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Ok, not much going on here, so...
I've finally gotten another convertible, and life is good.
At the risk of raising some hackles...
1992 C900 S Convertible vs 2006 Toyota Solara Convertible
Similarities
Convertible conversion initally by ASC, of the not-so-well selling
two-door version of the companies mainline family car. Then
produced as a dedicated convertible (?).
Front-wheel drive, disk brakes on all 4 wheels.
Power driven manual latching convertible top with a glass
rear window.
Seating for 4 adults, with reasonable trunk space top up
or down.
Comfortable seats (heated in the front), power locks, power windows.
Looks good in black-and-tan.
Auto-mode for lights. On the Saab you can just leave them
on, the Toyota has a sensor.
Actual spare tire (can you believe cars with no spare?).
Yellow turn signal.
Differences
Toyota has a 5-speed automatic with goofy 'S' mode (limits
top gear rather than selecting gear). Saab has a proper
5-speed manual.
Toyota has a sideways v6, Saab a backwards i4.
Toyota has a strange curved backside. Saab has a nice flat
square backside.
Toyota winshield is at a steep angle, reducing head room, vs
the Saab upright, curved windshield.
Toyota has (I think) 2 electric motors for the top, vs the Saab
single hydraulic pump and two ram actuators. Toyota top is a
bit quicker up and down.
Toyota window control is strange -- normal controls for the
front windows, but you need the single "all" button to open
or close the rear windows. You CAN get front up and rear down
for ventilation but it's tricky. No window controls for back
seat passengers. The Saab has the window switches mounted
on the central console where everyone, front and back, can
reach them.
Toyota is a bit wider. And plusher inside (with an arm-rest!).
Sound system seems better, I don't have to bang on the dash
to get the right-hand speaker to come on.
There's no trunk key slot on the Toyota. You have to use
the remote or the lever on the floor. The Saab trunk lock
has a key slot and can track the door locks, which makes more
sense.
Toyota AC works well, although the automatic climate control
is a little, um, automatic. No fresh air from the middle
vent like the Saab.
Saab has that nice firm solid steering. The Toyota steering
doesn't seem bad, exactly, but it isn't the same.
Toyota is quieter with the top up, perhaps due to an inner
foam layer in the top material.
Open Questions
Reliability -- with a little more effort I could have gotten 200k out
of the Saab, but there seemed to always be something to be looked
at. Time will tell with the Toyota. Doing the timing belt
at 100K was kind of a big expense, but that should be good for
another 100K.
Handling -- probably goes to the Saab, reviewers rave about C900
handling and are pretty harsh about Solara handling. Me I never
drive anywhere near the limits, but the Saab seems a bit more
'planted'. Stomp on the gas in the Toyota and it will run
you up in speed pretty quickly though.
Repairability -- depends on if you do the work yourself or not.
My Saab was non-turbo, so there was plenty of space to work on
the engine. But I didn't have the space or the time, so I had
to go to the one Indy in the area. The Toyota? Well, there are
a lot of Toyota dealers out there, but do they know what they're
doing? Time will tell.
Safety -- The Saab has ABS and is, well, a Saab. Both have
a driver air bag, but the Toyota also has a side air bag in
the seat, but not the one in the roof that the hard-top has.
The Toyota has ABS and stability control, no idea if this is a real
safety asset or not. Crash tests weren't so great for the convertible.
The raked A-pillar on the Toyota doesn't give me the good
feeling that the one on the Saab does. My feeling is the Saab
may come out ahead here.
Flame away!
[cary@vesta Cars]$ catt twocars.txt
bash: catt: command not found
[cary@vesta Cars]$ cat twocars.txt
I've finally gotten another convertible, and life is good.
At the risk of raising some hackles...
1992 C900 S Convertible vs 2006 Toyota Solara Convertible
Similarities
Convertible conversion initally by ASC, of the not-so-well selling
two-door version of the companies mainline family car. Then
produced as a dedicated convertible (?).
Front-wheel drive, disk brakes on all 4 wheels.
Power driven manual latching convertible top with a glass
rear window.
Seating for 4 adults, with reasonable trunk space top up
or down.
Comfortable seats (heated in the front), power locks, power windows.
Looks good in black-and-tan.
Auto-mode for lights. On the Saab you can just leave them
on, the Toyota has a sensor.
Actual spare tire (can you believe cars with no spare?).
Yellow turn signal.
Differences
Toyota has a 5-speed automatic with goofy 'S' mode (limits
top gear rather than selecting gear). Saab has a proper
5-speed manual.
Toyota has a sideways v6, Saab a backwards i4.
Toyota has a strange curved backside. Saab has a nice flat
square backside.
Toyota winshield is at a steep angle, reducing head room, vs
the Saab upright, curved windshield.
Toyota has (I think) 2 electric motors for the top, vs the Saab
single hydraulic pump and two ram actuators. Toyota top is a
bit quicker up and down.
Toyota window control is strange -- normal controls for the
front windows, but you need the single "all" button to open
or close the rear windows. You CAN get front up and rear down
for ventilation but it's tricky. No window controls for back
seat passengers. The Saab has the window switches mounted
on the central console where everyone, front and back, can
reach them.
Toyota is a bit wider. And plusher inside (with an arm-rest!).
Sound system seems better, I don't have to bang on the dash
to get the right-hand speaker to come on.
There's no trunk key slot on the Toyota. You have to use
the remote or the lever on the floor. The Saab trunk lock
has a key slot and can track the door locks, which makes more
sense.
Toyota AC works well, although the automatic climate control
is a little, um, automatic. No fresh air from the middle
vent like the Saab.
Saab has that nice firm solid steering. The Toyota steering
doesn't seem bad, exactly, but it isn't the same.
Toyota is quieter with the top up, perhaps due to an inner
foam layer in the top material.
Open Questions
Reliability -- with a little more effort I could have gotten 200k out
of the Saab, but there seemed to always be something to be looked
at. Time will tell with the Toyota. Doing the timing belt
at 100K was kind of a big expense, but that should be good for
another 100K.
Handling -- probably goes to the Saab, reviewers rave about C900
handling and are pretty harsh about Solara handling. Me I never
drive anywhere near the limits, but the Saab seems a bit more
'planted'. Stomp on the gas in the Toyota and it will run
you up in speed pretty quickly though.
Repairability -- depends on if you do the work yourself or not.
My Saab was non-turbo, so there was plenty of space to work on
the engine. But I didn't have the space or the time, so I had
to go to the one Indy in the area. The Toyota? Well, there are
a lot of Toyota dealers out there, but do they know what they're
doing? Time will tell.
Safety -- The Saab has ABS and is, well, a Saab. Both have
a driver air bag, but the Toyota also has a side air bag in
the seat, but not the one in the roof that the hard-top has.
The Toyota has ABS and stability control, no idea if this is a real
safety asset or not. Crash tests weren't so great for the convertible.
The raked A-pillar on the Toyota doesn't give me the good
feeling that the one on the Saab does. My feeling is the Saab
may come out ahead here.
Flame away!
posted by 74.92.140...
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