Saabs at Carlisle 2026

May 16, 2026

Saabs at Carlisle 2026

Finally. My first destination car show, and we got to do it in two vintage Saabs. Daniel and I brought our 1993 900 Turbo and 1978 99 EMS on a lengthy but fun drive down to Carlisle, Pennsylvania for the annual Carlisle Import Nationals show. A two day event, the Carlisle Import Nationals is easily one of the largest shows on the Northeast, attracting thousands of attendees from all over the continental US. Here are some of the Saabs that were in attendance this year.

Vintage Saabs

1974 Sonett III

Starting off strong with a classic icon. This is the last year of production for the Sonett III.

1967 96

A beautiful example of a mid '60s 96, finished in a beautiful olive green shade.

1980 96 V4 Super

The last year of production for the 96 was 1980. Yes, 1980. Saab stopped selling this rather obselete design in the US around 1974, but continued selling them in Europe until 1980. This example is an import, finished in Acacia Green.

1960 93B Rally Car

1961 96

Red Saab Row

Left to right: 1975 96, 1979 99, 1974 Sonett III, 1991 900, and 1967 96

The 99s and 900s... and a 90

1978 99 Aero

An absolute dream car to see. Ahren Weber's '78 99 "Aero" is arguably the most iconic and recognizable 99s of all time. This car started life as a '78 EMS, and was extensively modified into what you see today. This car has been refinished Sunset Orange, with appointments such as a 900 SPG kit, "whale tail" spoiler, and complete with a T5'd 16v and 5 speed conversion. What an epic build.

1992 900 Turbo

A super clean example, finished in Beryl Green with E-Code lights. A beautiful color combination, especially on the 9000 Aero wheels.

1980 900 Turbo

This is a 900 Turbo 5-door hatchback. While widely available throughout its production in the EU market, the 5 door 900 was only sold in the US until early 1980. These were mostly sold in 1979, but few made them into 1980 sales. This example is finished in Aquamarine Blue, one of Saab's best colors.

1979 99 GL

This 1979 99 is a very well preserved example. '79 marked the second to last year the 99 would be sold in the US, as Saab wanted to focus sales on the 900, which also debuted for 1979. The 99 was only available as a coupe/notch back, and only with the GL trim. The EMS, Turbo, and GLE trims were promoted to the 900. However, in Europe, the 99 Turbo was available until 1980.

1987 90

Purely a Frankenstein of a Saab. While some consider the 900 to be the successor to the Saab 99 starting in 1979, Europe might say otherwise. The Saab 99 ended sales in the U.S. market in 1980, one year after the 900 was launched. However, demand for the 99 continued, and the model was produced for the European market until 1984.

At this point, the 99 had been in production for 15 years, and the stamps for the body panels had been worn out. Additionally, Saab was looking to smooth their model lineup out, with their new 9000 and 900. With demand for a small affordable car from Saab still high, there was no point to kill the 99 off. They simply developed it, resulting in the 90.