Any Saab knowledge out there?

[dw1]

My 1996 900SE turbo daily driver has been a real trooper.

It's got 149.5 k miles right now and still going strong.

The problems have been few, and the edges of the headliner show the signs of decaying foam backing as they are starting to droop in a few spots, but everything in the car works well and (for the most part ) looks good.

The Saab board here has almost no activity. Over at www.saabnet.com, the message boards are very active, and (mostly) helpful.

[dw1]

My current Saab:

[onewhippedpuppy]

Originally Posted by speeder

My experience is all with older Saabs, pre-'95 900s and old 96s. I've always loved that company and their cars but it's not an unconditional love. The older 900s were bullet-proof w/ proper maintenance with the exception of one glaring exception, the transmissions. Auto or manual, they all grenade way before the rest of the car does. They had other niggling problems w/ electrics, etc., but nothing out of the norm for affordable cars that were well-used. (Not fair to compare to MB or Toyota, IMO).

I'm friendly w/ the guys at Swedish Motors in L.A., a really good independent shop that only works on Saabs and Volvos. They are Swede immigrants and really know these cars in a way that dealer wrenches never could, (I worked at both Saab and Volvo dealers in another lifetime). The newest cars that they service are out of warranty and range back to cobbled-together examples w/ a zillion miles. My advice would be to find a shop like this in your town and make friends w/ them. Maybe stop by for some free advice followed-up by gift of high-test beer or the like. Swedes love beer. MN. has very similar shops, as you can imagine. Get them talking and they will give you an education on which models to avoid, problem areas, etc... Internet boards are good too, of course.

The trans issues are related to the Ruby Goldberg-esque design of the FWD trans coupled w/ an in-line engine in the older cars. Eldorados and Toronados had the same set-up in the old days, I guess it never occurred to engineers to turn the motor sideways(?) Honda actually had an inline FWD car more recently, (some Acura model), I'm guessing that they perfected that design somehow. Anyhow, on older Saabs it's the weak link of the drivetrain, even w/ the lower-powered varients. With the newer ones that you are considering, it's a non-issue. I still think about getting an older 900 w/ a fresh trans for a cheap driver, they are just miles ahead of some old Japanese car in comfort, space and build quality. I'd put them equal to older BMWs in overall quality and miles ahead in spacial design and driving comfort. I've had several old E-30s and E-28s, they are very run-of-the-mill cars for comfort and interior design. Any old Saab w/ boxy design blows them away, IMO.

Dennis, were the transmission issues related to the '80s models? I know the '90s models with the transverse 4 had nearly bulletproof manual transmissions. The automatics, on the other hand, were pretty piss poor. Of course, so were the '90s BMW automatics.

The only other factor is hauling ability in the hatchback models. You will be AMAZED how much stuff will fit into a hatchback Saab. There's stories of washing machines, refrigerators, etc. They are very practical cars.

[speeder]

Trans problems are on the old 900s w/ inline mounted engines. And you don't have to sell me on the interior space, they are phenomenal.