Label Aero is displayed by SAAB cars powered by the most powerful turbocharged engines in the model range. These cars usually have lower ground clearance and stiffer suspension, special alloy wheels reserved for Aero line, and modified body and interior trim, together with special military-aircraft-like seats. The label itself should associate cars displaying it with the rich experience Saab had in producing both military and civil airplanes. This experience is exactly what they were relying on while designing their high performance Aero vehicles.

The Aero badge appeared for the first time with the Saab 9000 back in the 90's, and it continued to live through models 9-5 and 9-3, until the factory was closed in 2012. In the last couple of years of production it didn't strictly represent the performance setup of the cars displaying it, and buyers could opt for any engine they liked and pay extra for the Aero kit. That caused a disappointment among loyal fans of the swedish brand, as it was purely a marketing decision from General Motors, majority owner of Saab at the time.