Saab 9-2X

The Saab 9-2X was a compact estate that Saab sold in the United States and Canada from July 2004 until 2005, the last cars being 2006 model year. It was a second generation Subaru Impreza Wagon, assembled in Japan by Fuji Heavy Industries, the parent company of Subaru, at its Ota plant in Gunma, and re-badged for Saab. General Motors, then a shareholder in Subaru, proposed the idea as a way of widening Saab's offer in the compact sport utility segment of North America. A first version was shown at the Los Angeles show in December 2003. Saab changed the nose, tail, interior materials and suspension tuning, but the car kept Subaru's flat four engines, a 2.5 litre in the Linear and a turbocharged unit in the Aero. It sold less well than hoped and ended when the cooperation between General Motors and Subaru ended. Owners nicknamed it the Saabaru.