These are the first official photos of the new Saab 9-3X, a 'crossoverish' station wagon in the style of the Audi A6 Allroad and Volvo XC70 that will make its debut at the forthcoming Geneva Motor Show. Based on the station wagon variant of the 9-3 that Saab calls Sport Wagon, the 'X' model will be available with either a 210HP 2.0 liter turbocharged petrol engine combined with the firm's XWD four-wheel-drive system or a 180HP 1.9-liter TTiD diesel engine with front-wheel drive.In terms of performance, the 2.0 Turbo XWD which is available with both a six speed manual and automatic transmission can accelerate from 0–60 mph (96 km/h) in 8.2 seconds (Auto: 9.1 sec) and reach a top speed of 143mph - 230 km/h (Auto: 137mph). The front-wheel-drive only diesel variant performs the 0 to 60 mph sprint in 8.3 sec (Auto: 8.8 sec) and has a top speed of 137mph - 220 km/h (Auto: 134mph).
As is the case with other vehicles of this sort, compared to the standard 9-3, the ride height has been raised by 35mm on the 2.0 Turbo XWD model and 20mm on the FWD diesel version. But that's about all that's mechanically different between the 9-3X and its Sport Wagon sibling, as there's no special tires or toughened suspension here.
While it's as much of an off-road model as the standard 9-3 Sport Wagon, Saab's designers have tried their best to make the 9-3X look the part. Protective cladding aside, the 9-3X gets new dark grey bumpers, skid panels with a matt aluminum finish, 5-spoke 17-inch alloy wheels, aluminum-colored lower door strips and roof rails with the same finish
There's no picture of the interior, but Saab claims that the 9-3X's cabin features a unique trim, with dark metallic finish to the door trims, glove box and gearbox surround plus unique sports seating features grey fabric inserts in the black leather upholstery.
