[Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
 | [Main General Bulletin Board | BBFAQ |
Prev by Date | Next by Date | Post Followup ]
Member Login / Signup - Members see fewer ads. - Latest Member Gallery Photos
Sure sure! ;-) Posted by Scott Paterson [Email]  (#13)  [Profile/Gallery]
(more from Scott Paterson) on Thu, 25 Sep 2003 13:47:05
In Reply to: Re: sure..., Gehn, Thu, 25 Sep 2003 13:19:38 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
Really, it just depends upon what owner you speak with and what Saabs they've owned. There are some owners who have only owned classic 900's and to them, they are the one true Saab. There are some owners who have owned only 99's and to them, that was the one and true Saab. You see where it's going... which is not to any definitive answer anytime soon. The Classic 900 was Saab's longest selling single model, but if you look at the 1980 900 vs the 1993 900 - wow, there's a lot of technology change in a single model. Here's what I've owned:
1973 Saab Sonett III 4 speed manual
1983 900 Turbo Hatchback 5 speed manual
1985 900 Sedan (these were four doors) 5 speed manual
1990 900 Hatchback 5 speed manual
1992 900S Sedan 3 speed automatic then 5 speed manual
1999 9-3 Turbo 5 speed manual
Wow, these were all such great cars... the Sonett... I mean, what can you say?! It's so unique and Saab - goes over 100mph with an 85HP engine and turns heads in flocks... And that's just yesterday! My god, it's over 30 years old! People follow me into parking lots to ask me about the car.
The 1983 900 Turbo. My first taste of a turbo-charged Saab led me into addiction with no recovery in sight! My only complaint about Saab was that they were not putting turbos in every Saab because once you got on that Turbo, you were hooked! It was like drugs (not that I know)! Saab eventually did put the turbo in all of its cars.
How about the plain jane's - the 1990 and 1985 naturally aspirated cars. The 85 was actually my first Saab and wow, even without a turbo, I was so impressed with the car, it is what made me create TSN! And the 1990 hatch took on the Colorado mountains like a champ with no problems at all as it drove me to and from the 1999 Saab Owners Convention. It was a workhorse.
Alas, the darkhorse is the 1992 900S with its automatic tranny. That tranny was a dog, I have to admit, but it allowed me a unique perspective into two things: 1. How easy it was to swap a classic 900 from auto to manual transmission! And 2, more importantly, how freaking fantastic today's Saab automatic trannies are! They are sooo fast, so smooth.. and although I am partial to manual transmissions - I'm no longer so confident that I can outshift a Saab automatic tranny. In fact, I'm sure I can't anymore...
Then there's our 1999 9-3 Turbo. Jeez, we put 26,000 miles on this car in the first year we owned it and it never complains. We got it off lease at around 13,000 miles and even though it was not from the local Burlingame Saab dealer, Burlingame treated us with a lot of respect as if the they sold that car to us personally. They took the Saab warranty seriously and took car of both us and the car! Now with over 60K miles on the car, it drives as good as the day we first got it. I was coming home early last weekend on clear highways and playing around with the turbo. It's unreal how the thing goes from 55 to 105. If you had to make a graph of Performance vs Utility vs Safety vs Gas Mileage.... I mean where is Saab's weakness?!!!
Then there's the six speed 9-3 sports sedan we test drove at the convention. You know what, do whatever you can, meet whomever you need to, make friends however possible, but do whatever it takes to drive the following cars (or at least ride in them):
Saab Model 96
Saab Model 97 (Sonett - I'm partial to the III's)
Saab Model 99 (I like the Turbos)
Saab 900 Turbo (try an 83 and a 93!)
Saab 9000 Aero (I won the 99 Saab Owners Convention in a 9000 Aero - wow, that was a fun car too!)
Saab 9-3 Turbo
Saab 9-5 Turbo (we rented one a couple years ago - that's when I got my first glimpse at the new Saab automatic trannies from a behind the wheel perspective - my eyes popped!)
Saab 9-3 Sports Sedan six speed if you can
Saab 9-2 Turbo when it comes out!
So, rambling on and on and on, I still don't think you have your answer although I think I know what it is:
Which is the best Saab? The one you own. Own as many as you possibly can! I still need a Model 99 in my driveway!
-Scott
posted by 64.139.3...
_______________________________________ Saabnet.com Webmaster Saabs Owned: 1973 Saab Sonett III (Current) 1983 Saab 900 Turbo 1985 Saab 900 Sedan 1990 Saab 900 1992 Saab 900S 1999 Saab 9-3 Turbo 2005 Saab 9-2X Aero (RIP 95K/Accident-guy ran stop sign) 2005 Saab 9-2X Aero (Current) 2007 Saab 9-3 SportCombi 2010 Saab 9-3X Wagon Winner 1996 Saab Owners Convention Rally Novice Class Winner 1999 Saab Owners Convention Rally (All Classes) Also Founder of two non-profits: Poverty2Prosperity.org RunClubMenloPark.org
, Thu, 25 Sep 2003 12:56:03
, Thu, 25 Sep 2003 15:45:12, Thu, 25 Sep 2003 15:58:41, Thu, 25 Sep 2003 13:47:05 <-- Viewing This Message
, Fri, 26 Sep 2003 05:43:04
No Site Registration is Required to Post - Site Membership is optional (Member Features List), but helps to keep the site online
for all Saabers. If the site helps you, please consider helping the site by becoming a member.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
