Mom's gettin a car.

[hjr]

My mom has been a Saab fan for the longest time. We had a 900S way back when i was about 9, but we outgrew it (family of 5 + pets), anyways, her Windstar is about to hit 250 000km, and most of the family is driving themselves ('cept my sis, she is only 13) so my mom is gonna get a new car. And its gonna be a Saab almost for sure.

The 9-3 Arc Sport Sedan has a 2.0L turbo @ 210hp & 221 ft/lbs mated to a 6 speed manual trans. I think this is gonna rock. I know the cars are pricy and not the absolute best on the block, but i like em, and i cant wait to give one a test drive.

Sooo, any opinions on this. Hopefully from someone with Saab experience?

[XylathaneGTR]

Well, i dont have any Saab experience, so i'll just give you my oppinion...which prolly doesnt matter to most here.
Saabs are ugly...I think anyways, but looks arn't always important...I've heard they're extreamly safe, and very technological and comfortable...
Will prolly make a nice choice for your mom :thumbsup:

[hjr]

i dont know, the new ones are pretty tight. they just redesigned them for this year. ill see if i cant post a pic or 2.

[hjr]

ok, go here and look at the red one.

Saab 9-3 Sport Sedan (http://www.edmunds.com/new/2003/saab/93/100162766/photos.html?tid=edmunds.n.review.vdpheaderphoto..0.Saab*)

[XylathaneGTR]

I've seen the new ones...I still dont like them as much as other cars for the cost...But it would make a good mom car...
Hope she likes it...

[HRD2PLZ]

I think the new Saabs are pretty nice. I have a buddy who has a 94 9000CDE and its been pretty good to him. I think he's got around 230,000kms on it (his mom bought it here then moved to Michigan and frequently drove between the two). Hopefully their reliability has improved with the new models because they don't have the most solid history. Good luck with it, I hope your mom enjoys it.

[Toms-Celica]

Good cars, very easy to modifiy aswell..

[three.eighteen.]

good for long drives i hear...but the underpinnings are a GM chassis is it not?

[GTS Jeff]

Originally posted by XylathaneGTR
Well, i dont have any Saab experience, so i'll just give you my oppinion...which prolly doesnt matter to most here.
Saabs are ugly...I think anyways, but looks arn't always important...I've heard they're extreamly safe, and very technological and comfortable...
Will prolly make a nice choice for your mom :thumbsup: wow, u sure contributed!

looks are subjective, and he has already said that his mom likes saabs, so telling him that u think theyre ugly does nothing. saabs are no more technological than any other car. they still have 4 wheels, radio, and seats.


hjr - saabs have stiff chassis' and have a distinctive european handling feel. very fun. only downside is fwd + turbo = tq steer.

[T5_X]

Originally posted by GTS Jeff
only downside is fwd + turbo = tq steer.

Only if the driveaxles are unequal length, which they are on the pre03s, I haven't looked into the brand new ones though, but they may have fixed it cause the high output viggen of the last generation recieved lots of criticism for its huge torque steer. I'll look it up later.

But yah, Saabs have a large following of devout owners because of the way their whole lineup handles, very nicely tuned suspension and stiff chassis, lots of road feel. You'll here the saying "handle like it's on rails" lots from Saab owners. I haven't looked too much into the brand new ones, but from first glances they look awesome :thumbsup:


Make sure you get your parents to go test the Volvo S40/60s as well, since both companies have some similar strengths.

[T5_X]

Hmmmm, looks like the problem's been solved:


One thing the Saab 9-3 does not have is torque steer. Torque steer, that tug on the steering wheel when accelerating through a corner, has long been a bugbear of Saab 9-3s and most other powerful front-drive cars. To some drivers it is not a concern and many would even describe it as a character trait that adds excitement. Saab engineers worked hard to eliminate it in the new 9-3 and they appear to have been successful. Even in the more powerful Vector model the only time we experienced some torque steer was when accelerating around a corner where the surface was slightly rutted by wear from studded tires, not a very common occurrence outside of Sweden
from http://www.nctd.com/review-drive.cfm?ReviewID=1230


Once called “the poster child” of torque-steer, the 9-3 has so thoroughly rid itself of this characteristic that it’s nonexistent. Kevin Smith of Saab Cars USA explains that the original 9-3 and the Viggen never suffered from real torque steer in the first place, but rather from unequal grip at the nose at hard throttle due to weight transfer. However defined, it was bad, and even worse on the track. This iteration of the 9-3 is a whole different and better car - in that, and every other respect.
from http://www.theweekenddrive.com/reviews/2003/reviews/saab93.html

Apparently they flipped the steering rack or something, and used some electronics tricks to reduce tq steer
And the older ones didn't have actual torque steer, they suffered from "tramlining" which feels exactly the same as torque steer but who's cause is much different (as reffered to in the above quote)

[EVOI]

my friend has a saab, i think is a 99~93coupe~i think is a nice car~i like it. parts are very expensive though~but comfy,quite and nicely build~and since u r are big fan for saab, it will be very nice car for her~

[SpoonEK9@STRD]

9-3s are wicked!...good choice, make sure you dont buy it from david putty... lol

[GTS Jeff]

Originally posted by Ranger_X31
Apparently they flipped the steering rack or something, and used some electronics tricks to reduce tq steer bah thats electronics stuff always reduces steering feel. almost all electric steering and stuff makes the steering feel numb dead center...

[T5_X]

Originally posted by GTS Jeff
bah thats electronics stuff always reduces steering feel. almost all electric steering and stuff makes the steering feel numb dead center...

Once again, I'm not sure if that'd be the case. I don't think Saab wants to loose thier lifelong enthusiasts by taking away the superior road feel the company's name is known for. Whatever tweaks they make will probably be very subtle.