2007 Saab 9-7x

Saab's 9-7x sport/utility has a new lease on life, but not because it captures the Swedish automaker's character so well. The Saab 9-6x (the 9-7x's would-be replacement), based on the Subaru B9 Tribeca and, until now scheduled for early 2007, is dead because General Motors has sold its 20-percent equity stake in Fuji Heavy Industries.

GM ended its "strategic alliance" with Subaru's parent company to "refocus its efforts and resources" with its other Asian partners, Daewoo, Suzuki, and Isuzu. Translation: Building the Saab 9-6x with the Subie's horizontally opposed six doesn't fit in with GM's new global manufacturing rationalization. So the 9-6x is out, at least until GM can find another donor platform for the long-awaited Saab crossover.

Saab gave MT hell for describing the 9-6x as "Tribeca-based"--Saab said it was as responsible for the crossover's development as Subaru. Curious, then, that Saab didn't have enough ownership in the vehicle to continue development, the way Chrysler's next Sebring will be built on a platform shared with Mitsubishi. Meanwhile, the Subaru Impreza/WRX-based, Japanese-built Saab 9-2x lives on probably through the 2008 model year.

Saab says it still needs and wants a seven-passenger crossover SUV, and the likely candidate would be GM's Lambda platform. It launches this fall with the 2007 Saturn Outlook, one of the models designed to make that division a bigger premium import-fighter. Bob Lutz already has crowed about how different the Outlook is from versions from Buick and GMC, and so a Saab Lambda 9-6x would require distinctive characteristics and sheetmetal.

Bottom line: The 9-7x is to be Saab's sole SUV for several years to come.