Comment on Backwards Beetle – 1971 Saab 96 V4 by scottymac

Ron,
Love your enthusiasm, but as this Wikipedia article on free wheeling explains, SAAB wasn’t being nice or considerate when they included it; two strokes depend on it to survive, and was simply carried over for the V-4.
“…any situation where the driver takes their foot off the gas pedal, closing the throttle: the wheels drive the engine, possibly at a higher RPM. In a two-stroke engine, this can be catastrophic—as many two stroke engines depend on a fuel/oil mixture for lubrication, a shortage of fuel to the engine starves oil from the cylinders, and the pistons can soon seize, causing extensive damage. ” And free wheeling wasn’t “…ahead of its time…” in the SAAB. It was a feature of Cord and many lower priced American brands as far back as the Thirties.