To put it nicely... Your mechanic doesn't know what he's talking about. It sounds like he has a lot of knowledge of the C900's and is resistant to change. Let's go over his arguments:

>>1) Manual transmission clutch in the newer style requires pulling the engine to change the clutch plate, etc.

The VAST majority of cars require that you pull the tranny to replace the clutch. Nothing new there... The only reason why the clutch can be changed in place in a C900 is because the tranny is in FRONT of the engine and the engine is mounted front-to-back (which is different than the transverse mounting in most cars). The C900 tranny is VERY constrained in space and is an eccentric design (which is not good). The NG900 is MUCH, MUCH stronger and better designed to handle power than the C900 ever was. That makes it a much better choice than the C900. Let's move on...

>>2) Body is less crash-worthy in the newer style because of many less spot welds in the construction.

Bull@#$%. Just by "looking" at a car you cannot tell its crash worthiness by the spot welds. If you looks at all the tests, read the design book by Anders Tunberg, study the IIHS crash tests, check out the ratings by the Swedish Folksam Insurance group, and look at the "blood on the road" statistics in the US, you'll find that the NG900 is a MUCH safer car. No question about it. And whether you like airbags or not, the NG900/9-3 has passenger side airbags that the C900 never did. Plus the 9-3 has Saab Active Head Restraints to protect you against whiplash (which is a very nasty problem even in low-speed incidents).

>>3) Newer style not built to last like the older 900s (1993 and back)...witness the reliability level with the 94s, 95s, 96s...etc.

Yes, the early model years of the NG900 had some problems but most are solveable without investing a whole lotta money. Tell me that C900's are bulletproof (especially the trannies) and I'll laugh. I think it has more to do with how you treat the car and the competency of your mechanic. People will be getting the same 200K or more miles out of NG900's that they did with C900's. And the engine management systems are much improved in the new cars.

I think it's time for some of the old "diehards" to learn about the new cars before they continue badmouthing them...

posted by 24.60.21...

• Old style 900 vs. new style 9-3, Todd inMA, Wed, 25 Sep 2002 22:21:44
  • I own one of each, NG900 is big improvement...., Mike Lynch , Fri, 27 Sep 2002 15:46:54
  • my 0.02 worth...., Rollmo, Fri, 27 Sep 2002 13:10:47
  • Re: Old style 900 vs. new style 9-3 (a bit long), Noel, Fri, 27 Sep 2002 11:03:55
  • Re: Old style 900 vs. new style 9-3, vince, Thu, 26 Sep 2002 14:55:32
  • Re: Old style 900 vs. new style 9-3, jp, Thu, 26 Sep 2002 11:26:38
    • Re: Old style 900 vs. new style 9-3, morlok, Thu, 26 Sep 2002 21:39:38
  • I have both. Only time will tell., Talladega900, Thu, 26 Sep 2002 11:03:41
    • Fixed a lot of my torque steer w/alignment..., b.flippo, Thu, 26 Sep 2002 18:09:29
  • Re: Old style 900 vs. new style 9-3, compaqted, Thu, 26 Sep 2002 10:31:07
  • Re: Old style 900 vs. new style 9-3, Bruce, Thu, 26 Sep 2002 02:16:57 <-- Viewing This Message
    • Re/ knocking classic Saabers, Kevin, Sun, 29 Sep 2002 08:52:26
    • Re: Old style 900 vs. new style 9-3, BHarvey, Thu, 26 Sep 2002 11:21:17
      • c900 stiffer??? I think not. 25% stiffer in the NG..., Talladega900, Thu, 26 Sep 2002 11:49:54
        • Re: c900 stiffer??? I think not. 25% stiffer in the NG..., Jeremy R., Thu, 26 Sep 2002 18:37:37
          • Re: c900 stiffer??? I think not. 25% stiffer in the N, BHarvey, Fri, 27 Sep 2002 11:08:02
        • ...and the new 9-3 is 130% stiffer than the NG. n/m, b.flippo, Thu, 26 Sep 2002 18:05:09
  • Re: Old style 900 vs. new style 9-3, rob , Thu, 26 Sep 2002 00:40:42
  • Re: Old style 900 vs. new style 9-3, GM, Thu, 26 Sep 2002 00:29:10
  • disagree, Scott Paterson , Wed, 25 Sep 2002 23:39:43
  • Re: Old style 900 vs. new style 9-3, AdamB , Wed, 25 Sep 2002 23:19:39

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