Date: Tue, 21 Sep 1999 10:34:38 -0400 From: "Norman L. Kleinberg" <nlkleinbergnopsamhlink.net> Subject: Re: Is the 9-5 2.3L LPT just a bath tub on wheels?
Hi Scott: You know, it's funny. I'm looking for a car to replace my 10 year old Nissan Maxima and want something different (having had Japanese cars for close to 20 years). One car I'm looking at is the Saab 9-5. When I first test drove the 2.3L/auto I thought there was a lot of noise and very little movement (in fact my wife, in the back seat, said something to the effect that I should try a "higher gear" which to her meant go fast; I told her I already was pushing it as much as I could). I also tried the 5-speed, which was somewhat faster (slick clutch/shifter, though) but still seemed awfully slow. The V-6/auto wasn't much better, IMHO. I thought I was the only one who felt this way. Now don't get me wrong: I respect the cars and those who drive/love/hate them<g>. It might just be I'm not used to a turbo, or a 4-cylinder, etc. I'm not blaming anyone. It's just that coming off my old car (V-6/150HP/no turbo/stick) I really felt the 9-5 (all versions) were slow. So you're not the only one<g>. Now I've got to sort all this out because I'm not sinking another $1000 into the old Maxima (although I still think Japan makes the best engineered and reliable cars around. Just not terribly exciting). Good Luck in your search. N.L. Kleinberg Scott A. Stratmoen wrote in message ... >Am I the only person who thinks the 2.3L 9-5 with a manual is slow? What >I am finding is that when the air temperature goes up (>70F to 75F) the >performance of the LPT based engine in the 9-5 is abysmal. Yes I know >this is normal for a Turbo'ed car. > >The issue is that this big Saab is getting pushed off the road in daily >commuting. At times I have to just hit the brake and block traffic >waiting for an opening where in my old 900T I could have just sped up to >merge. (Note that I only found the 9-5 at a city dealer where there is >endless traffic and no room to really test out the performance. No >kidding! Bad mistake.) > >I have looked into Hirsh Performance (and Abbott) for the last month. >While I believe that they deliver on power I question two questions about >reliability. Can the drive train (transmission and half shafts) stand up >to an additional 150 ft-lbs of torque? In addition can the valves and >pistons can handle the additional heat generated? > >My guess is that in the 9-5 Aero these parts are upgraded, much like what >Saab claims for the 9-3 Viggen. Thus I suspect that while not only >voiding the engine / drive train warrantee there is a realistic negative >impact to long term reliability. Remember that these are not race cars >but for most of us daily drivers. We can't afford the cost and down time >to rebuild if something fails. (I recall a fellow worker who dropped a >drive shaft with added torque and cracked up the car in the process.) > >Am I out of my mind on the 9-5's performance? >Am I too conservative on an after market performance upgrade?
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
