A French gentleman named Nicholas Cugnot is said to have been the first to have successfully used front-wheel drive on a vehicle – a steam-powered three-wheeler – in 1769, almost 200 years before this 1967 Saab 95 was made. Saab was famous for its rally successes and also for its quirky cars. The seller has this project wagon posted here on craigslist in Phoenix, Arizona and they’re asking $2,750. Here is the original listing, and thanks to Henry R. for the tip!
The Saab 95 was made from 1959 through 1978 and we got them here in the U.S. until 1973. You’d be hard-pressed to find a quirkier and some (me) would say cooler car than a Saab 95 wagon. Of course, all Saab 95s were wagons so it’s redundant to say a 95 wagon. The seller touts this car’s rust-free status and it does look rock solid in the photos, which are pretty small and there aren’t a lot of detailed photos to see the underside and cracks and crevices. The seller says this was a California car that they recently purchased.
Here’s a photo of a perfect example of this car in the “B6” Middle Blue color, that’s gorgeous. The VIN decodes to this car being a 1967 as the seller reports, so that’s good. A fun fact is that 1967 was the last year Saab offered the two-stroke three-cylinder engine due to emissions regulations. For ease of use and whatever else comes up when comparing the three-cylinder two-stroke to the V4, I’d take a three-cylinder every time. Hagerty is at $6,800 for a #4 fair-condition car and $18,000 for a #3 good car so there’s some room to get this one going again without losing your shirt. I did this Photoshop four-door version a few years ago, just to see what a four-door Saab 95 may have looked like.
“Rust-free” or not, this car needs a full restoration, in my opinion. That means every square inch gets sanded and painted inside and out. I like a car with a “patina”, in general, but this car would be such a blue-smoke-spewing jewel if it were in restored condition that I’d have to go that route. The back seat looks perfect but having been a California car originally, according to the seller, I’d bet the vinyl is pretty unforgiving and hard by now. The hidden rear seating is a great feature, although I don’t know anyone small enough to ride back there now.
Kudos to the seller for at least trying to get an engine photo, that’s more than most craigslist sellers do. This is Saab’s 841-cc two-stroke triple with around 40 horsepower and 62 lb-ft of torque when new. This one hasn’t been started in years so it’ll need some work to get it rolling again. The four-speed manual transmission on the column sends power to the front wheels and this would be a fun restoration project. Have any of you owned a Saab 95 with a two-stroke engine?
“Born from jets.”
I’m seeing a clear decline in the prices of the authors posts, who obviously seeks the unusual( want to have some fun? Click on his name and all his posts come up) Sadly, big block Chevelles, Mustangs and such, get all the thunder, and unusual cars like he features, are falling on deaf ears today. Personally, I always wanted a Saab wagon, just not the 2 stroke, is all. Kind of ironic, some of these cars are coming back down I could afford, I bet a grand on the hood would get this, but no place to repair it, and with the costs today, just keeping the Jeep going is enough. I doubt many are jumping over each other to get this.
Looks like a V4. Definitely not a two stroker.
LUKI: Iinitially agreed with you because all of my 2-stroke SAABs had the radiator behind the engine, but, if you look at the last picture in the Craigslist add, you will see it is definitely the 3-cylinder 2-stroke. The 3rd “seat” ia torture chamber. In 1968, I rode from Boston to Washington, DC in the back of a friends 95. I was half the size I am now and it still took me about a month to learn to walk again. The engines are simple – only 7 moving parts. The important thing to remember is to make certain the compresiion rings are fully lubricated before you try to turn the engine.
The one photo shows it has the two stroke in it, an earlier single carb version, not the correct long nose, triple carb, 3 banger that would have been fitted in 67. Alternator is not in the correct location. The real areas for rust concerns are underneath in the floor pans, of which there are no photos.
Correct. I think he added the side view picture. Definitely a two stroke with single carb and strange alternator mounting.
Good eye, Ken! Yes, luki, the seller must have added that photo, thanks for mentioning that. I’m so glad I always show a screenshot of the seller’s original listing on craigslist ads as a reference. That doesn’t show the extra engine photo.
It’s definitely a three-cylinder, folks, as per the extra engine photo the seller provided.
Yes, in high school I owned a 67 Saab 96 with a two stroke, 3 carbs, 4 on the column and free wheeling. It was a fun car and easy to chirp the front tires when you hit second, as long as the wheels were turned. I found it in the back of the local Ford dealership’s lot and they readily accepted my $350 offer. I drove it for about a year, but when someone offered me $500 for it, I took it. I may have kept it longer if it had a floor shift like the later 99s. I still love shifting myself, and have yet to own an automatic, but I believe shifters should come right out of the transmission, rather than dealing with all the linkage. This wagon though, is appealing.
Roooooaaaaaarrrr, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop. The good ol’ corn popper.
I had several – called them my cab-over chainsaws.
A friend made sales calls in a ’67 Saab 95 to feed stores and saddle shops on the eastern Colorado plains in the 70’s. I had to go rescue him from Colo Spgs 3 times due to breakdowns. Always wondered what those eastern plains folks thought when they saw him coming in that car.
This one would be fun to resurrect.
A customer of mine had an orange Sonnett lll, He considered hinself a gentleman farmer (He was neither). In the little space under the hatchback in the rear, he frequently carried hay or piglets or chickens. The interior of the car smelled like you might expect, and he drove the car into the ground, without any normal maintenance. I twice did TOTAL mechanical overhaul$$ of the car.
Are 2 stroke engines in cars legal? Or are they banned like many 2 stroke dirtbike motor cycles?
Yes I had 64 two door with over drive ran so good. It was a fun machine. Friends made fun of it but loved to ride in it.