I have an opportunity to pick up a 2000 9-5 Aero with 60K km on it for what seems like a reasonable price.
Are there any gotchas for this model year that I should be aware of and looking for when I go over the service records, or have my mechanic examine it?
I love my '99 9-5, and 60K km is low.
If it's got a V6, think twice, AND make sure that the current owner has changed the rubber bands (I mean, timing belts) on schedule. The inline 4 is more robust and can be performance tuned if you are interested.
Dave Hinz
The 9-5 Aero has never had the V6 engine. However, the OP should check that the engine has the latest modification to the crankcase ventilation system and that the previous owner has changed the oil as recommended (or more often) and used high quality oil. Poor oil, long change intervals and a blocked crankcase ventilation system is bad for the engine.
How would this be verified? Is this tuning that would have had to happen during one of the regular maintenance services?
Whether the PO has changed the belts on time is not a reason to not buy the car. As long as they have not yet broken, which would be rather obvious, there will be no negative effect to the engine's longevity. It's not that big of a deal to get it done. Just subtract the cost to do so from the price you are willing to pay.
In fact, on any engine I would consider buying with a timing belt, if there is no positive proof the belt was changed and exactly what mileage and when, I would just do so as a matter of course...
True, and more economical to operate.
As can the 6 cylinder I suspect?
-Fred W
Not as much as the 4 cylinder engine. The V6 has asymetric turbocharging, i.e. one turbo is driven by one cylinder bank and feeds both cylinder banks. The turbo pressure is quite low, 0.2 bar, and is only used to increase the torque on low revs, not to add hp. The difference of back pressure on the two cylinder banks is compensated by different exhaust valve springs in the two banks and a Trionic 7 system that more or less treats the two banks as two three cylinder engines. Furthermore, the tiny turbo is built into the exhaust manifold and is therefore not easily replaceable. All this makes it difficult to get more hp out of the V6 and I know of only one tuner that have marketed anything for it (nothing spectacular).
Well, that stinks. Not having ever gone the V6 route I did not know any of that. Seems ripe for tuning if you could get a 2 into 1 then turbo config, but I guess so is any V6 engine made by anyone... Say GM perhaps?
-Fred W
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