When & what to buy...

[wilko]

OK folks, strange as it sounds, I have got a proper hankering for a modern-ish Saab at the moment.I drive hire cars for work from time to time, and get given the freedom to shop around - I've had loads in the last year or two from Corsas to Mondeos to Grand Voyagers depending how many passengers and who's expense cost centre I'm abusing...I had a Saab 9-3 TTid 6 speed auto with leather & toys & it was the bees knees. I really quite want a saloon one, but the cabri would be even better... The missus really wants me to have one as well...Thing is, they only came out on an 08 plate, and I won't spunk 10k+ on a car that will be dog food tins in a decade - just can't bring myself to do it, which is why I drive a Triumph Acclaim that cost me a tenner. So, how much slower is the earlier 150bhp single turbo diesel? Since they depreciate like a falling comet (hooray!), whens the best age/milage to buy in your opinion, and at what price - don't have a specific budget in mind, so fire away! What's the alleged death of Saab likely to do to prices in short/long term? Lastly - do you reckon the cabrio likely to fall off the end of the scale in value in a few years since it hasn't got one of those foldy-hardtops?

[Owain-328i]

My experience of the 9-3 tid Vector Sport was it dropped a 6 speed manual box after 1000 miles..... and the Mondeo ghia x tdci courtesy car that replaced it while the box was being replaced was a much better drive and felt better built.Saab looked nice though, and the cabin was a nice place to sit

[Mr Lobster]

Saab looked nice though, and the cabin was a nice place to sit

That pretty much mirrors my experience as well. Nice to sit in, looks pretty good but massively disappointing to drive. Really put me off them.

[Pete-M]

and mine. Shame, as I'd like to like Saabs. Always fancied one of those turbo nutter 9000 Carlsson things, but every single one I can find that isn't vastly overpriced is utterly cabbaged. 9-5s drive quite well, but they're all knackered as well.Just scanning ebay tonight I'm amazed at the number of dead Saabs there are out there.

[Betaphile]

OK folks, strange as it sounds, I have got a proper hankering for a modern-ish Saab at the moment.I drive hire cars for work from time to time, and get given the freedom to shop around - I've had loads in the last year or two from Corsas to Mondeos to Grand Voyagers depending how many passengers and who's expense cost centre I'm abusing...I had a Saab 9-3 TTid 6 speed auto with leather & toys & it was the bees knees. I really quite want a saloon one, but the cabri would be even better... The missus really wants me to have one as well...Thing is, they only came out on an 08 plate, and I won't spunk 10k+ on a car that will be dog food tins in a decade - just can't bring myself to do it, which is why I drive a Triumph Acclaim that cost me a tenner. So, how much slower is the earlier 150bhp single turbo diesel? Since they depreciate like a falling comet (hooray!), whens the best age/milage to buy in your opinion, and at what price - don't have a specific budget in mind, so fire away! What's the alleged death of Saab likely to do to prices in short/long term? Lastly - do you reckon the cabrio likely to fall off the end of the scale in value in a few years since it hasn't got one of those foldy-hardtops?

Bit of a tricky one this. Fair disclosure: Despite the ragging they get in the press generally, I quite like the current 9-3. However, the early ones did have reasonably extensive reliability 'issues'. The 'aggressive nose' facelifted versions seem to be pretty good, but obviously they haven't undergone quite the same degree of monster depreciation (yet). I assume all '08-plate ones are the facelift ones anyway so the reliability aspect shouldn't be an issue. One point to mention though: even though they're both based on the same original Fiat 1.9 block, the TTiD unit is built by Fiat, whereas I believe the single-blower 150 is built in an Opel factory. I mention this only because Fiat diesels seem to be quite reliable but people bitch about the same design in Opels constantly. I tend to find a good general rule of thumb with Saabs is the later in a model's run, the better - they tend to improve with age as all the bugs get evolved out. If you can wait until an announcement is made on Saab's future (or otherwise), I guess prices are going to plummet irrationally since it does look increasingly like GM just isn't going to sell. Suspect saloons will be hit worse than cabs though because the ragtop has always been popular in its segment and the sedan, er, hasn't.

[r.welfare]

I had a 120bhp one in 2006-07, took it from 70 to 25k miles in 11 months. Nothing broke, it was comfy, comfortable, but not an exciting drive.If you don't want to stretch to the TTiD (and personally I think the '08 facelift ruined the looks), why not seek out a 150bhp with a Hirsch chip? I drove one of these before plumping for the cheaper 8-valve 120 brake model, it pulled wonderfully hard through the gears (I think it put out 180bhp with the chip, see) but even with a ratio of 70% waft/30% nutterdrive, the on-board computer told me I'd done 50MPG.From a build quality/reliability standpoint, I'd try and find one that's been serviced more frequently than the 18k the on-board service indicator/Saab's schedule suggests - having the same oil in the engine that long makes me nervous about longevity, despite what the manufacturers say about long-life oils and all that jazz - and the 2007MY (rotary heater controls instead of buttons and LEDs, plus the trip computer is below the speedo instead of in a hooded binnacle at the base of the windscreen) is definitely better screwed-together than the earlier models - so ideally a 56-plate or later is your bag.Autos are harder to find and the slushbox wallops the CO2 so the road tax is pricier - if you can live with a manual I would - eBay seems to show them from £6k up in saloon form. That's at around 80-100k miles which makes sense to buy at, as the cambelt interval is 72k. The 2007 Anniversary seems to be a good buy with a lorra toys for not much extra outlay. My wife wants this spec in the estate format, so I will be watching the (hopeful!) price plummeting once the death warrant is finally signed with interest.The convertibles have always been overpriced IMHO, and I don't see that changing hugely given that the GM900 and earlier 9-3 types seem to command heady sums.Oh, and it must be black, with cream leather.

[Volksy]

I really liked the 9000's that i had, an '85 9000i and a '91 9000s, although both blew gearboxes (manuals) at around 150k The clutch slave cylinder is a bitch of a job, but the do have a hinged subframe to make it easier.I then had a GM900 Convertable, which was 'nice' in an advertising exec type of way, but suffered from awful scuttle shake. This was followed by a 9-3 2.0i 3dr 'Coupe' which was one of the best cars i've owned, nothing went wromg with it in 30,000 miles, despite never being serviced, and the cabin was a nice comfy place to spend time, especially on long distances. massive boot too! Should have kept it really...They aren't the most inspiring drive, in any shape or form, but are very capable, if dull, long distance cruisers.

[wilko]

I used to be an avowed Ford man, but the TDCi mk4 Mondeo did not tick my boxes - I found it the most boring to drive of the lot. Although quite refined, the engine felt like something out of a lorry - the fastest way to drive it was work out the gaps between the gears and change up as soon as the rev-drop was still "on boost". Also had a diesel Insignia when they were brand spankers, which was great to drive hard, but the comfort was questionable - I had a numb ass after an hour and the back is woefully cramped. The Saab (58 plate) was better all-round than either in my opinion - although I will have to drive another auto diesel, as it might be that I just prefer the auto/diesel combo I suppose.Having hire cars has brought home to me that whilst I do love tooling about in gas guzzlers like my 4.2 XJ, I would probably do more with my spare time and go a lot more places if the cost of getting there was £25 worth of diesel rather than £75 of petrol. I could get a 90's diesel for a few hundred and smoke it, but I've never spent more than £1200 on a car in my life - I was thinking of chucking a few grand at something relatively practical/modern that I actually like which has been massively depreciated (thus good value) and will last me a while. Probably need to drive some french & japanese stuff to see if I like it - Germans never depreciate properly, so I'll steer well clear of them!

[Mr H Sceptre]

My sister has an 07 plate (pre facelift) 9-3 2.0 turbo petrol cabrio, think theyre about 210bhp or summat. Nice car. Good interior, pretty nippy once you've overcome the usual Saab turbo lag. As a rule I dont like the styling of saloon-based cabrios, I think they look like boats, which includes the Saab. I've driven a few 9-3's over the years, and although they might be a bit wooly to drive, they are basically pretty well screwed together, comfortable, capable cars IMO.

[AXrescuer]

I really liked the 9000's that i had, an '85 9000i and a '91 9000s, although both blew gearboxes (manuals) at around 150k The clutch slave cylinder is a bitch of a job, but the do have a hinged subframe to make it easier.I then had a GM900 Convertable, which was 'nice' in an advertising exec type of way, but suffered from awful scuttle shake. This was followed by a 9-3 2.0i 3dr 'Coupe' which was one of the best cars i've owned, nothing went wromg with it in 30,000 miles, despite never being serviced, and the cabin was a nice comfy place to spend time, especially on long distances. massive boot too! Should have kept it really...They aren't the most inspiring drive, in any shape or form, but are very capable, if dull, long distance cruisers.

My wife loves her GM900, says it's the best car she's owned in 20 years of driving.

[Volksy]

My wife loves her GM900, says it's the best car she's owned in 20 years of driving.

Yer, the 9-3 I had was the facelift GM900, great car. I didn't like the convertable, as it was alarming the the rear end of the car (and not just the suspension) seemed to be doing something completly different to the front end.

[Betaphile]

IIRC, once described by James May as a car seemingly built in two separate halves and connected with a balljoint.

[Volksy]

/\ - So very true!