Faults:

The clutch has been rebiuld for about three years ago. It had sometimes been very difficult to start the car in the winter time. I had therefore got a new ignition and a engine heater. The other repair to this car has only been standard services.

General Comments:

The car is not that fast from 0-100 km/h, but when drives about 80-100 km/h on the road in the highest gear, it's going fast up to 140 - or 160 if you want:-) It is not that good in fast corners, because the front of the car weight about 61 % of the cars weight. But the SAAB 99 goes nearly like a train on rails, when you drives on a long straight road. The economy is up to about 35 miles/Gallon, so that is pretty nice, but only about the half in the city. The Cw of the car is 0,37, so it not as aerodynamic as the mostly new cars from today. The model from 1983 weight 1025 kg, so it's not that heavy what it's look like. But it's also a pretty save car to drive in. It has for example plate brakes both rear and in the front. Remember: It's produced since 1968, so it's design may look a bit oldish for a lot of people. The last model 99 was made in 1984 with break free ignition, so I with go for one of the latest models if I was you.

Faults:

Exhaust fell off almost immediately after purchase. However this was due to having been sitting around in the garage that I bought it from for a couple of months.

A certain amount of rust which required bodywork repair.

Losing a little coolant.

General Comments:

The Saab 99 is undoubtedly built to an extremely high standard and is a very solid car indeed. In fact my brother drove the car into a nissan micra which was written off and there was not a mark on the Saab, helped by it's huge bumpers. However due to the weight of the solid body the fuel consumption is rather poor.

Also the weight of the car makes performance a little sluggish, but the 2.0L Triumph derived engine is smooth and completely unburstable.

The rust on the car is only to be expected considering I original paid £800 and also considering the year of manufacture.

The steering is not assisted and is excruciatingly heavy during parking, but lightens up at speed and makes the car very relaxing to drive on fast A roads.

The suspension is firm and provides a well controlled ride although outright grip is a little low, but this is more to do with the 70s style of tyre than anything else.

Overall these old Saabs are stronger than any other car of the era except perhaps the old Mercs and if you want a classic looking continental cruiser look no further. There is of course the rare and collectable turbo version if you want truly brisk performance.