Saab press - April 14, 2008
Saab Turbo X enters first U.S. track test
Celebrating 30 years of Saab turbocharging leadership, the all-black 2008 Turbo X presents itself as the most technologically advanced and fastest car in Saab's history. But how fast exactly? That's what Saab Automobile USA wanted to find out with a series of tests, pitting the Turbo X V6 Turbo against some of its most prominent competitors - ranging from the Audi A4 3.2 Quattro, Subaru WRX STi and BMW 335 Xi to the mighty M3 V8.
Pratt & Miller, the racing organization behind Corvette's domination in the American Le Mans series, oversaw the first event Turbo X test event taking place on Monday, April 14 at Gingerman raceway in Southwest Michigan (http://www.gingermanraceway.com). Behind the steering wheel: small-yet-feisty (25 Formula 1 starts, triple Le Mans 24 hours wins in Corvette) Jan Magnussen, fresh in from Scandinavia (http://www.janmagnussen.com/jan_magnussen_cv.asp).
While the Turbo X consistently performed mid-pack during the dry back-to-back sessions in the morning, the pattern changed significantly after lunch when the entire track had been covered with a layer of water. Saab put its innovative cross-wheel drive system to good use, with the Turbo X rising above both the A4 Quattro and the WRX STi and nearing the best M3 lap time in the wet by one tenth of a second.
After a long, hard day on the track, Magnussen was all smiles. "This was almost more fun than Le Mans", he said. "I got to drive the best of the best midsize performance sedans on this beautiful track, and tonight I can just have a nice dinner and sleep in a decent bed". And the Turbo X? Magnussen: "I was positively surprised, mostly by the excellent chassis and the very transparent and well-integrated cross-wheel drive. This is not a high-strung athlete, but a very well rounded performer, good for many miles of fun under all kinds of weather circumstances". Solid praise, indeed.
