Fecking flaky, unreliable junk. And this one has full history and a responsible previous owner.
Strut top bearing replaced today. Now it's lit up like a Christmas tree. Hopefully just the front wheel sensor - my local man says he will look at it, as he may have disturbed it doing the job...
But it seems to be one of those 'what's going to go wrong this week?' kind of cars.
I really am wishing I'd done a bit more research on this before I bought it. The faults are the kind of thing you'll get on an older car - but the fix seems to require someone with a specialist Saab diagnostic machine. Which means a Vauxhall with posh badges is as much of a pain in the arse to maintain as a Porsche.
Seriously considering fixing and moving on - if my local mechanic can't properly look after it, then it's too much of a hassle as an ownership proposition.
I have a proper, trusted and competent local mechanic. But, whilst he can do the mechanical stuff, he cannot do stuff like 'reset the steering angle sensor' - which apparently you often have to do with these things if you replace front suspension bits.
Wouldn't be so bad if there was any way to do the Saab specific OBD bits with a laptop and cable, as you can with Fiat group and VAGs, but you can't - you *have* to find someone with the proper Saab kit.
Well yes, but the Saab bit is the more difficult bit - even if you have Tech2, you need an extra Saab card to do Saab stuff. Lots of local mechanics will have Tech2, but hardly any have the Saab add-on.
Just bad luck, the old saabs are the best. They are really increadible build quality. Saab affectionados know what to look for and what are the potential problems. Best model IMO is the 9000 CSE, it is stylish and advanced for its time. The design of this model started in mid-70'ies.
Haha very different cars. I should know because I had two Cromas and now my second 9000 CSE. The only thing in common is the Italian body design which I rather like.
The weight of the Fiat Croma CHT was 1150 Kg, amazingly light for a large car. Nimble handling of course, but poor build quatily. It never got rid of an interior rattle. Fascia warped and speedo stopped working. Alternator seized at only 80,000 miles. Fiat garage was next to useless. Nevertheless I enjoyed it for 10 years.
The 9000 is vastly more solid at 1400-1500 Kg and also vastly more longlasting car. Saab totally re-engineered the 'Fiat'. I swapped my old 900CSE at 260,000 miles, not because it had any particular problems, but purely due to temptation of a full bore 2.3 Turbo opportunity in perfect shape. With this car you really get the feel of 'They don't make them like that any more'. Find out more about this car on Youtube.
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