Looking at my first Saab purchase - feedback???

You could enjoy it.

What I got.

Less than what I paid. Prices are good, then, compared with the book value. You might want to check on that.

Was to me.

If they are not, then you might want to reconsider. What you pay for is a warranty extension to 100K miles, and a year extension to 6 years warranty from service time. That will probably include a DI cassette.

Maintenance is in the book. Serpentine belt at about 60K miles, plugs and oil as needed as well. Turbo seems to be ok, but there are some failures. Additional warranty could be a good idea. Oil at 5K miles, or less depending on driving style.

Maintenance costs are, I'd guess, about the same.

Most people seem to recommend the 4 cylinder turbo (small t) is a LPT turbo, no boost gauge.

large T is an HPT turbo, which I *think* is only available in the 6 cylinder engine. More HP in the 6, but only uses premium. May or may not be a better engine. 4 cylinder seems very reliable, and has a bit of pickup. For the 2000 MY, you can get a replacement chip (probably costs 500 to 600 dollars with labor, etc, that adds more HP, up to the specs of the 2001 MY.

Style and feel for me, in terms of issues. I liked the Saab much better, the older bmw's had an unpleasant feel of a volkswagen, and I'd driven a Rabbit for 10 years or so.... Nice, but didn't want to go back.

Prices in your area look good, but I'd check the books as well. Also check the sound system, considerable variation (base model is good), but adding on stuff (as in CD changer) is quite expensive, since only Saab's will work.

In a hot climate, ventilated seats might be quite nice.

Harvey

The 4 cyl is also available with High Output in the Aero model, 2.3L

230 bhp. The 3.0L 6 cyl has asymmetrical turbo; the turbo driven by only one bank of the 6 and is not particularly strong at 200 bhp, it doesn't have the timing chain but only a rubber timing belt, which must be replaced more often. The engine is regarded as inferior by many Saab enthusiasts. Saab has discontinued the 6 for MY 2004.

Saab's front wheel drive will get you through snow and severe weather better than the BMWs rear wheel will, unless you go with snow tires. Depends on your climate. Saab -- at least my 1995 9000CS does -- runs well on regular gas or mid-level. I'll buy premium for long highway travel. It seems to give me quicker accleration at higher speeds. I've got the 4cyl. LPT and it gets close to 30mpg on long trips and 27mpg around town. Saab has been doing 4cyl turbos for a long, long time. They've figured it out. You do need to do regular maintenance, about the same as you would for the BMW. Check

for the model years you're looking at. In the page on specs, they'll give the recommended service intervals and the approximate costs. Also check with your insurance company to see if there's a significant difference in cost between insuring the two you're looking at. My insurance cost dropped $200 a year for the Saab. Didn't ask about the BMW.

snipped-for-privacy@madmousergraphics.com

design, print design, photography

I hate to do this again...

but what about the 9-5 vs MY 2000 Audi A6 Quatro (no turbo)?

"C Sats" skrev i meddelandet news: snipped-for-privacy@corp.supernews.com...

Make sure that the dealer ha fixed some of the design mistakes of the 9-5. Examples: The LCD display loses lines or pixels due to an incorectly designed clamp connector. You may fix it yourself,

it is better if dealer already has corrected the defect. Another problem occurs if you change between aluminium and steel wheels (e.g. between summer tires on alu rims and winter tyres on steel rims). Here Saab has recommended to change to a new bolt with built-in washer to reduce the problem of bolts being damaged.

The rear suspension dampers are weak and wear out rather quickly on the wagon model. Saab claim to have changed the dampers from MY2000 but there are still problems with the new dampers.

My own experience is a rather bad quality of other parts: burned front light wiper motor, rear window wiper motor becoming really noisy, windscreen wiper timer adjustment stuck at maximum time, car need to be towed to a garage because of a poorly tightened nipple /(the only Saab I have owned that stopped on the road!), steering arm/spindle joint worn out after 70000 km compared to at least

150000 km for 99/900/9000 models I have owned, automatic gear box not shifting smoothly, etc.

The 9-5 is a really nice car to drive but the quality seems to have deteriorated compared to older models. My recommendation is to look for a 9000 from some of the later model years. The 9-5 design seems to be not mature enough to ensure an ownership free from problems.

Dont forgoet pully/belt replacement around 40k-50k miles. That one left me on the flatbed.