Are Saab's generally reliable cars?

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: DougK62
2003 - that's a GM Saab then, right? With an ecotec engine? The GM Saab cars are reliable - I wouldn't say the same about the earlier ones.

I've heard precisely the opposite.

Now, the older Saab 9000 had some issues, but the 900 series was damn near bulletproof.

Newer Saabs are suffering from the same electrical gremlins that are plaguing pretty much all European cars today.

ZV

 

[mitaiwan82]

according to MSN Autos

 

[compman25]

Originally posted by: The Cornballer

Originally posted by: krunchykrome
The other car I will be test driving this weekend is a 2003 Subaru WRX wagon. It's an automatic. We'll see how it goes tihs weekend. From the comments in this thread, I dont think I will be putting much consideration into the Saab anymore.

the saab 92x aero i think is the same car as the wrx.
(not totally sure on this)
the wrx is nice for a sport compact.

It is, and usually can be had a lot cheaper. When they were new you could get one for under $20k after the $5k rebate from GM. It was a great deal.

 

[thomsbrain]

i've known 4 saabs owned through friends and family members. 1 was absolutely terrible. 1 was "ok," meaning it made it 100,000 miles and then started to fall apart. 1 was adequate, meaning it held together until the dog got projectile diarrhea in it, forcing its "donation" to the youngest driver in the family. and the other is still too new to tell.

 

[thomsbrain]

Originally posted by: dug777

Originally posted by: purbeast0
Considering I hardly see any Saab's on the road and they aren't "luxury" cars per se, I would take that as a sign that they aren't the best of cars.

That's not an entirely logical argument...have you ever considered that there just might not be that many on US roads, in proportion?

By the same token, i could assume that the Z06 is a pile of dogsh1t, because they're not 'luxury' cars per se, and i've never seen on on the road...

really? i see them on a daily basis. that's silicon valley for you, i guess.

 

[dirtboy]

Saab's aren't reliable.

 

[Chadder007]

Originally posted by: iamwiz82
If you trust JD Powers, Saab was #2 least dependable for 2003 model year after 3 years of ownership.

MOST TROUBLESOME VEHICLES
Land Rover (438)
Saab (326)
Suzuki (318)
Kia (310)
Volkswagen (299)
Source: JD Power
(problems per 100 vehicles)

Holy crap....I thought it was the other way around. Thinking that Saab was good.

 

[Captante]

Originally posted by: UDT89
i was actually set to get a 2003 saab 9-3 next week.

its certified so my warranty is 7 year/100k miles. and the car only has 30k.

but now im second guessing.......

I strongly suggest you bail out on that deal ... from the Consumer Reports link above it looks like 2003 is the worst year for those cars ever with almost all "much worse then average" ratings.

 

[ViviTheMage]

vw!

 

[Balt]

Originally posted by: ViviTheMage
vw!

VW is garbage.

 

[krunchykrome]

Originally posted by: ViviTheMage
vw!

I was interested in a VW Rabbit, but I dont want to deal with the reliability issues that come along with a VW.

 

[Kelvrick]

Have you seen if you could locate a 9-2x? Those are saabarus, so you'll be looking at the same car in different trim.

 

[lokiju]

My brother has a 2003 Saab 9-3 and has never had an issue.

 

[jimmyjam]

One of the funniest license plates I've seen was on a Saab. It said "SNAAB."


My ex has a 1996 Saab and has had nothing but problems with it and the parts or expensive.
My boss leased a 9-3 in 2000 and another in 2003 and has had very few problems with them, but rarely drives them, probably around 6,000 miles/year. She opted to go with a VW when the lease came up on the 2003. I've found whoever designed the interior on the 2003 models wasn't particularly smart. There is a cup holder that pops out of the middle of the radio, it's obnoxious and useless. The only other cupholder isn't deep enough to effectively hold anything either. The backseat is essentially useless unless you exclusively hang out with little people.

 

[slpaulson]

Originally posted by: jimmyjam
One of the funniest license plates I've seen was on a Saab. It said "SNAAB."

Weird, I just saw the same thing on a car yesterday!