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, Mon, 10 Oct 2005 16:20:27
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Warning: This is more answer than you asked for, Mike, but bear with me.
Background: I am currently driving (well, not as I type this!) my third Saab, a 2003 9-5 Aero manual. The previous cars were a 2000 9-5 Aero automatic and a 1996 900 SE Turbo manual. My only other car was a 1990 Acura Integra GS manual. (The automatic transmission in 2000 was a compromise for domestic tranquility. Now that there's again a second car in the house, compromise isn't needed.)
I went to the Frankfurt auto show last month. While I loved the front end of the 9X, I hate (Hate, HATE!) how it has been adapted to the new 9-5 front. Also, I don't like the new lights on the back of the 9-5. So, getting a 2006 9-5 is out of the question for me. Since I can't get an Alfa Romeo 159 in the U.S. (that car is beautiful), I need to find a new car.
Last year I started bicycling again and have really missed the convenience of my 900's hatch -- tossing the bike in the back is a lot better than attaching a bike rack...
That desire for more practical storage made me start looking at the 9-3 SportCombi. I liked what I saw in Frankfurt and tried to get literature, but all Saab had were books in German. (Before someone flames me for complaining about German language books at a shoe held in Germany, most of the other manufacturers had both German and English literature available.)
As I started looking at the trim levels available in the U.S., I came to believe that the base model was very decontented and not very upgradable. That is, the base model does not have memory for the mirrors or driver's seat, does not have power for the passenger seat, has no auto-dimming mirror, no rain sensor for the wipers, and no park assist.
So, to get a 9-3 that closely mimicks what I currently have in my 9-5, I now need to get the 9-3 Aero with the V6 engine, which gets worse milage than the 9-5 (and even that's nothing to write home about). Also, according to the International site, the 9-3 SportCombi Aero has "Matte chrome side window trim" -- I am not a fan of excessive chrome. (That's one of the things wrong with the new 9-5.) The international site lets me configure a Vector that is almost identical to the Aero, save the engine, exhaust, and steering wheel.
I am willing to give up a bit of engine punch to get the other things. I don't know if I'm willing to give up decent fuel economy to get the other things.
I have not driven the V6 yet, but I am going to. Does anyone have any real world milage comparison of the 2.0T I4 and the 2.8T V6?
--Ken
posted by 144.118.127...
, Mon, 10 Oct 2005 17:10:36, Mon, 10 Oct 2005 19:08:19, Mon, 10 Oct 2005 16:20:27
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