As Saab once put so eloquently ‘Why wait for tomorrow?’ life is all about getting the most out of every day.

They went on to clarify; ‘Grab the opportunities and follow your instincts. With a Saab 9-5 Wagon, you can make it a habit. It gives you innovative solutions and versatility that integrate with your daily needs. At work, with your family or on the way to your favourite activity. Just go where you want and bring what you like – whatever the season’ in other words, the original SUV.

Although I also own a few SUV’s, the Saab Sportwagon does everything they can do and more. In fact, it does it with more style, more elegance and more enjoyment. The Saab 9-5 Sportwagon set out to be just that, sporty and practical, and 20 years on from that brochure, I still believe these are a better option.

‘Let your interests and lifestyle decide how you equip your Saab 9-5 Wagon. Depending on what you choose, you and your car will be ready for just about anything. Recreational activities, work or holiday trips.'

For many reasons, SUV's are a trend that never faded, but I'd still choose the Saab Sportwagon over any SUV, purely for the fact that they just feel better to drive. Their lower stance feels more connected to the road, you still get ample space for utility purposes, and they just feel far less cumbersome. Saab managed to design an exceptional form in the Sportwagon, the lines of the windows flow beautifully from front to back, whilst the side profile quietly suggests purpose.

I still like to stand back and admire the 9-5, and today, I thought I'd take it to a place that felt like home; a Nordic feeling forest, the perfect place for a few photos, made even more memorable with a mileage milestone, 123,456.

Continuing the Winter theme, I thought it was about time to introduce the latest Saabvs project, the Snow Silver Metallic Sportwagon.

I've never been the hugest fan of this particular facelift version of the 9-5, but in this colour and specification, it really does tick all the boxes for me. It's one of the very last OG 9-5 to ever roll off the production line, a 2010 2.3 Turbo Edition, which was a special designation to enable them to throw the entire bin end parts at, an Aero with extras.

It's a high pressure turbo, manual gearbox and the full fat 260hp from factory, but it's the interior that benefitted most, with sat nav, Harman Kardon audio, perforated sport leather and electronically adjustable seats, heated front and rear, and a host of other nice touches throughout including the Piano Black dashboard and door card detailing.

This particular Saab has been in the same family for the past 10 years and comes with a nice amount of history, it needs some paintwork to bring it up to scratch, but there are no visible signs of corrosion, and even the lower rear arches are clear.

Now this is where the fun starts, as this is just the base car for a rather large upgrade. It'll be having the forged engine out of the Nocturne Blue Aero transplanted, together with the modified TD04 Turbo, Intercooler, LSD, upgraded clutch, Abbott downpipe and full stainless twin exhaust system. It'll have the upgraded 314mm front brakes and Saab Sport vented rears, a new set of Bilstien B12 shocks and Eibach springs, Powerflex polybushed subframe and numerous other modifications. It'll be delivering around 350hp and massive torque, and what's best, all in a Saab 9-5 Sportwagon, I've been looking forward to doing this for a few years now, and thanks to a great friend and Saab genius, things have fallen in to place.

I've got ideas coming together to give it an understated yet more aggressive aesthetic, although I plan to keep this very much OE+, this will no doubt change along the way, but that's all part of the fun. We'll end up with a hugely enjoyable Sportwagon that drives, handles and feels great.

There will be some great parts available during the build, not least, a perfect 2.3 whole engine, Turbo, and also a spare manual gearbox fitted with another upgraded clutch and LSD. I'll be listing these as soon as they're available, but ETA is around mid December.