Meet The Owner – Jon Bentley and his Saab 96 Jubileum

How to end production of a long-running model is almost as important as its introduction, as it can create a legacy for the manufacturer will last for decades. The Ford Capri Brooklands is one such example, and when the last 600 departed the SEAT works in 1973 it wore a placard stating, “You were born a prince, you died a king”.

And then there is the 1980 96 GL Jubileum owned by Jon Bentley, the Chairman of the Saab Enthusiasts Club, marking the end of a tradition that dated from the 28th of April 1948 when the company unveiled the 92 at Stockholm’s Grand Hotel.  12 years later, Saab introduced the 96, their first car officially sold in the UK. By 1972,  The Observer wrote that “Saab would love to concentrate on its 99 range, but full order books and insistent demand from retailers keep the old faithfuls going”.

Four years later the company ended RHD manufacture of the 96 range, with production of the 95 Estate ceasing on the 23rd of February 1978.  December 1979 marked the end of the narrative with the 96 GL Jubileum.  In Jon’s words, his car is:

One of the last 300 Saab 96 (Ford Cologne engined V4) models, painted in Aqua Marine with a matt black painted lower quarter of the boot, topped with a spoiler and factory fitted Ronal wheels. These models sported larger indicator units front and rear and a Model 99 style interior. They were built at the Valmet plant in Finland, and this is identified on the manufacturer’s plate and documentation. Saab had withdrawn the 96 from the UK in 1977, so these models were only available to Scandinavian and Netherlands markets (600 cars in total). The Netherlands market models had a brown interior and had a numbered dash plaque. The Scandinavian market ones were still limited to 300, but there were no numbered plaques applied.

Fittingly it was Erik Carlsson who won the 1960, 1961 and 1962 RAC Rallies and the Monte Carlo Rally in 1962 and 1963 in a 96, who drove the last example from the factory to the company museum on the 8^th of February 1980.

To a Saab 92 owner of 1949, Jon’s Jubileum would seem almost impossibly luxurious. For one it has not just a heater, but heated front seats, and this is before we consider the velour trim, an engine fired by a key rather than a piano wire operated starter, and even the decadence of a boot lid. There is also a longitudinal-mounted V4 power plant in place of a transverse three-cylinder two-stroke unit.

But the Jubileum retains the spirit of that original Saab 92, from its coachwork and steering column gear change to its blend of dependability and enjoyment.  As Stephen Bayley wrote in Cars: Freedom, Style, Sex, Power, Motion, Colour, the 92 was “one of the most advanced small cars ever: an engineer’s concept executed by a techno-romantic artist”. To celebrate this legacy was an honour – and the Jubileum a worthy reminder of Saab’s heritage.