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Date: Sat, 15 Feb 2003 04:01:36 GMT
From: "pablo" <pabloNnopsamsimplyhombre.net>
Subject: 2 weeks with the Step 1 Hirsch Performance Kit


Just wanted to report about my experience with the Hirsch step 1 performance kit - excellent stuff! The power increase does not sound all too impressive at first - from 205 to 230HP, but the *real* difference is in the torque way down below. The car is *very* responsive from the get-go. Since I live in lazy laid back CA these days, I must confess to driving the slush-box version, and the responsiveness is good to the point of snatchiness off a start. The hard thing is to not let people think you're trying to impress them like a teenager. I am not that passionate about cars as a rule. I owned a 2000 Jaguar XJR prior to my current '02 Saab 9-3 SE turbo, which I got with the works (sports package and whatever else), and then I got the Viggen exhaust put in there too. This car has turned me into a total fan. Usually, I have the utter and total rueg to ride my motorcycle whenever I can. Now, with the Saab, it is a harder decision each morning, darn it....! Some people asked me why I got rid of a car as nice as the XJR - the reason was simple: I wanted to get over the tech bubble image the Jag oozed everywhere I went. It was nice while it lasted, but it was never me, and in the end embarassed me. Don't get me wrong - the XJR is a phenomenal car. Very cozy, but also soft and uninvolving. The performance comes in an abstract, distant way. The 4-door thing also never was me. When I decided to repalce it, I set myself a $45k budget. I tried out the usual suspects for the 4-seat, 2-door convertible category: BMW, Merc, Volvo, and even gace the Lex SC430 a try. Test-drove them, and had a deal worked out with the BMW folks (which, by the way, rubbed me the wrong way repeatedly with their brand arrogance). Then I remembered my long urge to try out a Saab. Always liked their image, and always had liked the people who drove them (my ex-girlfriend's dad, an art professor, and my boss as I was a student working during summer). I liked the difference, it clicked with me immediately. More direct than any of the others, more in your face, while having the most comfortable seats and -to me- most well sorted out ergonomy by a mile. Everything else suddenly seemed very watered-down, well engineered as it was, the Saab provided a far more direct driving experience. And now the Hirsch kit. Not that it was really necessary, but then again, why not. It completes the Saab 9-3 very nicely, seems to offer impeccable quality, and is officially endorsed by Saab (even though not yet sold through Saab dealerships in the US). I got Saab's written OK that it would not affect the warranty conditions at all, and it is very well sorted out. I have never been as happy with a car as I am now. I have owned 2 Jaguars, 2 BMWs, 1 Infiniti, 1 Citroen Duck -well, I loved that car, too-, and 1 Fiat. The Saab takes the cake. I can't put my finger on what it is, but it just is everything I need it to be - its range is impressive and very well sorted out. Let's see if the new convertible they bring out this year can follow an act with such endearing personality. Sorry for the rant, but I had a great day. I took the day off, and drove down highway 1 in CA to carmel, and then 40 miles down to Big Sur, and it was beautiful... ...pablo

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