Date: Sun, 21 Nov 2004 07:55:53 -0500 From: "WitchDr" <Witch**DRnospamnobulkemail.net.ru> Subject: Re: Saab 9-3 Aero Hot
"King Chilled" <chilled.kingnospaml.com> wrote in message news:17156953.0411210310.23852a7anospaming.google.com... > Hi all > I'm based in the UK and I am thinking of buying a secondhand 9-3 Aero > Hot (the 210bhp model). Whilst I have always admtred Saab's from afar > I have never driven or owned one before so I would appreciate feedbck > on the plus's and minuses of this car. Also, what are peoples opinions > on Saab dealerships as experience has taught me that a good dealer can > maker a huge difference to the pleasue of owning a car. Not sure how things are in the UK but I've owned both Honda's and Pontiacs which were great cars (believe it or not, the Pontiac was a great car). I now have 2 Saabs and here is what I love about Saabs. They drive great. Good cornering with just the right balance of body roll and a good feel for the road. Accelleration is very good (especially my Viggen) and even with the Turbo, they get good mileage compared to most other cars. Interiors are just awesome. Very quiet ride, everything is laid out just right, and there is plenty of headroom. One of the best parts of the interior is the massive amount of room. You can cram a ton of stuff into 9-3 with no problem. My friend is amazed how seating room there is and how much stuff I can get in there, his X5 has very little usable room and it's an SUV (and it's a dog). My wife manages to cart around 2 kiddies and car seats with strollers and assorted other stuff with no problem in a 900SE. Other nice things are that you don't see Saab's at every stop light. I'm in Miami and BMW's are more popular than Honda Accords, everyone has one (or three). I've had more than one person ask me what kind of car I'm driving, they just have no clue. I've seen 2 other Viggens down here. One other cool thing...they are pretty easy to do routine servicing on. My only beefs are that since they are not as common as a Taurus or Accord, there are few places that can really work on them. For the most part, you are stuck with a dealer or if you can find a good Saab mechanic, they are usually only a few. When I lived in Oregon I had to drive all the way across town to get work done but the dude was a master Saab tech and could fix anything so it was worth it. I have yet to find a good Saab mech in the Miami area other than the dealer. My other beef is the lights are always on, I hate DRL's because I have to drive on military firing ranges occasionally and I must have the car blacked out so I had to pull fuses to disable the DRL's. I seriously doubt anyone else has this issue. What else? The key fobs are kind of crappy. It's not that they break, they just have an odd shape. I have one integrated key/transmitter but the rest are these crappy fob thingys. Real serious issues as you can see. Oh yeah, the cup holders just plain suck. I don't use them often but they do suck. They look cool but suck. Ok, I do have one big beef and that is torque steer. The VIggen has such a powerful engine that the torque steer is a problem. I solved the issue with a $150 steering brace and clamp (aka Viggen Rescue Kit) from MP Performance. It's pretty simple to install and does wonders for the torque steer. I also have a sub-frame brace but have yet to install it. Hopefully this helps. Go drive the HOT, you'll love it.
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