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1979-1993 & 94 Conv [Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
<<How do they handle in the snow?>>
Excellent, with excellent recovery characteristics, all the more so w/ good deep-snow tires (eg. Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10; a Finnish company held in the highest regard in the saab community). There's also a saying re: saab handling/ruggedness: "First, Swedes built cars. When they decided cars were good, they built roads." *No offense to our Swedish friends; your roads are better than those in my town....
<<Also, the car does have a power steering leak that the mechanic assures me is benign.>>
Yes, you should have the 2nd mechanic look at it, but the first mechanic is probably telling you the truth. The steering rack in saabs (a GM part) is notorious for leaking and eventually dying, which means the wheel is stiffer to turn at slow speeds (especially when first started up) and sometimes a little sloppier at speed, but in any event not generally dangerous. If the rack is indeed just leaking a bit (find out how badly), you can keep it until it bothers you; just keep fluid in it. A new one from saab is ~$450, a quality rebuilt one is ~$150-200; either way labor about $200 as I recall.
<<They are asking $2700, but it needs a $700 brake job.>>
IMHO, definetly asking for too much money. They either fixed a lot of things that cost them money and are trying to recup that money (which might be ok), or that's a fat profit margin for them, or they gave too much $ away on a trade, or.... Pricing saabs is difficult (nice rugged car, but potentially pricey repairs in old age) Honestly, if it were essentially perfect for a 14 yr old car, I'd say $1500-2000 would be plenty of money - you can in fact (in an area with lots of saabs) buy such a car for around $1000-1500 or so....
<<...do they last? I mean really last?>>
Like 70's polyester slacks. This is a two edge sword, though: Saabs are very longed lived with some care. It is a rugged and proven design. The catch: Saabs can be quite fussy in old age and require some maintainance, sometimes really streaky, and $. In other words, it certainly could rival your Suburu's mileage or better but will almost certainly cost more to keep, too. Be on your guard - Saabs are easy to fall in love with and spend lots of money on, but if you like the car... ;o)
Now, the important part: Regardless of your preference, a 5sp Saab is wildly different than an auto Saab (far more gutsy and fun). Also, the transmissions are prone to fail by about your mileage (150k), though that varies *widely*. Unfortuaneatly, the cost of replacement does not (~$2000-2500), so take that into account. Also, it is imperative you have a real Saab mechanic you like/trust - not just some foreign auto shop that says: "Yeah, we work on those" because you *will* regret it. Either a dealer (pricey, etc) or independent Saab shop (often a better choice) with Saab-trained/certified mechanics is a must. Get references. And post your problems on TSN beforehand to get a headsup on what to expect/what may be wrong/expected cost => translates to respect and clear dialogue/fewer missunderstandings with your mechanic. Good Luck, and, potentially, welcome aboard!
Dan W
'85 900S 177k
, Thu, 15 Feb 2001 20:22:24
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