I recently came across this absolutely beautiful Saab 99 GLE for sale in Finland and had to share it. Back in 1967, Sixten Sason headed up the design of a car that through a number of generations, would lead us to arguably the most iconic Saab ever built; the 900 Turbo.
The timeless elegance and wonderful colour combination on this particular 99 appeal to my love of retro, a way to escape the less than inspiring modern world, driving along Autumnal roads, burnt orange leaves lazily drifting in its passing presence.
Clasanteri, the Finish dealer currently selling the Saab, explain the car in more detail :
In 1967, the completely new Saab 99 was introduced. The body of the Saab was wide and low two-door saloon, which was later supplemented with a hatchback Combi coupé in 1974 and a five-door saloon in 1976.
From the 92 model to the 96 model, Saab had preferred two-stroke engines in its cars until the mid-1960s. However, it was decided to equip the new model with a four-stroke power source, which Saab acquired from Triumph. The Slant-4 engine was 87 horsepower and in the first Saab 99 models it was 1.7-liter. The modern equipment was electric fan, as well as disc brakes and rack and pinion steering.
This light brown original Saab 99 was bought by baker E. Vuorinen from Vanhalinna on May 25, 1971. Triumph had just upgraded the Saab’s powerplant to an 1850cc engine. Vuorinen sold the car after four years on April 4, 1975 to O. Pesanno in Lieto, who kept the car for more than 20 years until February 27, 1996.
The car still remained in Varsinais-Suomi and it was transferred to Jari Hoikkala in Turku. The next owner was T. Nironen from Littoinen, Turku region, who kept the car for only one year. On August 24, 1999, Saab was sold to North Karelia, for mr. J. Kerminen and the following year 2000 to E. Riikonen.
Riikonen restored the car thoroughly and the car was registered as a museum on September 25, 2000. There are plenty of documents about the restoration. Riikonen kept the car until 2022, when car enthusiasts M. Kakko and E. Riikonen exchanged Saabs with each other. Saab 99 came back to Varsinais-Suomi region, where it was spent its earlier years.
1971 Saab 99 GLE €12,800 | Clasanteri
