The Million-Mile Man
I recently came across an article about a man who was awarded a brand new Saab when he donated his old Saab to a museum. The donated car, a 1989 900SPG, belonged to a Wisconsin man who used it for work. Over the course of ownership, he put a million miles on the car working as a traveling insurance salesman! No joke, and it even had the original engine and turbocharger. This gives you a clear example of how well built and durable your Chicago Saab autos really are!
This was in 2006 and the Wisconsin man who accomplished this feat was Peter Gilbert. In exchange for his well used car, in early 2007 Saab awarded Mr. Gilbert with a brand new Saab 9-5 Aero, for free! He was obviously thrilled, and said he might even attempt to put another million miles on this one!
It’s now 2010 and I tried to find some information on what Peter Gilbert is up to these days. My Google search found a lot of information along the lines of what is here, but not much about “what he’s doing today”. It did note that he made a trip to Detroit, along with other Saab lovers, to show support for the name. They gathered outside of GM Headquarters, chanting and posting signs reading “Save Saab”. This was in Jan of this year, right before Spyker bought Saab from GM and started to move forward with the newest Chicago 2010 Saab models!
I also found some information about how he took care of his 1989 ‘89 900SPG. For example, he made sure to keep up with changing the oil (every 7500 miles), fluids, and regular maintenance in accordance with what the manual said, if not more often. He also used Mobil 1 0W40 oil since it reduced sludge and was a good choice for how often he drove his Chicago Saab, which was obviously all the time!
This truly is a great story. Mr. Gilbert is a man I would like to meet. If he has liked Saabs all these years, hopefully he’s checked out the latest Chicago 2010 Saab to see how it compares with ones he’s driven in the past, especially his million mile Saab!
