Date: Mon, 22 Oct 2001 12:02:36 GMT From: "F Wills" <Fred.Willsnopsamam.starband.net> Subject: Re: 95 saab conv.-- good deal?
Susan, There are a couple of thing you are posiblly doing wrong: You shouldn't buy a car from a friend unless you don't care if you might lose them as a friend. Doesn't sound like that is the case here since you don't want to haggle with her. Just remember that you *both* have to feel like you're getting a good deal. That rarely happens. In fact, just the opposite is far more common. You shouldn't ask family members to do pre-purchase inspections (unless they are trained Saab technicians) since if anything goes wrong after the fact, there might be some hard feelings and you don't have the option of losing them like you do your friends...<g> Bring the car to a *competent* Saab experienced mechanic for a check-out. There are enough unique things about Saabs that many garages specialize in them and keep very busy. Not because they are particularly unreliable, but rather because when you find a good Saab specialist mechanic you tend to bring him all of your business. You shouldn't use kbb as a reasonable price guide. It is always high. Use what the auto dealers use, the NADA guides. Their web site gives prices which are an average of all the US geographical data. The books that the dealers use are regional and there is some small variation for particular models (such as convertibles) by geography. From NADAguides.com: SAAB 1995 900-4 Cyl. Body Style: Convertible 2 Door S Model Number: DD7 Weight: 3,190 Average Trade-In: $12,150 Average Retail: $14,475 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- Reported Mileage: 100,000 Deduct $1,100 <<--- You did know that this was high mileage - right? ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- Totals Total Average Trade-In: $11,050 (*)Total Average Retail: $13,375 So it appears your friend is selling the car at about wholesale which is a relatively good deal for you since she should be able to get the $11,050 from a dealer in trade. You should *absolutely* ask for all of the service records. This may be the most important factor in the pricing decision. Especially with a female previous owner where it is unlikely that she did a lot of service work on her own. No proof of service maintenance = much lower $$ in a private sale because you as the buyer are taking increased risk. Good Luck, Fred PS - My wife really loves the convertibles too. We almost bought a '97 earlier this year but couldn't reach an agreementwith the dealer. I ended up getting an older '87 BMW 325i instead. Both are really nice cars to take to the beach... "Susanmarine" <susanmarinenopsamcom> wrote in message news:20011021135343.18442.00000433nopsamf.aol.com... > Hi saab fans, > > I am about to bid on a '95 900 S convertible in excellent condition (inside > and out), but I am a little unsure about the value I am getting. Please weigh > in. > > the car is > auto transmission, 4 cyl > 100K miles, > no obvious mechanical issues (had my brother in law mechanic give it a full > inspection). > no rust or other obvious body wear. > basic stereo w.cassette > > > the owner wants 11K. she's a friend of mine, so I'm not inclined to bargain, > unless I have a sense that it's excessive. book value on Kelly is 12,300, but > on Black Book is 9800! there's another whole topic of debate...one book listing > vs. another. I've seen these cars on various auction sites go for as little as > 9500 with lower mileage. > > anyway, if you have thoughts about this deal, please share, along with > rationale. > > susan >
