Used Saab 9-3s,......any good?

[PNN]

Thinking of getting a used Saab 9-3...it seems that you get quite a lot for £4K (like a 2005 model in good condition at 80-100K mileage).

Has anyone got any experience of them please?

Thanks

Mark

[Fire99]

Vectra underpinnings (and that's not an awful thing) 1.9 TiD engine is pretty good. Shared with the likes of the Vectra, Astra, Alfa 156 etc.
Pretty comfortable and better specced for the money than the equivalent Vauxhall etc.

Diesels can have DMF and DPF issues but that is not entirely unusual for a whole host of cars.

An ex of mine had a 1.9 TiD and was a nice car to drive on a distance.

[J4CKO]

Just sold my Aero, 2003 for £2750 with 58k up, remapped as well, decent enough car, downsides are cheap interior and it being FWD, not massive fun, the aero has overly hard suspension, other than the interior cheapness they are very well made and generally robust if not the last word in fun, an Audi is similar but better made, but much more expensive.

[NadiR]

These cars are essentially a Vectra C underneath and I can tell that the Vectra C platform is a good one if cared for.

Just please, please don't buy one without service history as you will be asking for massive (expensive) trouble. A cousin of mine bought one with no history whatsoever and it cost him an arm and a leg to put right and the car was supposedly "mint" when he bought it.

Also if you can, try to go for the 1.9 diesel if you can as these are much better then the older 2.2DTI unit in terms of reliability and economy.

[J4CKO]

Fire99 said:

Vectra underpinnings (and that's not an awful thing) 1.9 TiD engine is pretty good. Shared with the likes of the Vectra, Astra, Alfa 156 etc.
Pretty comfortable and better specced for the money than the equivalent Vauxhall etc.

Diesels can have DMF and DPF issues but that is not entirely unusual for a whole host of cars.

An ex of mine had a 1.9 TiD and was a nice car to drive on a distance.

They are sort of Vectra underpinnings but not that much is shared, as you say the Vectra isnt that bad a car, the Saab does handle, they spent more on the Saab with alloy wishbones where the Vauxhall got pressed steel, plus its s shorter version of the Epissilon platform and fwd medium saloon wise they are all much of a muchness, the aero was too stiff I thought though, the bodyshell is very rigid, part of the reason its a saloon not a hatch.