HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SAAB Saab is 60 years old this month – strange to think it’s all those years since the Swedish plane maker rolled out its first car. Back then it was all two stroke engines and distinctive, aerodynamic body shape, a practical two door with a sloping, coupe-style rear. So the birthday seemed like a good excuse to have a thrash in a couple of current Saabs, a 9-5 Aero estate and a 9-3 special anniversary edition saloon. The estate was a black job, and the guy who delivered it was being trailed by a colleague in a black Saab saloon. It panicked one of the neighbours, who came out of her house asking who had died. The 9-3 was finished in a sort of metallic air force blue, about the only tenuous connection you could make between Saab and planes these days apart from the night panel facility to darken the non essential fascia information at night and the fact that Saab GB sponsors an Army Air Corps display team. A long time ago, Saab was absorbed into General Motors and I’m not sure the relationship between the Swedes and their American bosses has necessarily been a happy one. In Britain, the 9-3 has been thrown relentlessly into the fleet market, where the Vauxhall Omega had lived before being killed off to be replaced by the Signum. The Omega was also beloved of the royals, who could sometimes be seen turning up at places like Balmoral church in one, and when Diana died it was an Omega estate that whisked Charles and the boys away from the Scottish pile. But they didn’t take to the replacement for the middle manager’s chariot, evidently, and the Signum has found little favour with them or anyone else. Now Charles trundles round in Audi estates and maybe the Queen uses her bus pass, who knows? Saab has carved its place in modern motoring history by pursuing the turbo route to wring more power from its engines. It all started with the 99 turbo two door in the late 70s. Before that, rally driver Eric Carlsson, brother-in-law to Stirling Moss, made Saabs famous by going everywhere in them upside down. He also won the Monte Carlo rally twice when it was a proper event. I wanted to know what the 99 turbo would do flat out and a mate of mine who was very friendly with a couple of traffic cops got them to chase him down a nearby motorway in a press car. They then pretended to pull him, to make it look good. The answer to the question was 125 mph on their calibrated speedo, which in those days was stunning for a two litre saloon. Believe it or not, the engine was closely related to that used in the Triumph Dolomite Sprint, another brilliant sports saloon. If only British Leyland had shown the same ingenious survival instincts as Saab, which installed the engine backwards as well as fitting a blower, we might still be driving Triumph cars today. I loved both the cars Saab sent down. If you compare vulgar figures then maybe they are not as quick as some competitors. But in a world populated by compact German sports saloons isn’t it nice to be driving something different? Neither the 9-3 or the 9-5, which have names influenced by the need for buyers to know where they stand against BMW rivals (Saab needn’t be ashamed, as BMW had altered its model names to equate to those from Mercedes), are what you might call beautiful cars. You could describe them as refreshing in their approach without being unkind. These days they may be more closely related to Vauxhalls and Opels but they still have a quality feel to them. And judging by the number of 9-3s you see about, British buyers still love them, particularly the more recently launched 9-3 estate. Long may this continue. Maurice Hardy Annette's View Saab has long played the safety game, and successfully, too. It hasn’t been a cynical exercise but rather one that’s based on real achievement. Now it is turning its attention to the environmental needs of the world and promoting its cars that run on biofuels. In Sweden this is going down a storm, but then they are nearer to all that melting ice and will have to swim for it a bit sooner than we will, which tends to focus the mind. It’s great news for driving enthusiasts, as it makes the cars perform even better, but as far as environmentalists are concerned the fact that part of such an important car maker as American giant General Motors is paying attention to this vital topic should be heartening news. Perhaps the boffins at Saab will slowly be able to drag their counterparts in the world’s most polluting nation towards the realities of the 21st Century. While they are doing it, we can carry on enjoying Saab products without feeling too guilty. If only the biofuel pumps would appear around the UK a bit faster we could all start to make a meaningful contribution. In the meantime, happy birthday to Saab and keep up the good work. The company may be celebrating 60 years as a car maker, but it’s good to know it hasn’t lost its pioneering way of thinking. And if you fancy one of the celebration models, they come with loads of extra kit like DVD satellite navigation and bigger alloy wheels worth up to £3,000 at no extra cost. Normally I’d say buy a road atlas, but as the sat-nav is free, treat yourself to a rather special £26,500 9-3 Anniversary instead.