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Thanks
I've owned two Saabs at this mileage and little things have gone but nothing extraordinary. A great mileage to buy into - a lot of money for the car.
Scott
Does anyone know anything about a possible fuel flap-starter connection? Has anyone had a similar problem? Your help is appreciated.
Thanks.
Thanks in advance.
Any other input would be appreciated.
* 2003, Saab 9-5 Linear, ~76K miles, 4-door sedan
* Black exterior / beige interior
* 4 cylinder turbo engine
* Avg. Mileage: 20 city / 29 highway
* Automatic transmission with manual option
* Harmon stereo with cd player
* Always taken to dealer for regular maintenance
* Aside from the rear bumper, the body is in very good shape
* 2 minor accidents since I bought the car - damage was localized to the rear bumper.
Cost: ~$6,765 (estimate based on Kelly Blue Book - good condition) and willing to discount for expense which should be incurred for immediate repairs. The most significant repairs are as follows:
* New brake pads and rotors, rear brake disk: ~$800-$1,000
* 3 new tires: ~$515
Sales price: $5,250
Maybe someone will tell me no worries, that I got good value out of it. I dunno. Right now I'm really pissy about it. Feeling like if I had a BMW or Lexus, my car would be worth far more, and enough more to easily make up the difference in the initial cost. I had a moderately hard-driven 151,000 miles on it and in the last two years I have probably put 2500 grand into it for mechanical repairs (e.g., new fuel pump and several other things) and new tires. Just last week the transmission had some sort of failure, which the dealer said could be close to a grand to fix (if it is the throttle) or it could be a major transmission issue costing far far more (aka scrap the car if that's the case). So I decided ok better get a new car either way. Offered at trade in just 1500 and 1200 (after talking them up). So essentially I got nothing back on the car. It still looks like a million dollars - Saab's design really looks current and sharp to date and with new tires it does not look 7 yrs old at all - but was worth less than some old Saturn. I might have done a few grand better on a private sale, but who would buy it with a transmission failure. Ugh.
I did love the car but this past week alot of that love is replaced with bitterness.
GM dealers selling Saabs are still fiddling while Rome is burning. Most just can't deviate from "Let's rip everyone, get right to four squares" mode.
A few dealers have begun to discount these vehicles heavily. A few New England dealers advertised new 2008 9-5s for between $22.9 and 24.9k. While I have always liked the 9-5, though I never owned one, I became wary once the company set one foot in the grave. However, for that price, I started looking, though more locally.
First, I was surprised by how many Saab dealers were no longer Saab dealers. Surely that couldn't be a good sign. Second, wow, was I surprised by the take-it-or-leave-it attitude by the remaining dealers, seeking $29k for the last 2008 on the lot.
Well, now I know why GM has to beg for money.
Well, off to GM's competitors. Shame, nice car.
Comparing to all other vehicles I looked at, almost seems to good to be true for price vs. miledge..? Is this a decent price for this vehicle or did I get the shaft...?
Never owned a Saab, but intrigued by them and love the syle and ride.
I looked at other makes, (BMW, Audi, Mercedes), and I would have had to buy a few years older or pay $3-4K more for the same year.
As with any research you hear good and bad....book on this vehicle is between 18-21 k... so it seems as though I got a descent deal. This is unlike most deals I make, it seams as though after the sale I find you that I get screwed some how along the line.
So, with any hope at all, I may have got a good car at a good price ~ Right !!!???
My other concern is when things need fixing.....although it still carries factory warranty, I'm afraid cost with repairs ?
Whats your thoughts..?
I test drove it and liked it. It seems in pristine condition and for the year it has relatively low mileage. My question is with regards to maintenance. I have tried to get an idea of yearly maintenance, but I can't get good answers. Then I heard Saab was going out of business. I thought I would run the vin number through carfax. Is that pretty accurate? My current car has ~208K miles. It's running fine although I think it's going to need breaks soon. This seemed like a good deal, but I don't know a lot about Saabs. I've read a few posts. Sounds like it's a rather good car, but some one here was asking if the person was in a wintery place. I'm in New England, but I would run it with studded tires. What is prone to go wrong with this year and make of car? My old car my mechanic told me that the particular year I had was known for a weak transmission. Sure enough, it did go, but after 8 years. Thanks for the suggestions, thoughts, and comments.
Also, I'm admitted auto maintenance / repair challenged but usually I try to do the simple things myself. I've got a tail light that has gone out..., I replaced both light bulbs and looked all over the fuse box to find a potentially bad fuse. Can't seem to find a fuse for the headlights or tail lights. And with no users manual, I embarrassed to say that I'm stumped.
Any suggestions?
Any observations or actual deal stats would be great. Thanks!
For me 28k for a car from a bankrupt manufacturer that has been sitting for close to two years was more than I was looking to pay.
Does this sound right to you? When I put the VIN into Carfax and Autocheck they both say "0 records". Any other way I can get vehicle history on this car?
Thanks.
Thoughts?
I'm not a mechanic per se, but my dad was, and I learned a lot from him over the years, and do most of my own work.
--Jim
Saabnet.com is also a very useful bulletin board
Car was fine for 2-3 weeks no problems then only started every now and again would be fine most of the time but sometimes wouldnt start.. took it into the shop and they put in a new relay box to help it .. went fine for a week now is doing same problem and is coming up with automatic transmission light on dash and an exclamation mark warning light.. and gears seem to be "jolting" in reverse and sometimes when putting into gear..
The S.I.D (computer stereo screen) is working but is all fuzzy & cant read it any ideas if you need to be able to read the screen??
.. Love my new car but am having so many problems with it.
Just want it to START and for NO LIGHTS TO COME UP ON THE SCREEN .. Anyone got any ideas would help out so much ASAP !!!!!!!!!!!!!
But for the potential good of anyone else finding this thread...
The intermittent starting sounds like the way my SE wagon was behaving. The problem was a faulty Crankshaft Position Sensor. Not very expensive nor very difficult to replace (not dead easy, at that.)
I found online step-by-step instructions with plenty of photos to illustrate the procedure. That was a while ago. I would bet the information is still out there, but I don't have the link.
I *think* I may have had to buy some special sockets for getting something or other out of the way.