The current-generation Saab 9-5 is one vehicle in serious need of an update. However, Saab will be showing a special edition of the 9-5 -- the Griffin -- at the Detroit Auto Show next month.

The 9-5 Griffin uses the standard 9-5's 2.3-liter turbocharged four-cylinder, so there's no boost in performance, but some very minor appearance tweaks are what make this 9-5 different from all of the others. Unique seventeen-inch five-spoke wheels and special Griffin badging are really the only exterior modifications to speak of, and this 9-5 can be had in either Polar White, Jet Black, Snow Silver, Nocturne Blue, Pepper Green, plus new colors such as Carbon Grey and Glass Grey.

Inside, premium stitching and Aero-inspired leather seats are standard, as is high-gloss trim. The seats are available in either black with parchment inserts or, naturally, parchment with black inserts. Other standard features include rear park assist and heated outside mirrors with an auto-dimming feature.

Ready for the shocking part? When the 9-5 Griffin hits dealerships next month it will be priced at $42,775 for the sedan and $44,045 for the SportCombi. This is indeed a hefty sum to pay for the aging 9-5, so we'll be interested to see how many Griffins fly off of dealer lots. Click through the post for Saab's official press release.

The eagle-eyed Swedes over at Trollhattan Saab have managed to catch what would appear to be the new 9-3X out in the wild, completely unburdened by camouflage. The new crossover is pretty much exactly what you’d expect from the current 9-3 design language, adding skid plates and a few inches of ride height to what looks otherwise like the 9-3 Sportcombi wagon.

With the new 9-4X currently in the product development pipeline—with a far more streamlined design according to the latest spy shots we’ve seen of that CUV—it will be interesting to see just how far Saab is willing to push its small premium crossover offerings. Click through the link below for a closer (still low res) look at the 9-3X mule.

+ TrollhattanSaab.net

Swedish automaker Saab has made quite a habit of hankering back to its successes of the past recently, conceiving of such tribute cars as the 9-3 Aero Convertible 20th Anniversary Edition in 2006, the Turbo X concept of 2007, as well as a 60th Anniversary Edition 9-5 Aero from that year. Without getting into the creative bookkeeping that allows for so many anniversaries, suffice it to say that Saab is ready to break out the bubbly on its own behalf once again.

The celebrated vehicle this year is another 9-3 convertible, built to honor the first Saab ragtop from 1983 (not to be confused with the production car from 1986 with was toasted two years ago…sigh). The new 9-3 will make its debut at the L.A. Auto Show next week, and will be showcased in a new “bright champagne” metallic paint.

The honored convertible will be offered in Jet Black and Carbon Grey as well, and will offer a revised front bumper design, carbon fiber “finish” interior pieces, and standard five-spoke, 17-inch alloy wheels. The special edition Saab will be priced at $46,725 to start. Scroll down to read the full press release.

Due to rising development costs, the folks at General Motors are having to delay a number of models that were originally scheduled to launch within the next couple of years, namely the Cadillac CTS Coupe, Buick LaCrosse, Chevrolet Cruze, Saab 9-5, and Saab 9-4X.

The Cruze was set to replace the Chevrolet Cobalt and delaying it now puts GM behind the small car trend. The Cruze is a very important car for the General, but GM is determined to have the Cruze released in the U.S. by 2010. The CTS Coupe and LaCrosse aren't expected to be high-volume cars anyway, so delaying these models shouldn't hurt too much. As for the Saabs, the 9-5 is an old car riding on an old platform and is in desperate need of a refresh replacement, while the 9-4X is still in final development at this time.

In the meantime, GM is expanding its development in other areas -- namely plug-in hybrids. The Chevrolet Volt is currently in the works, but we're told that other plug-ins could be arriving within the next few years.

+ Motor Authority: GM confirms delays for Cruze, CTS Coupe and Saab models

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ACURA TL

Last Generation: 2004 - 2008
Current Generation: 2009

A lot of controversy has been stirred over the contrasting chevron grille that Acura has put on most of its new models, and while the last-gen TL wasn't necessarily a huge step forward in sporty expression, we prefer its cleaner lines and less-contrived aesthetic.

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Most of the time, when an automaker completely overhauls one of their models, it's a good step forward for not only the car, but for the brand it represents. However, there are other times where the design teams make some questionable decisions and the new products end up looking worse than their predecessors.

Thus, we present our list of ten cars that, from a design standpoint, we think looked better in their previous generation. Scroll through our gallery to see all of the contenders, and leave a comment with any cars that you think we may have missed, and/or maligned.

Saab Australia has been taken to task by that countries federal court as a result of a marketing campaign which made the automaker out to be just a little more environmentally friendly than could be justified in reality.

From July through September of last year, Saab ran ads claiming that the company’s product range was “carbon emissions neutral” and promising that it would plant 17 native trees to offset the carbon-dioxide emissions over the life of the car. The Australian court found issue with those claims after evidence pointed to 17 trees being the amount needed to offset one car’s emissions for only one year of its operation. The federal court ruled the ads to be misleading to the public and has ordered Saab parent General Motors Holden to not only retrain its marketing staff in relation to “green” claims, but to also plant native trees totaling the number of cars sold during the marketing campaign—12,500 extra.

+ Drive

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Our spy shooters go wherever the target is, including it seems the higher security areas of Europe’s airports. Posing in front of some serious-looking barbed wire fencing, these images are the most revealing yet of the Saab’s ground-up new small sport utility, the 9-4X.

Though the SUV may share a platform with its Cadillac BRX cousin, we’re told that the 9-4X will be much more of a Saab directed product, unlike the badge-engineered 9-7X and 9-2X that came before it. The car’s design is a product of teams in both Germany and Sweden, and already shows a nicely aggressive stance with huge wheels pushed out to each corner. Cues from Saab’s Aero X can also be spotted in the glasshouse and front fascia of the mule seen here.

There’s a good chance that the uncovered 9-4X could show up for the Detroit Auto Show in 2009, and based on what we’re seeing here, we’ll be first in line for the reveal. Take a look at our gallery of images above or scroll down to read the photographer’s own words.

Lexus owners are re-upping with the brand at a greater rate than any other luxury car buyers, according to J.D. Power and Associates, who say that the Japanese automaker is outstripping its closest German competition by four percentage points.

During the first quarter of 2008, 48 percent of Lexus owners traded in for another Lexus, beating the excellent 44 percent return rate for BMW buyers. Mercedes-Benz was no slouch in retaining its customers either, holding onto 41.2 percent of buyers. At the other end of the list, Saab managed to lure back only 8.8 percent of its buyers in the first three months of 2008.

Check out the full list automakers in the luxury brand owner loyalty data below.
 
+ J.D. Power

Saab has always done well with its convertible offerings, and the company hopes to build on that historic success with a new big cabrio for the Paris Motor Show in October.

Print magazine Autocar is reporting that the Swedish automaker is looking to make a big splash in Paris by bringing a drop top that is both bigger and more upmarket than any previous offerings. We’re also told that the convertible will continue to spin on the design of the hot Aero X concept, though we doubt it will be as straight a copy as the one we’ve fudged above. Just one more reason to get fired up for the French event.

Does Saab have the brand value to pull off an upscale convertible to compete with the Germans? Give us your take, in comments.

+ Autocar

As part of an effort to reorganize the company, General Motors has decided to cut back on its truck production and also reduce the warranty terms on its U.S. Saab vehicles in the face of the recent decrease in sales.

Even after the American Axle strike earlier this year that cost the company $2.8 billion and lost 330,000 production units, GM still decided to drop its pick-up output by a further 117,000 units in order to meet its target of reducing the annual output by 300,000 trucks. Shifts at the truck dominant plants in Moraine, Ohio and Shreveport, Louisiana will be cut to meet the lower goal.

While decreasing truck production is a strategy common in GM and its rivals such as Ford, the Saab warranty reduction is a completely new approach. Effective immediately, it drops the coverage on all Saabs sold in the future from the standard 100,000 miles or seven-year coverage to a 50,000 mile or four year coverage. That said however, GM will still continue to offer free maintenance for three years or 36,000 miles.

+ Motor Authority: GM to cut pickup production, shorten Saab warranties