used by Saab from 1948-1952 and was also the first with a tailgate before selling to the mainstream public. The car was once sold by Saab to a private individual, but the car was initially used by Saab for various projects, including to rebuild the tailgate. Cars with their own history are extra valuable for collectors and this Saab has both its own history and a place in the fine Swedish car history.
According to the advertiser’s description, This car with chassis number 92004 started its initial life as a Saab test car, and was returned to the factory after the trial period and was fitted with the B-model tailgate. After its 5 years in factory service it was sold as a second hand car, and has been hardly used since then. For a long period it sat indoors in a living room as a pure ornament.
What was the price of a similar Saab car at the auction?
The estimated value of one such collector car ranges from 250 to 300,000 SEK ($28,000 – $35,000), but only the market will appreciate the true collector value of this pearl among cars. Recall, three years ago, a similar car (twin brother) Rare SAAB 92 DE LUXE BERLINE 1949 prototype with chassis number 92009 (“the third oldest Saab”) was sold at auction for also similarly estimated $27,500. However, the information was incorrect. The third oldest Saab with number 92007 is owned by Jacob Wallenberg who inherited it from his father Peter Wallenberg who received it as a 60th birthday present from Saab.
From this we see that the estimated price at the auction is achievable and very possible.
The oldest Saab prototypes
Saab’s car production began after World War II when demand for warplanes fell sharply. In mid-1946, the first prototype of the Saab with chassis number 92001 was completed and shown to Saab’s management. Then the company decided to build three more test cars. It is the last manufactured car of the test cars that is now for sale. In the summer of 1947, the Saab 92 premiered to the press in Linköping.
The very first Saab 92001 is today at the Saab Museum in Trollhättan, and the other two test cars have long since disappeared. So the car that is now for sale is the only one preserved from the first test series. It is also the world’s oldest Saab that is still in service. In all the years since it was sold by Saab, it has been around the first owner family. Before it was resold by Saab in 1952, it got the B-model’s boot lid.
If you believe the mileage in the car, this Saab has covered only 1775 miles in all these years. For many years it was displayed indoors as a pure ornament. The car has a two-cylinder two-stroke engine 25 hp and a top speed of 105 km/h. It took about half a minute for this old Saab to reach over 100 km/h.
