My brother-in-law recently passed away and my sister wants to sell his 2001 Saab 9-3 w/43K miles. It has been driven very little in the last couples year. She’ll sell it for low blue book ($5,500) to get it off her hands. Probably worth up to $8,500.
Any thoughts on the Saab? I’m into keeping my Japanese cars a LONG time, so not sure if the Saab will be a maintenance nightmare.
Thanks!
They’re quirky cars and get bashed a lot, but have a strong following.
I’m an ex-SAAB tech, past SAAB owner, and current SAAB owner along with recently buying another SAAB last week (like I really needed it). They’re all 900s and the past and present one (215k miles) have served me well, latest acquistion excepted.
My current driver was purchased 2 years ago for 20 dollars due to a bad fuel pump. A fifteen minute fix and voila.
The 9-3 is a fairly new addition to the SAAB roster, but a number of people have posted their to-date mileages on their vehicles here.
http://www.saabnet.com/tsn/faq/miles/miles9_3_9_5.html
The older ones such as the 99s and 900s have really racked the miles up.
JMHO, but I like SAABs. No doubt others will disagree.
(They’re mucho fun to drive!)
Our two Saabs (1984 900 Turbo, and 1989 9000 CD Turbo) were both Toyota-like in reliability. Actually, even better than Toyota since the exhaust systems and shocks never needed replacement through 160,000 miles.
There are some quirks - one needs a special Saab tool to properly bleed the brakes - but boy are they nice cars to drive. Toyotas have quirks too; such as they are boring to drive, and that is something you put up with every minute of use.
The Saab you have in mind could give you 100,000 trouble-free miles and more.
ok4450 - Thanks!
Any thoughts on spark plugs? The OEM plugs are pricey!! I’ve gotten a couple check engine lights that code out as misfires in cylinders 1-2 or cylinders 3-4. My on-line homework reveals changing the plugs is a typical fix, before replacing the DIC.
Thanks!