Saab's new 9-5

HERE'S a worrying thought; if you'd had a son at the same time this car's predecessor was launched, he'd be 12 by now.

So old was the original SAAB 9-5 that most executive car buyers had either forgotten it existed, or just stopped caring. When it was launched in 1997, John Major was still Prime Minister and Hanson were considered a cool pop band.

Sure, it's a Gothenburg tradition to keep its car in production for seriously long periods - witness the 15 year gestations of the original 900 and 9000 - but right now the Vauxhall Vectra underpinnings of the outgoing model are getting very outdated.

That's why the latest version, being launched at this month's Frankfurt Motorshow, comes not a moment too soon for the GM's troubled Swedish branch. It's a smart looker and yet still distinctive enough to set it apart from the BMW, Mercedes and Audi models customers usually go for.

But will it mean a revival of SAAB's old turbo tradition? Watch this space...