SOTW: Saab Conv
Be a Sloane Ranger on the cheap...
You can be the most stylish cheapskate in town
Well, in some way it may not be as silly as it sounds because you can get a bit of a bargain, drive round cursing your purchase and then sell it on for a profit next spring. Maybe.
By the time this 900 came along everyone knew they were re-bodied Vauxhalls with awful handling and more than a hint of badge-engineering.
Gone was the quirky, offbeat Swedish engineering that had kept legions of fans from the days of the blast-me-off-the-road early turbo models.
In was basically a Cavalier/Vectra in drag that had dodgy handling and awful residuals.
However, standing slightly away, almost embarrassed of its ugly siblings, always stood the 900 cabrio.
If the saloons were just about shifting out of the showrooms into the hands of school teachers who thought they were too ‘individual’ for a Mondeo, the cabrio didn’t look out of place in Monte Carlo.
The 900 Convertible was driven by people who said ‘yah’ and ‘ra, ra, ra’ a lot and went for lunch at the tennis club.
The small window in the back seemed to add to the sexiness and you had a vehicle that not only moved a notch up from its tin top brother but into a whole different social circle.
It seemed that those who drove the cabrio to their King’s Road eateries were not concerned by trivial things such as chronic scuttle-shake or woeful handling.
The bigger engined models had too much torque steer but this would matter little on the cruise to the polo club.
The only problem facing those who bought one would be whether to get it in a conservative blue or black, or go for the garish yellow.
The Saab up-sides were there though, including good reliability and the ability to cover monster mileage.
The cabrios seemed to hold their value far better than the hatchbacks ever could too.
Not so this 1995 900 2.3 SE we found on Autotrader, because it could be yours for a measly grand.
It’s the later model in a desirable black, with alloys and leather.
There’s tax and MOT, electric windows, power steering and central locking too.
It does say it needs ‘light bodywork’ but that must be round the other side because it looks pretty good in the pic.
So join the croquet club, call your kids Tarquin and Rupert, and go get it…
Ad says: SAAB 900 2.3 SE Convertible
M reg. 2drs,5spd, Convertible, Black, Alloys, CL, leather, EW, PAS. light bodywork needed hence only. tax & mot. £1,000. p/x to clear.
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