19th Dec 2005, 08:20

OK 167000 miles. Now I am really bored with this car, and lots of small problems are bugging me. The heater knob broke; the electric headlight height adjuster won't work on driver side; I still haven't got the central locking to work, If I want to take it up to 200000, I will need new disks (rotors) track-rod ends, and the usual bits and pieces just inside the front wheels, and I am not sure that the original alternator will make it the distance (I also suspect that the thickness of my exhaust manifold is less than 2 or 3 mm.) If I keep this car for an other year, I have no doubt that it will go the distance, but it will almost certainly cost me over a Grand to maintain.

On an other note, I almost had the cash in hand to buy an 2001 saab 9-5 2.0T when my research revealed that in 1998 Saab came up with 2 new engines... i.e. 205B and 235B (to replace the 204B and 234B) I had a near miss parting with 14k hard-earned Euros for an almost certain disaster waiting to happen. Imagine spending that kind of money on a car and only getting 40 - 50 thousand miles out of it (if your luckey). Google the words sludge and saab - find out for your self)

Looks like its gona-haf-to-be a 1999 520i.

GM take note... you broke one of the best marques in the shed - and you didn't get away with it. It is used car sales that demonstrate the longevity of a marque, look at VOLVO Mercedes BMW, and used-to-be SAAB. It's a sorry tale. All that aside, the 1996 900 was the best car I ever had. Pitty I can't get an other one.

30th Mar 2006, 08:03

Captains Log... The Final entry. 171000 miles.- Rebuilt alternator last month. Waste of time. Last week some guy plowed into the driver side of my car at 50 MPH. Car completely destroyed. Due to legendary build solidity of SAAB, my 2 kids in back seat were completely unharmed (for which I give thanks to God).

I have replaced the Saab with a Ford Mondeo, not a Volvo S80.

The cars were about equal in terms of seccond hand value for money, but it boiled down to the following...

2 Tons of luxury, renowned reliability problems high running costs, high maintenance cost, slightly older... Versus 1.5 Tons of Safe reliable low running costs, low maintenance cost practical, simple, comfortable slightly newer troublefree motoring. No Contest!

Needless to say, If money were not an issue, it probably would have been a brand new Volvo S80 (In my opinion it is a classier car than the BMW 520 which is common in every sense of the word.)

p.s. If the build quality, Engineering quality, and reputation of SAAB motors had not been completly destroyed (in my opinion) by GM, I would now be driving a SAAB 95. Think about that Saab Management!

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