At the end of each year, Shed borrows Dan's chipped Amstrad to tot up the interest in each of the Sheds he has written about in the previous 12 months.
As you'd expect, the level of interest in each story (measured by forum post count) is approximately equivalent to the squiggle recorded by a Cardiff-based seismometer when a small lady steps off a pavement in Jakarta.
Heads up, it's a fast Saab estate!
But some Sheds do stand head and crusty shoulders above the rest, generating floods of posts numbering as many as 20. Last year, the winner was a Merc 500SEC. The year before, it was an Audi 80 quattro Avant 2.6.
Now, although Shed would never pre-judge anything other than the result of an argument with Mrs Shed, he reckons this week's offering has all the attributes of a potential Shed of the Year. Style, comfort, practicality, a semi-stupid amount of power - it's all present and correct in the Saab 9-5 Aero HOT estate. The only thing you might conceivably want to add is a towbar. And maybe some sort of breakdown warranty.
That's the trouble with Saabs built during the GM dynasty, two dirty decades from the late 1980s to 2010. When big Saabs from this era go wrong, they go expensively wrong. But when they're flying, they're amazing. The 9-5 arrived in 1998 as a replacement for the old 9000; in Griffin format the 9000 would torque steer a careless owner to many new and interesting places. The 9-5 had a fair bit of this waywardness tuned out.
This era of Aero means 250hp
The 2.3 turbo four in our 2002 HOT model (stands for High Output Turbo) would have thrown out a healthy 250hp. That's 10hp less than you received in the very last '06-'09 Aero, but in either case the manual's mid-six-second 0-60 time was the same. In fact, when the first-gen 9-5 was superceded in 2009, its replacement needed 300hp to deliver the same time. So much for progress.
This Shed has an automatic box, an Aisin-Warner five-speeder (joint venture between Aisin Seiki and Borg Warner) that has a good reliability rep but also an old-school torque converter that will bob an extra second or so onto the 0-60 and drop the everyday mpg to something down at the wrong end of the 20s. Still, irrespective of the transmission, this is a quick car by any standards with an electronically-governed top whack of 155mph and cod-warming mid-range thrust.
If the performance feels less than lusty it may be something as simple as a split hose. Engine misfires are equally susceptible to a quick fix as they will very often be down to a busted DI (direct injection) cassette. The drop-in modular design (just four bolts) allows fitment in seconds rather than minutes. Knowing owners keep spare cassettes in the boot. Used ones are obtainable for under a hundred quid, but they can upset the cat.
Seats should provide supreme comfort
If the performance remains stubbornly disappointing, point your finger of suspicion at Saab's EVAP gas-dispersal doodah. Not for the first time in automotive history, plastic parts were used when they should have been metal. Luckily, aluminium valve kits are pleasantly affordable, or you can just pull the top hose off the boost control valve and shove a bolt in there instead, a very nice solution for the skinflint Shedman.
Crank position sensors routinely fail, causing starting issues, and of course the oil sludging problem on this B235R engine is well known. Declogging the strainer and pickup in the sump is the fix, regular oil changing the long-term solution.
Suspension parts will always need replacing on any old car but that's especially true on 9-5s. Front wishbones, anti roll bar bushes and drop links should all be seen as consumable items. Front tyres won't last long either.
After the furious row that erupted about air-con on last week's Jag, Shed is opting for a dignified silence on its lack of functionality here, other than to say that he comes down on the side of lowering the window. Apart from anything else, it drowns out the racket coming from the passenger seat.
Worth it for the Night Panel, surely
9-5 seats are wonderfully comfortable, cargo space is immense and the Night Panel is a touch of genius that every manufacturer should have copied. The SID (Saab Information Display) on this one seems OK. Make sure all the warning lights come on and then go out when you start the car.
Rust isn't normally a big problem, though the clamshell bonnets are a bit vulnerable on their leading edges. The paint on this car has a certain patina about it that is all the rage these days don't ye know.
In a field populated by good German cars, the near-£30K 9-5 Aero HOT was a left-field purchase. Now, at under £800, it's become a front and centre choice for anyone chasing down a fast, versatile Q-car.
One owner from new. Interior condition excellent. Black leather seats .Grey carpets and matching mats. Bluetooth telephone kit. Full service history to January 2014 at 11800 miles. MOT February 2016
Boot mat and roof bars included in sale price
Air-con weak. Paint on off-side imperfect in places (see photos). Tailgate struts getting weak. A few small dings and scratches as you would expect with a car of this age.
Equipment includes, electric windows / locking / seats with memory, auto dimming mirror, xenon headlights, heated front seats, factory speaker / amp upgrade
SOTW anyone?
Please email/call me if you have any questions or need any further details