Photos by nifticus392, from the Cohort.
A peculiar company creates peculiar products. And every once in a while, they outdo themselves. Such was the case of Saab with the sporty Sonetts of the ’60s & ’70s. The looks alone are the first sign that conventional was not the Sonett’s calling card. I’ve never seen one of these in the flesh, and long to do so.
Unorthodox was the name of the game for the Sonett, with FWD, a V4 engine, fiberglass body, exotic lightweight chassis, roll cage, and three-point seat belts. If different calls your attention, this is a quirky little charmer. If not, look elsewhere. And while rare, there’s a devoted following for these. Thinking about it, I better keep my distance. I can easily see their unusual allure driving me into that atypical cult.
Further reading:
Curbside Classic: Saab Sonett II V4 – A Noisy Little Footnote To Automotive History
Fjord V4
All Saabs had the three point safety belts, they were an aircraft manufacturer .
These never caught my fancy but indeed they’re zippy and good sports cars .
-Nate
While a little odd looking I find these more appealing than the brutal wedge of the Sonett III. The Sonett I is still unconventional but they only made six so a chance to see seems very unlikely.
One of the most unconventional things about them is the freewheel transmission.
I agree David, I think the Sonnett II is better looking than the III. Unfortunately engine access is better with the III as I recall. The free wheel transmission stems from the drivetrain coming from a three cylinder two stroke. Two strokes cannot be spun at high rpm with a closed throttle as the fuel carries the oil. So, free wheeling allows the two stroke to survive. I would love a Sonnett. Perfect for trips through snowy Vermont, and sporting drives. I would have loved to have seen a Sonnett with a mid engine, perhaps with the V4. A rational Europa, designed to be driven not just worked on.
” I would have loved to have seen a Sonnett with a mid engine, perhaps with the V4. A rational Europa, designed to be driven not just worked on.”
Well, it did exist, it was called Matra 530. Wikipedia picture attached if everything goes well.
It has the same Ford V4 engine (known as Transit engine in England, or Taunus engine on the Continent) but amidship. The car was discontinued before 10 000 were made when Matra linked with Simca, part of Chrysler Europe.
The 530 was one of ma favorite dream car when I was adolescent, it even seemed realistic to own one. Unfortunately, I never could get one, they bio(?)degraded quickly, and the correct ones always were too expensive for me.
I test-drove a second hand one but it was tatty, it was raining inside, etc…
I would have settled for a Sonnett V4, but never came across one here.
fm.
FM, I saw a Matra D’jet on sale on Facebook Marketplace of all places. I had long wondered about them, especially after realizing some of the shortcomings of Colin Chapman’s approaches to auto manufacture and safety. While not a beauty, it compares to the Europa in many ways. It is interesting that the V4 never made it into the Europa, but was used in the D’jet, a bit of cross Channel engineering. After examining my finances and parking situation in San Francisco I declined the D’jet, but one motivating factor was my understanding that it has a backbone frame. That could be just squeamishness on my part as it is safer than a motorcycle! What part of the world are you in?
Errata: “Unfortunately engine access is better with the III…” is wrong. The engine access with the II was better with the flip up front clip rather than the rather small front hood/bonnet of the III.
The first generation beginning from the very early 60s had a two stroke three cylinder engine. Originally 750 cc then bumped up to 850. Those two stroke engines smoked like a chimney on fire and could never pass 1968 emissions laws in the U.S.A. So then Saab used the Ford V-4 for power until they got a in line four from Triumph, I think. Saab’s were very innovative and interesting to me from an engineering standpoint. When I was in the 6th grade our mathematics and geometry teacher bought a Saab 99. It looked like nothing else sold in the United States then. It was a two door hatchback with front wheel drive. My teacher-Mr. Moody- explained the benefits to me and I’ve been a fan of Saab’s since then. Sure…they were odd. However they were weird for a reason. For example, sticking the key in the middle floor was to prevent knee injuries in case of an accident. And back when they were all manual transmission, they were required to be in reverse because that was the highest gear ratio, so if you forgot to set your hand brake they’d be less likely to roll away. Unfortunately GM bought them and messed everything up, in my opinion.
But that’s another story for another time. I’ve got a 1965 Saab Monte Carlo (in Europe a gt 850) in my garage. It’s got 847 awesome sonic Cubic Centimeters and a four speed manual transmission on the steering column breathing through a carburetor for each cylinder ready to whisk you from zero to 60M.P.H. in around 20 seconds.
Wonder how a Sonnett II V4 or Sonnett III stacks up to an MGB GT or Opel GT, the only things kinda close to it.
On a personal note, this is the first (and only) four-on-the-tree car I ever drove.
A machining company near where I lived in Milwaukee had 2 of these sitting out front every day. On one occasion A fellow came out got into one of them and low and behold started the little thing up and it was a 2 stroke, sounded like a chainsaw. Never heard anything like it before.
The Sonett looks somehow homespun. Who the hell paid a nickel for such a sorry effort ?
I used to work at a Datsun dealership in Charleston West Virginia 1973 / 76 after I was there for a year or so the owner took on the Saab line of cars I’d never even heard of the brand they sold quite a few from what I recall we had sonnet in the showroom for a while some guy who worked down the street bought it I worked in the parts department.