Saab - yes or no

Bingolingo

IMO if it looks in decent condition and you trust the person you're buying from then it might be worth a punt, if you need a diesel estate. I've always liked the Saab interiors and they have a bit more character than your more mainstream alternatives like the mondeo.

I don't know if you could buy many 12 year old cars and be confident that reliability and maintenance costs will be minimal - up to you to consider the condition, history and likely costs of running.

forgotmyname

£1500 doesnt sound like a bargain...

If they think thats 30% less than other sellers are asking show them the autotrader side where they start from £1200... £1295 from a trader with a money back guarantee..

Traders making at least £400 on that i would say. Stick his reg into a car buying site and see what they offer.

Marktheshark

£1500 is way over the top.

mark55man

did look at autotrader, not many around and they all looked £1500 or above, but I wasn't sure which was top end spec and which wasnt so couldnt really tell

think I may pass - its not urgent and I know my current car hasnt broken down for 6 months :-)

Thanks

TonicBristol

I bought a 52 plate Saab 9-3 2.0t Vector two years ago and love it. Only had 54K miles on the clock and it's really quick. Running costs are cheap (spend less on fuel than my old 1.8 Mondeo). If you get the chance to pick one up cheap and in good nick (mine was £2K) I'd recommend it.

It has all the toys like heated seats, self adjusting xenon headlights, air con, etc. Last MOT was £35 and service parts on Eurocarparts can be got cheaply when they do offers. The MOT before that was an advisory on a tyre. MOT is due this Saturday and fingers crossed it should pass!

Be wary with a diesel though as the diesel engines weren't made by Saab/GM. Also, I believe in terms of spec it goes Arc, Linear, Vector, Aero.

bigjl

Marktheshark wrote: »

Some had the BMW 2.2 straight 4 diesel engine via GM motors.

The Vauxhall 2.2 diesel was a BMW engine?

Are you sure about that.

It is an agricultural if long lived old hector.

As far as the OP goes the 2.2 tid is likely a better bet than the Fiat 1.9diesel or the 3.0 Isuzu diesel engine

£1500 is not cheap imho.

But the estates have always held value well and are becoming sought after by those keen on the brand.

Few cars arw as comfortable as a Saab especially a 9-5

AdrianC

The 2.2 diesel was an Isuzu lump, pre-common rail. When it was replaced by the 1.9, that was felt to be a big step forward, but the 1.9 is a lot more complex, and does have some weak spots.

I'd have no qualms at all. Comfortable, very civilised, well built, and unusual.

OddballJamie

OP - Using sold prices on Ebay is more accurate than garage forecourt prices.

Here's one that sold in November, same spec with 160k, FSH one owner.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2002-SAAB-9-5-ARC-TID-GREY-/161486726516

As it's a friend and emigrating so I assume there's a deadline in place, for a hassle free sale, £1000 is a fair price.

worried_jim

Just spent two years running a £495 Saab 9-3 2.0t auto. Never missed a beat and spent £90 on disks and pads, £60 on 2x part worn tyres, that's it. Never missed a beat and went like stink. Buy it.

BeenThroughItAll

If it was the 1.9TiD I'd avoid it, but the 2.2 isn't half as bad, and the 9-5's a nice place to sit; but I'd not pay £1500 for it in a million years.


Maybe £900 max if you really like the seller and it's proper minty.