I own 2 9-3 Convertibles, with B204e and B205e respectively. Nice cars and greater than the sum of their parts. I grew up in Saabs in the 80s, with 900s and then a lovely new 9000 CS my Dad bought. These 9-3s have an identical build. Yes they have a GM chassis but the design, build, engine, interior, seats etc. is all pure Saab, and they're really the bits you touch and see. I've owned these cars for a decade or so, along with my 9-5s.. and Volvos.. and..
Yes, very few General Motors interior parts on show in the interior, if at all, and the petrol engines at this time were Saab's own units. I have driven a 1988 Saab 9000 Carlsson, and it was quite a car, although I would have preferred a later 9000 myself. I actually drove the Saab 9-5 Aero and this on the same day. Thank you very much indeed for watching and commenting!
I must be a Saab "enthusiast" because I always seem to like them. The exterior and the interior are both pleasing to my eye. The instrumentation and switches look to be ergonomically designed. I think the Saab aerospace expertise has contributed to that. Remember, Saab designed the lovely Gripen jet fighter.
The Night Panel feature certainly was inspired by Saab's aircraft business, from what I understand. I actually drove both this and the 9-5 on the same day, although that was two months ago now!
This car has the correct badges for the year, with Saab Scania logo, they changed to just the Saab logo only after year 2000. Pity circumstances didn’t allow you to open up the ports so to speak , because that’s definitely the Viggens party piece. The engine actually I regard as one the semi modern 4 cylinder greats, very refined, very strong but capable of staggering performance. I’ve owned my 9-3 2.0 LPT convertible for just over 6 years , always impressed even after several weeks non use , she starts on the button- in fact the only time she didn’t , was the fault of CPS. Oil changes on a regular basis are a must. I only do 2500 miles a year but usually do 2 services per year. Despite reservations of chassis stiffness , they still feel a quality product- they were said to be the safest convertible on the road when new- and certainly more quality over the modern / new French and Japanese cars I’ve had as company cars .
Yes, not the best place to do a test drive on a car like this, but nevertheless I decided to have a go. Having driven several of these before, it did feel a bit different from the less powerful versions, but I wouldn't need the extra performance myself. Absolutely right about the oil changes, I have heard some nasty things about engines where this has not been done regularly...
@@lloydvehicleconsulting ref the oil changes. Im lead to believe Saab had a call back in the late 1990s as ,Saab , up to that time , recommended 10-40 grade oil which didn’t suit the filtration in the oil pump , so the call back involved sump clean , changed oil pump filtration and oil grade changed to 5-30 long life oils. Provided you keep to 5-30w , change oil / filter on a regular basis the engine should be durable for incredibly high mileages. Ref the bulkhead. Apparently it only affects RHD cars. I also subscribe to Living with a Classic , Adam in Sweden ,🇸🇪, mainly does videos on Jaguars but used to run a Saab 9-3 , and I commented on the issue but several people from Sweden said it only effects RHD, their cars are immune from the problem . Interesting.
I had a 5 door hatch. Not good to be honest. The petrol engines are much better than the diesels (I know we don’t talk about them on this channel), but they’re a bit narrow in the cabin (Cavalier base), and can be quite flexible - as you said in the review, the bulkheads can be prone to cracking. A top strut brace can solve some of the flexing. Very comfy seats though, and I’ve always loved the styling.
Indeed, we do not discuss those round here... I tried a three door hatchback with the 2.0 LPT engine and an automatic gearbox in 2021, and although there was not the scuttle shake, there was a lot of body roll. The strut brace probably would have helped a bit in that one as well.
