Saab 96 V4
An aircraft maker’s slippery little family car gained a compact four-stroke V4—and kept its unusual front-wheel-drive character.
1967 Saab 96 V4 at Classic Remise Berlin · Mr.choppers · CC BY-SA 3.0 Unported
Research pending
A matching completed auction sale has not been verified for this exact year, body, trim, engine, transmission and market.
Joyride shows this gap instead of substituting an asking price, unsold bid or mismatched special vehicle.
More than a set of wheels.
Saab introduced the four-stroke 96 V4 for the 1967 model year while continuing to offer its familiar two-stroke engine. This page follows the North American V4 specification documented in Saab’s 1967 brochure. The shell still looked unmistakably Saab, but a 1.5-litre Ford V4 made the car easier to sell in markets moving away from two-strokes.
Look a little closer.
Saab’s 1967 brochure listed two kinds of horsepower for the same engine: 72 gross SAE and 65 net SAE. Net ratings include more of the equipment the engine uses in the car, so Joyride uses the 65 hp figure in the headline.
Photos show an example of the model or generation. The pictured vehicle’s year, equipment, or modifications can differ from the specification described here.
Two engines in one brochure
The 1967 North American brochure covers both Saab’s three-cylinder two-stroke and the new V4. That makes it a useful snapshot of a company changing engine eras without changing the basic 96 shape all at once.
Source: Saab · 1967 95 and 96 brochure ↗Different jobs for the front and rear brakes
The front wheels use disc brakes while the rear wheels use drums. Braking transfers load toward the front, so the front brakes do more of the work. Saab also used separate hydraulic circuits for the front and rear.
Source: Saab · 1967 95 and 96 brochure ↗Where these facts come from
Selected facts checked for this edition. Some source pages link to broader model families. Last reviewed September 29, 2026.