A few months ago I ditched my 99' 9-3 and purchased a CPO 9-5 wagon. I could not be happier with my decision. The wagon is a fantastic car in many respects. I routinely get 33-35 MPG at 70MPH over long distances. Sport mode (it's an auto) in 3rd gear has plenty of get up (4cyl, non-aero). I amazed at how "throttled back" the engine response is with Sport Mode turned off. Gives you the flexibility of ultra-economy versus performance.
Compared to the 9-3, the car is extremely refined. All of the rattles in the 9-3 are gone in the 9-5. The 9-5 remains poised over bad roads. Where the 9-3 ALWAYS requires your attention, the 9-5 is a very contented cruiser.

Now for the engine. The engine in my previous 9-3 was the base, 185hp mated to a auto-trannie. Similarly, if placed in 3rd gear in Sport Mode the RPM's remained in the sweet spot. Importantly, the growl emitted by the engine and exhaust at WOT was very satisfying in the 9-3. This is not the case with the 9-5. The 9-5 is the I4 engine and I find the noise to be rather unappealing ... sort of whiney, sort of tinny ... definitely not deep and throaty. Granted, the general intent of the 9-5 interior is to mask as much of the engine noise as possible. The noise at WOT from the 9-5 does not inspire me to do it often. I dubious of the benefit a different exhaust would have given that 90% of the noise eminates from the bay and not the rear. This particular car has been meticulously cared for.

One final thought. Today I hauled 20 bags of mulch in the morning and two adults, two kids and half of my mother-in-law's attic in the evening (garage sale at our house this weekend). Fantastic!

-mark

posted by 65.37.84...

• smooth migration from 9-3 to 9-5, MJP, Wed, 18 Jun 2003 20:23:29 <-- Viewing This Message
  • 9-5's Rule!!!......, Mike Lynch , Thu, 19 Jun 2003 15:39:42
  • Re: smooth migration from 9-3 to 9-5, James-94900S, Thu, 19 Jun 2003 10:17:02
  • exhaust sound, Stephen Goldberger, Thu, 19 Jun 2003 06:44:33
    • what do you mean Stephen, EdD, Fri, 20 Jun 2003 09:58:10
  • Re: agree about the two engines, Ed NC, Thu, 19 Jun 2003 06:39:54
  • Re: smooth migration from 9-3 to 9-5, Mattias.se, Thu, 19 Jun 2003 05:23:35

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