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Also, if you can email or post your out the door prices, that would be helpful as well. I would like to bring some kind of printout, or email to bring to or email a dealer to negotiate.
Thanks, and my email is UCHoops32@aol.com
http://www.crutchfield.com/cgi-bin/S-C3bDCDQFjFD/ProdView.asp?s=0- &c=10&g=52300&I=130TSA6960&o=m&a=0
The specs on these speakers are good (28-28,000 Hz) which is important if you're looking to replace the bass that the factory speakers never had. I hooked mine up in parallel to the existing 3.5" factory speakers, so now I have 4 speakers in the rear deck. With these new speakers installed, I can actually balance front to rear, I have more bass, and the system provides more depth/imaging.
For those of you who, like me, were disappointed with the factory setup, this is $80 bucks well spent!
--*** Mooselook ***--
First off, OLDSMAN, the Mazda 6 is cool, but the fit and finish are cheap cheap cheap. I love the engine, but for a few grand more (and only that) you're driving a luxury car versus a "mere Mazda". Just as the BMW gives "negative snob" vibes, I think the Mazda gives "everyday car" vibes. The CTS rides nice, but it is ugly. And even more ugly is the new Maxima.
Nissan has a big splash all over their web site if you want to see it. Oddly enough, from what I recall, the spy photos of the new Maxima were better than how it ended up. Hah hah.
As for my car, if you recall, I wrote Saab a big letter asking a bunch of questions.
You might be interested in their reply (see the link below). In an effort to make it easier to read, I modified the letter so that the questions (black text) and replies (red text) are in the same document.
http://saab93zzz.home.attbi.com/edmunds/reply1.pdf
Comments?
I think you're making way too much out of the light swith issue. It's exactly the same in my 2000 9-3 and has never been a problem for me. Having all your ligths on makes you more visible and overall safer. You also nevert have to think about lights if you enter a tunnel in the daytime or go under a long overpass. You can always see your instruments. I've found this to be the best setup for me. Very safe. I agree with you about the radio. They should give everyone a free upgrade who bought this thing, because it sounds horrible.
brucec35, just curious as to the "negative attention" you received in your BMW? I can imagine cops love to stop them. I had a friend in college who had an older(late 80s) 525 and he got stopped for speeding several times and wasn't doing that much over the limit. One cop that stopped him in Dooly County GA was very rude to him. Maybe I'm just lucky(and am certainly knocking on wood) but I have blown by cops in my Olds and felt almost sure I'd be stopped but they didn't flinch. I'm hoping that Saabs don't attract as much attention from the police as the more mainstream luxury cars do.
I never had many problems myself, but I've had other cars keyed by the envious, and I always felt a little uneasy when driving in some areas of town in such a visable car. (it was really a sharp car). The Saab is unkown to most so they seem to leave you alone more. And I always had to worry about being picked out for police attention. I get away with speeding in my pickup, but had to really watch it in the 540.
Family and friends can also tend to be a little jealous, even if they don't admit to it. My wife's family started jokingly calling her "stuck up" when she got the first Bimmer. She reminded them that she worked hard and was ambitious and didn't spend much on anything else like a big family or house or whatever, but you know human nature. People just assume you paid $50,000 for it if you drive a recent vintage Bimmer. We didn't and actually did well when we resold them, but you can't tell most people that.
Overall, it wasn't unbearable, but I just didn't need the hassles. We actually only got the 2nd 540i we owned because no other car met our needs for safety, adequate power, handling, braking, refinement, comfort, reliability, and good looks. We looked and looked, but everything out there left us cold. We even bought an SUV at one point because we couldnt' find a new car we liked. Many had most of these features we wanted, but lacked a key feature or two(eg? Acura CL/TL were blandly styled and seats weren't that great, plus at the time there was no crash test info available on them, Lexus IS300 was too small inside, boy-racer styled inside and out, and expensive)
The Saab and Infiniti G35 weren't available then, or we would have probably chosen one of them at the time. We were, after all, buying well cared and warrantied cars with high mileage BMW's to be able to afford them (66K miles for the '97 at $31,000, '62K miles for the '98 at $33,000) For about that price, you can have a new Saab or Infiniti.
I will say that the BMW's handle and feel better than any other car I've been in, but others are close enough that they seem like a better value to me. And we are definitely not into "status seeking" via material posessions, so the BMW panache wasn't worth the price. I even admit to muttering "jerk" or worse when I see a 3 series zipping accross a few lanes of the expressway at once, so I can see how a lot of people make eroneous assumptions about BMW drivers.
this is a great car at a great price in this class..but the dealer relationship usually is the main reason customers return when looking for another car and so far saab has made the dealers fall short..
-renee-
You should be able get the car for around $2,000 BELOW invoice ($1,000 from the discount on the launch package and $1,000 from the factory to dealer incentive, unless you decide to go with 0% financing. Keep me posting with your progress. I'm still deciding between the 9-3 and the A4, but I finally eliminated the 325. Thanks.
Now I think you sure can have better deal than me because it's 2 more months. I bet you can ask $2000 discount and invoice from gartner at this time. and more gartner service open on saturday.
As far as the BMW goes, the compact size of the 325 is a bit small for my liking, especially coming from my Volvo. I owned a 1995 325 convertible for about a year. The BMW was a fun second car. The 325s are also very common in Chicagoland. Actually, I think the 525 is a significantly better car all around, although this is personel preference.
Have you considered the Arc that's coming out soon? For a bit more money than the linear, I'm thinking the horsepower and added features included with the Arc make it a better buy (several thousands less than the 325). FYI, I remember someone telling me white cars have the poorest resale value.
9-3 is lighter than A4 quattro, along with more power, therefore higher hp to weight ratio.
9-3 is safer receiving 5 stars all around.
9-3 has more space in the front and rear( although marginally at best).
9-3 has a bit more originality in the interior design (ie. hand brake, ignition switch, cup holder, cooled and enormous glove box), I know this comment is strictly an opinion.
9-3 for the time being is more exclusive as there are far fewer of them on the road than A4's.
9-3's don't have any ignition coil problems, a friend of mine has replaced one on his 2002 1.8TQ and according to the A4 forums on Edmunds he's not the only one.
Here are some A4 strengths
A4 has a better standard stereo.
Quattro is excellent
Interior fit and finish in the A4 is probably the best in the market (Although the 9-3's getting close).
The name Audi carries a bit more prestige than Saab.
By the way I'm getting Laser red w/ Sport Launch and Touring Package. I just hope the red doesn't turn into a radar magnet for the police on the freeways.
- 9-3 has a larger trunk (by, I think, 2 cubic feet);
- 9-3 has OnStar standard (I know, it has questionable usability, but still. Besides, it's free for two years for those of us who bought the car without OnStar installed and are waiting for installation in February);
- 9-3 has standard rear side airbags and SAHR headrests;
- 9-3 has better 0% for 3 years financing available;
- Audi has better maintenance that lasts the entire warranty period and includes wear and tear items;
- Audi's automatic transmission is arguably better, although it's new and yet unproven;
- Audi has standard "one touch up" windows (9-3 has those in Arc and Vector variants, not available on currently selling Linears).
Finally, and this is strictly a personal opinion, I liked 9-3 driving experience much better than A4's. A4 is not bad, but the car feels a little crammed, and the driving is just not as much fun as I felt in 9-3. I ended up going with 9-3SS, and I'm pretty happy with it so far.
crocan: yeah, get the red, it's beautiful- doesn't look like any old red, more life to it somehow. I'm starting to waiver on it though. something about red being a more expensive car to insure? On top of the target problems. those strange insurance policies...
Can anyone give me some positives/negatives on upgrading the standard 16's to 17's?
a98gibson: about the 16 vs 17 wheels, i remember some past posts arund page 33ish. If you have the time you can shift through the posts.
I can't remember the dealers name at the Exchange, but he was the fleet manager. If I decide to buy, I will be using the GM supplier program and the pricing is the same anywhere I go. Have you driven the 9-3 yet? I'm avoiding driving one as I am easily tempted and am thinking I'd like to hold out for the Arc. Just curious of your impressions. Happy Friday.
I was really impressed with the road manners of the new 9-3. I also thought the interior layout was better than the 9-5.
I think the only way I would buy a 9-5 would be if I needed a wagon. The 9-5 wagon is big like a cave inside.
This is my 4th SAAB since the mid-80's. My last was a 1997 900T. During the same time period I've also had an Acura Legend-smooth but boring, a BMW 325-fun but to visible and a Passat-best family car out there.
The new 9-3 is the best handling of all and as fun if not more so than the BMW. The advantage over the BMW, and why I didn't get one this time, is that at 50 years old I'm tired of the kids in their Hondas trying to chase me down the highway. Most of them have no idea what a SAAB is so they ignore me.
I've read in this board people commenting about their SAAB's quirkiness. I suggest you find guys who owned SAABs in the 70's and 80's and hear their stories about quirkiness. It's always what has made SAAB fun to own.
I look forard to reading more about people's exploits in their SAAB. Oh, and BTW, don't blame the dealers for know less than owners about the SAABs this also is a SAAB trait.
As for the price I paid I haven't seen many price posts here so I can't compare. All I can say is the salesman surprised me by starting close to where I had intended on finishing. Nonetheless I impressed my 12 year old son. That was worth a lot to me.
The headlights are great, a lot of light. I have to get used to the self-leveling.
I paid extra for a great stereo in my last car (Passat) so the SAAB doesn't come close. But, I'll wait and see if SAAB upgrades the software as some seem to think. Or I'll install some better speakers in the rear shelf.
Good luck searching and negotiating.
I just purchased a new Linear (base) and was wondering what can be programed to customize my experience. I understand that the dealer can program a few things. Any idea where I can find a list of possible dealer programing options? Also, I was wondering what other cool things should I look for? I also understand that saabs tend to have pretty cool functions. Please advise me on what Is programable and what I should look for.
Many thanks!
I know there's not a lot to discuss here, I just wanted to share my experience so far shopping for a Saab with a manual transmission.
malango: i find that odd...afterall the 9-3 is a -sports- sedan offered as a manual in base form. hm, perhaps when the more performance geared arc is available in march, manuals will be in higher demand. ...wait a month? good luck in the meantime.
Are you from the city or the suburbs?
I have posted my lock failure problem earlier on this forum, since then the dealer has fixed it. They said they didn't find any problem, but at least the locks are working fine now no matter how cold it is. I don't know much about "the cold theory." Seems like all the problems I have had with this 9-3 have been blamed on "cold weather." I don't really buy it, none of my friends who have other cars (Passat and 325) have problems like mine. I am assuming "cold weather" is the scapegoat of inferior parts....
BTW, the manual says "DO NOT WARM UP THE CAR BY SITTING IDLY" and that one should drives off the car as soon as the engine starts, which contradicts everything I have heard. Any insights?
First post in this section. Am considering a 9-3 after seeing the $299 month for 36 months, $999 down lease deal (numbers based on the $26,525 MSRP of a non-optioned vehicle). Option to purchase at $14,323.50 on lease-end.
Is Saab still running the discounts mentioned in this forum? I've noticed a $1,000 off the Launch package and $1,000 dealer incentive, and some folks saying to go for $2,000 off of invoice. I don't see these incentives listed on Edmunds or Carpoint.
If so, that would explain why the lease deal looks almost too good to be true. E.g. it may be hard to get the lease with such discounts.
Thanks for any input.
There is two very good reasons not to warm up by idling.
1: By starting to drive immediately the engine warms up quicker - therefor the period that's the worst for the engine is shorter.
2: When the engine and the catalytic converter are cold the emissions are the highest. The sooner the engine and cc warm up the cleaner the emissions are during your drive.
In Germany manufactureres like Mercedes, BMW and Audi recommended against warming up the car by idling since the early 70s. I believe it's something one had to do only with very old big-block type amarican cars way back when.
Just in case anybody was wondering - like me - how a new car launch at this point in time could possibly not include the option of telematics.