Good points: character, acceleration, handling, room, safety rating, gas mileage, cooled seats, great door handles, top rated quality review.
Needs improvement: too much noise, climate controls, centre console arrangement, no side air curtains or bags, price, transmission slow to kick down, loud sounding alarm whistle, ergonomics.

We tested the Saab 9-5 Arc sedan and enjoyed it very much. It is very distinctive looking, has plenty of passing power, and has an enviable safety rating. Saab has a less expensive version, the Linear, with a four-cylinder engine. In addition, Saab has the performance oriented Aero available. The Arc is the cruiser of the fleet with a V6 turbocharged engine providing a smooth 200 horsepower through a new five speed automatic transmission.

The Arc also provides standard an Electronic Stability Program, ventilated front seats, three-position driver seat memory, an auto-dimming rearview mirror, and an upgraded Harman-Kardon-tuned audio system.

Dad's view: Ride wise, the Arc was every bit the highway cruiser. With stiffer shocks and thicker roll bars, the ride was just a touch sporty on the open road. However, on broken pavement the journey became bucky. This would be acceptable in a lesser-priced vehicle, but not in one that is clearly in the luxury car field. I also noted that the new five speed automatic transmission was a tad slow to react to initial changes in acceleration.

Travelling on the freeway is great in the Arc. It is quite a grand touring type car with lots of room and enough power to create safe passing opportunities. The brakes were especially effective and you never felt out of control. It is not a fast vehicle, with about 3600 pounds for its 200 horsepower to carry around, but once the turbo spools up you aren't going to wait long to get where you're going.

Inside, the fit and finish are very good on the Saab with the flat facing dash easy to read even in bright sunlight. the window controls are awkwardly placed on the centre console. The mirror controls are easy to master and are located at the edge of the window and doorsill.

I really like room in the front seat for my legs. Driving in the Jaguar S, I felt confined and I have the same complaint over many sporty cars. This was not the case with the Saab. It made for leisurely travel.

There is character in every Saab. It feels different from other cars, looks different, and has some features that defy logic such as the upside down window controls. But all of these features make it a unique vehicle and give it character. Saab has made tremendous strides under the General Motors' ownership umbrella. It is not a BMW handling wise, it isn't a Lexus in terms of a quiet ride, and no one is going to confuse it with an American vehicle, but its tough, durable, and loaded with safety features.

Mom's view: Nice ride, but a bit on the noisy side for my tastes. I also could live without the centre mounted ignition because the location makes the console storage area too small, renders the second cupholder virtually useless, and when you move the seat up the console is too short to offer any elbow support. Saab, move the ignition to the dash and swallow some pride to make a more useful car.

Don't get me wrong. I really enjoy Saab products. We have tested thousands of cars over the years and when our daughter was ready to drive, we immediately bought her a 9-3 Saab. That says something about the product and the peace of mind it offered us with a young driver at the wheel.

The Saab Arc is solid, gets excellent gas mileage, and provides a fair amount of room for storage and packages. What I like most is the safety reputation that Saab has earned. They have a new Electronic Stability Program integrated with the car's traction control, antilock four wheel disc braking, adaptive airbags that inflate according to the severity of the crash, new interior materials that are said to reduce injury, and upgraded child seat mountings. Then there are childproof rear door locks and windows, auto-dimming mirrors, daytime running lights, a side-impact protection system, Saab's Safeseat with an anti-submarining feature, rear fog lights. Finally..

Saab's Active Head Restraint has proven to be very effective in reducing whip lash injuries. Saab recently touted test results from the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI) that proclaimed the 9-5 tops in its class. Unfortunately, the one safety feature I could not find were side head airbags or air bag curtains in the rear.

I found the seats very nice, with standard power movement for the passenger and driver, heating and cooling controls that were easy to use except for the lumbar support knob that was too difficult to reach and turn while driving. By the way, the Saab's temperature unit comes on every time you start. They is very annoying and can waste gas if you forget to turn off the air-conditioning.

Some features I did not like were the cheap sun visors; they look and feel out of place on such an expensive car; the small and shallow glove box; the difficult to find cruise control switch; and a driver's computer that is not logical, although it did offer the always beneficial miles to empty readout.

Our test car had the optional Visibility package with Bi-Xenon headlights that were very effective, and the interior lighting was highlighted (literally) by an airplane like ball light that allowed you to focus the map light where you wanted it. I really appreciated the "Night Panel" button that shut down all the dash lights, except for the speedometer, and removed the glare associated with driving in the dark. The dash lights immediately come on if there is any problem such as low oil pressure.

Running errands in the Saab was very relaxing. The turning radius is very good for a front wheel drive car with a 35.4-foot requirement. There is good visibility to the rear and the passenger side outside mirror has a dandy "fold" in it reducing the size of the blind spot created by the C pillar. The trunk is very large, but when you hit the remote the lid barely opens. This is not good. The rear of the car is usually quite dirty and there is no need for Saab not to be able to give the lid more of a boost so you can easily get your hand under it.

I want to take a moment here to commend Saab on having some great door handles. They are very easy to grasp, the kind that let you slip your hand through and pull. You can easily open them with long nails, in cold weather, when wearing gloves, and when your hands are damp. Thank you, Saab.

Add to that the 9-5's recent honour as the best mid-luxury car in the J.D. Power and Associates initial quality study, and you have a practical argument to buy a Saab.

Recently female graduate: Okay, I've moved from college to the unemployed sector in one afternoon. From the top of the feeding chain-double masters degrees in information services and business administration-to the bottom; resume' writer. At these times a girl needs a great car or a liberally credit limit. I have the former. I own a Saab and they are great. With a gas tank holding 18.5 gallons, I can go nearly 400 miles without stopping. Even with the Arc and the larger engine, I was still able to average 23 mpg on premium fuel in mixed driving. I also like the warranty of four years or 50,000 miles and the fact that Saab wants your business.

Driving the Saab Arc was very enjoyable. You have a commanding view of the road and the brakes were superb. The tire noise is a bit much, but the stereo is quite capable of handling that problem. I did notice that there was a hesitation from the automatic transmission upon initial acceleration or when attempting to pass. Perhaps Saab's new five speed automatic transmission is programmed for more civilized gear change responses. There is a button to change the transmission shift map to a sport mode, but the unit still gave a pause when pressed.

By the way, you will notice an immediate change in attitude with the car in sport mode as the Saab becomes more responsive. Be advised that the sports setting has to be reset every time you start the car and a small-lighted sign on the instrument cluster acknowledges your wish for quicker action. The Aero I tested at a latter date was much better at downshifting and overall, a more dramatic vehicle to drive. I think I would go with the Aero.

Coming out of the dash, the brilliantly engineered single cupholder was worthy. However, the second cupholder is housed in the centre armrest and is impossible to use by the driver unless she is double-jointed. Otherwise, the interior was a nice place to spend a journey. There are large dials and buttons for the stereo and climate systems, redundant audio controls on the steering wheel, and large vents that made it easy to control the inside temperature.

And that leads me to the worst feature of the Saab, the temperature control unit. You can not get it to remember to stay off. I never learned how to get the unit to provide outside air without the air-conditioning being on, and I was constantly fiddling with the fan speed. Moreover, the noise from the fans that send cooling air into the seats was significant, bordering on irritating.

What is the second worst feature on the Saab? That was easy for me. When you use the remote, it alerts you to the activation or deactivation of the alarm by a silly whistle. Yes, it whistles, and not just one time. It whistles once for each of the front doors, and three times for the trunk. Speak about drawing unwanted attention; the whistle is not to my liking at all. Perhaps there is a way to silence it, but I didn't find it. Again, another quirky Saab feature.

Finally, as most women, I worry about the care given at dealerships. I have been ignored and treated like a child at many of them. I have found the Saab dealers mostly good. I have noticed that the outlets that specialize in Saabs provided the most professional service.

Working teenage male: I like black Aero Saabs. This was a grey metallic Arc sedan. It looked old. It acted old. It rode old. It wasn't fun. Next week we get a black Aero wagon. Now that's progress.

Oh, well. The Arc is a comfortable car with an above average Harmon Kardon stereo, plenty of room in the backseats, a pass through for skies into the trunk, and a really large trunk. It had a floaty ride and sort of reminded me of a Ford LTD, except the Saab could turn corners and stop much better. They say the Arc is a highway touring car and it acts that way. The parents were constantly commenting on how easy it was to find themselves going faster than they thought because it was a very soothing ride. The Saab had good backseat room for three adults and it didn't take long for the air-conditioning to reach the rear passengers because you got your own vent as well as heated seats.

Of course, this is not the car for me or my "peeps". I doubt teenagers know about this car. I think that is a problem for Saab. It appeals to a limited amount of people. They don't have anything exciting to bring in the young blood at a realistic price.

Family conference: There is a lot of competition in this price range for Saab, and as much as we love the product, we find the Arc's appeal limited. Certainly the V6 turbocharged engine is very efficient and user friendly, but for the same price you can get the much more enthusiastic Aero with 50 more horsepower, the same safety features, and a tighter ride. Overall, the Arc is a nice car for touring in safety and comfort.

Written by The Car Family