CAR SAAB 99EMS
Year of manufacture
#1975-Saab-99EMS /
#1975 /
#Saab-99EMS /
#Saab /
#Saab-99
Recorded mileage 53,318km
Vendor Coopers Cars, near Edenbridge, Kent; tel: 01342 850613/ 07770 333636; www.cooperscars.co.uk
WHEN IT WAS NEW
Price £4548 (99, 1977)
Max power 118bhp
Max torque 123lb ft
0-60mph 11.5 secs
Top speed 106mph
Mpg 26
This EMS – forerunner of the Turbo – is best described as a timewarp car. The structure is perfect, with no rot; all the welds and brackets are sharply defined and there’s not even any jacking damage underneath. It was in a dealer showroom for about 15 years until the previous owner found and recommissioned it – around 2013, judging by the change date noted on the brake-fluid reservoir – including having the injectors tested. Later it received a full Dinitrol treatment. He drove it to the UK from The Netherlands on sale to Coopers, which has had it serviced again.
At some point it’s been repainted in its original colour, but the factory paint remains in the boot and engine bay. The bumper-rubber faces are good, with a spare in the boot, and the distinctive ‘soccer ball’ alloys have recently been refinished. The tyres are Vredesteins dating from 2015 and practically unworn, though the spare is unshod. The exhaust looks fairly fresh. If you want to find a glitch, it’s that the aerial lacks its end and is a bit bent.
Inside, it’s near perfect, with only a few stitches evident in a small repair to the driver’s seat base; the seat retains its quick-detach mechanism for those weekend rally drivers. The headlining is new, the dash plastics are all good, with one tiny chunk out of the ‘timber’ veneer, and there are overmats in the boot. The previous owner slightly modified the roof light, presumably for map reading, but it’s easily reversible.
The motor is tidy, with clean oil just over ‘max’ and sufficient coolant. Tape on the temperature sender wiring is evidence of a recent repair. It starts easily, with a typically tinny rasp from the tailpipe, and drives like a much more modern car. Only the relatively low gearing and the four-speed gearbox give away its age, though the change is perfect. The ride is firm but comfortable, the steering is fluid and the brakes are solid and smooth. The temperature gauge sits a third of the way up the scale. Even the radio still works perfectly. It will be sold with a new MoT if desired, though it no longer requires one.
SUMMARY
EXTERIOR
Straight, older repaint. No rot, all welds and brackets intact
INTERIOR
Almost perfect; one small repair
to driver’s seat
MECHANICALS Drives well; mileage could be original
VALUE 8/10
For Fantastic original condition
Against Clock doesn’t work
SHOULD I BUY IT?
If you want a near minter, it must be one of the best left in the world and could be used as a daily driver.
