IN THIS FEATURE Better late than never This is your pilot speaking V6 is a bit 'GM-corporate'

Better late than never? Well, some three years after the launch of the 9-3 saloon in the UK, the estate version will go on sale this September. Whilst it'll be called SportCombi in other markets the UK will know it as the SportWagon, which will make it sound less like a commercial van with sporting pretensions.

The SportWagon will command a reasonable £1000 premium over its saloon sibling and while we tried the flagship £27,795 250bhp 2.8-litre V6 Aero, the big seller in the UK will be the £22,845 1.9 TiD turbodiesel.

'Ice-block' taillamps a bit tacky

In the flesh, the SportWagon is quite a handsome thing, with a powerful stance and a very Saab-style 'hockey stick' styling treatment at the D-pillar. The so-called 'ice-block' white tail light lenses do look a bit 'Max Power', though.

The 9-3 is Saab's first attempt to take on premium estates such as the Audi A4 Avant, BMW 3-Series Touring, Jaguar X-Type estate and Mercedes Benz C-Class estate. This could be quite canny, as according to Saab's figures, the premium mid-size estate car segment is up 16 percent this year, even while the premium new car segment is down 11 percent overall.