It was our photographer Jay confessing to an almighty sin he'd committed on his way to snap the images for this story. "Are you OK," I responded. "Yes." Jay Confirmed. "Well that's the most important thing," I admitted.

"She just stopped for no reason," he added.

"So why didn't you stop," I quizzed.

"Because I was looking over my shoulder..."

Anyway, young Groat was on his way to shoot our faithful Saab 9-5 Aero when he encountered a young lass, he wasn't watching too well and banged the Aero's nose, the damage didn't look to bad and it wasn't all that expensive, even considering that much of the electronic kit in the bumper — like the headlight sprayer and one or two other sensors — were squashed. Luckily there was no body damage, but looking rather sorry for itself, we immediately sent Jay, also looking and feeling rather sorry for himself, to go and explain to Saab why its car was crunched.

Sadly, the process between the operators (us), the owner (Saab), and the insurance company proved way too much for the insurers to understand all at once and the car stood most of the month waiting for them to get their ducks in a row. It's only being repaired while I write, so we have very little to reflect on about the 9-5 in the past month except that when circumstances go beyond super simple, insurance companies can become rather confused...

But the Saab has sampled one thing for sure — life in Jo'burg's fast lane brings so much with it. Some we want to remember, others we do not and Jay's smash and the robbery we reported last issue are certainly two to hide in the 'forget' cupboard.

But the Saab's uniqueness, performance, luxury and style and most significantly, its frugal fuel consumption certainly are aspects we'll place right up front on the 'remember' shelf.

A silent, willing and sensitive performer, as we've mentioned so often, the 9-5 Aero has the match of all its rivals — most of which will be found below it on an ascending price list — it undercuts them all and out performs them too — in every aspect.

It's a car that attracts some notable attention, too — you'd be surprised by how many folk come over and ask about it and how many more stop and look at it when walking by. Strange that, how much presence it has!

And when it comes to fuel economy, need we say more than it took us to a vital Total Economy Run win — stone standard...?

Downsides? Not many, really. Its age, perhaps, will start counting more and more against it when the likes of new 5 and A6 hit the road, but 9-5 also gets replaced late next year. Some of its finishes, as a result of that age, mainly, count against it to an extent, but none can match its advantages.

Sadly, we will only get our Aero back for a couple of weeks to wrap up our test next issue, so it's going to be a sad goodbye. But one thing's for sure, we're going to miss this car — it's going to give us many happy memories - and one or two we'd rather forget. But those negatives, you can rest assured, will be circumstances around the car rather than about the car itself...

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