Advice: buying something so wrong that feels so right

tone76

tone76

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 12, 2005
Messages
1,405
Location
Adelaide Hills, Australia
Car(s)
05 Honda Jazz, 95 SAAB 900S, 97 Mazda 121
Hi all,

Over the last week, I've been seriously tempted by a Swede ... a SAAB 900 that's for sale near me at a very good price.

So what's wrong with that? It's a 1995 NG 900 ... it's one of the key reasons why SAAB is where it is today. I've always loved SAABs, but we're talking the proper old-school SAABs (99, 900 etc). I never really warmed to the GM era SAABs back in the day, although this particular example seems nice.

The trouble is that I drove this 900 the other day, and whilst it's no classic 900, it's no worse than the 9000 I had for a while. In fact, it's better because it ran for more than 2km without having any sort of electrical fault. :lol:

Now this is where it gets really perverse: the things that are wrong with the NG 900 is what makes it appealing to me. Things like the fact it's easy enough for me to work on at home without swearing too much, all the electrics work, things like that. Other factors that appeal to me is that it is a one-owner vehicle with full service history, and that it's quite clean for its age. It has about 231,000km (140,000mi) on it, which is supposed to be nothing for the classic 2.3 SAAB four. Not a turbo, but for the kind of driving I'll be doing (city/motorway), it's neither here not there. It's also a manual.

So what do I do? Do I add an 'I Can't Believe It's Not A Vectra!' to my garage, or do I let it go through to the keeper?
 
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May I ask what the asking price is?

And if you have the knowledge to work on it yourself when necessary (and it will be necesarry :p) then why shouldn't you buy it? You don't need a rational reason to buy a car imo.
A friend of mine has a 900 from the same year and it's still running (has close to 300,000km on it), it had some faults during it's life but no major once.
 
Jens said:
May I ask what the asking price is?
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Around AUD$2,300. Or USD$2,000. Or 1,400 Euros depending on where you live.

To put this into context, most 1995 900s for sale in Australia appear to be around AUD$4-$7k, and many of them have the troublesome V6.


Jens said:
You don't need a rational reason to buy a car imo.
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You're not married, are you? :p

Jens said:
A friend of mine has a 900 from the same year and it's still running (has close to 300,000km on it), it had some faults during it's life but no major once.
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That's the general feedback I get about the NG 900s with the 2.0 or 2.3 engines. The engines themselves just keep going, but occasional little annoyances with stuff like suspension, clutch cables etc can keep you busy.

Thanks for the feedback. :thumbup:
 
tone76 said:
You're not married, are you? :p
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No, I am not :D

Well, ~?1400 for a well-maintained example would be a pretty good deal here.
And it comes with a Black/Night Panel wich is just something I'd like to have in my life :p
 
Dude. I know how you feel about Saabs - I come from a Saab family. That being said:

DO IT, YOU FOOL
 
On the one hand, i'd prefer an original 900 by miles. On the other hand, the NG 900 shares so many parts with other GM cars that the spares situation is much better. If you feel at home in it, get it.
 
Dr_Grip said:
On the one hand, i'd prefer an original 900 by miles. On the other hand, the NG 900 shares so many parts with other GM cars that the spares situation is much better. If you feel at home in it, get it.
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This is what I've been tossing up. The NG 900 feels less SAAB-like than a classic 900, but it still feels nice in a European way. Solid, comfortable, safe and very competent. If anything, the NG 900 reminds me a lot of the Mk I Ford Mondeo I had a few years back - only more powerful and with a smoother engine. It looks like a SAAB, but it shouldn't be much harder to live with than a Ford or a Holden.

I'll be calling this dude back today and making an offer. The worst he'll say is that I'm too late and it's gone. Unlikely, as SAABs are quite hard to sell in Australia because they're very much a niche vehicle over here ... and that niche seems to be shrinking by the day. It's pretty much inevitable that if I do buy this (or any other) SAAB in the future, it will be a keeper because I probably wouldn't be able to sell it to anyone ever again. :p

Thanks for the support. :D
 
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well, I'm about to do the deed. He's still got the car, so I've given him a verbal commitment to buy. Once I pick it up, I'll take pics and put it in the 'Post Your Car' thread.

The hilarious part is that Mrs tone76 is more keen than I am to buy it. :shock:

Thanks for your support, guys. + reps all round! :D
 
public said:
Just don't negrep when something comes up :p
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If I hadn't already +'ed you just then, I'd + you again! :p

Anyway ... I won't be getting rid of my Mazda just yet. Just in case. <_< :lol:
 
Congratulations on your GMSaab :D, you might just have a future classic on your hands.. Probably not but hey :p
 
ah dammit, I didn't see this thread....oh wells....

But anyway :D hope its a nice one....I kinda like the 900 for some peverse reason too....uh...

(then again I like Holden Camira's...)
 
kaBOOMn said:
ah dammit, I didn't see this thread....oh wells....

But anyway :D hope its a nice one....I kinda like the 900 for some peverse reason too....uh...

(then again I like Holden Camira's...)
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You South Australian's work in mysterious ways...


Camira? Honestly...
 
Hey, the Camira is a supercar. :p Or at least the ads said so.
 
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