No Powertrack car garners the attention the Saab seems to get in collectors circles. The Saab appears briefly in the 1980 Catalogue but appeared on shelves in tiny numbers.
Back then, the solid green version (top) was prevalent. However, the delights of eBay have also uncovered the rarer metallic green version (below). I have since seen this metallic version in the UK 1980 Catalogue but I still think it is the rarer of the two versions, and the prettier.
Much speculation exists about other versions but Matchbox are unlikely to have bothered overmuch with a version of a car that it made very few examples of. There is a Positraction version and Powertrack Plus version, but the former is unlikely to have been released and the standard 6V car never appeared in the USA.
The Saab is a 900 but it was badged as a just a Saab. In rallying circles, the Saab was successful, but at the time only as a '99' - not a 900. No matter, this was another great rally car and someone at Matchbox was very good at getting interesting and diverse cars on the drawing board.
One thing is very clear though, the Saab was the last Powertrack car body to be designed. The Racing Trucks appeared in the UK after this date, but they were in the US a full 18 months ahead of the Saab.
The Saab never appeared in a racing set - not even as a substitute. Numbers were clearly limited. The other fascinating thing for us enthusiasts is the Saab is numbered as PT-116.
Where is PT-115? And what was it going to be? I have my own thoughts that it was maybe supposed to be a 6V Tyrone Malone 'Superboss' or a Dodge van of somekind? But imagine if it were something new? A Lancia Stratos? An Audi Quattro? A Talbot Sunbeam? A VW Golf?
Perhaps they did release this car? If anyone has any credible evidence of this car can they possibly share it with us?
Note: PT-115 has now been credibly identified! See Blog entry for March 08.
