1999 Saab 9-3 SE Convert. vs 2001 BMW 330i

[Gen-X'er]

They're all fully loaded. About the only difference is the engine output.

[DeadLegend]

Oh alright, I was just thinking about that cheap grey plastic... I won't tolerate that. Hahaha... and I'm jealous of the Miatas, although at this point I'm such a bad driver they would certainly be death traps for me.

[Gen-X'er]

Yeah, I don't know about that. My recollection is they all came with the heated seats, sunroof, HK stereo, etc. mine had the wood grain and leather. I don't know if those were additional options or all included. More often than not, they are fully decked out.

[DeadLegend]

** I'm about to ask 5 trillion questions - I don't expect them all to be answered... Haha **

So the 2002 Saab 9-3 SE Sport Sedan was nice - "fully loaded", at least as far as I noticed. I really only had 3 concerns:
1. It has been sitting on a hill for a while (a few months I guess?) so the brakes were alarmingly bad, I guess because the pads were stuck to the rotors or something? I don't know, it was explained to me as something they'd fix by just lubricating the brakes and reassembling them. Not really an issue.
2. I swear the '02 9-3 had a pedal setup that was a bit different from the '01 9-5 I first drove. '01 9-5 was friggin sweet - perfect positioning and response and everything, it was great. This '02 9-3 had less space to the right of the gas pedal; I have big feet and the right side of my shoe kept bumping the wall to the right of the pedals. This was super annoying - any reasonable way around this? It also seemed like the pedals were a bit too far off to the right? Pretty uncomfortable for me...
3. That engine sludge issue! It's a 9-3 with 161k miles and I believe it was a 2.0t - since it's gotten that far, should I still be really concerned about the possibility of oil changes being done too infrequently or with the wrong type of oil? Or were those issues specific to 9-5's?

I also tested out a 2005 base model 9-3. It made me smile as soon as I held the neat keyless key. It's a really beat-up car (paint damage on driver-side, side view mirror glass is gone, ride is very bumpy so I guess shocks or something are bad, windshield cracked, squirter thing on hood is missing, interior plastics are grimy and worn), but it's got much tighter handling, the engine feels very responsive, the pedals are in the perfect position, and (relatively speaking) I just felt nice and confident driving the car. I kept thinking about Jeremy Clarkson and the other famous car guys talking about how modern cars don't transmit the feeling of the road due to all the assists and whatnot, because I felt like it was kind of just gliding along... I don't know if that's a good thing or bad thing - it's a strange dilemma because YES it's very comfortable and as a crappy driver I found it easier most of the time, but what am I missing out on?! Triptronic (or whatever Saab calls it) is also very nice to have for when I finally become confident enough to enjoy using it!

Both cars have about 161k miles. The 2005 9-3 base model is $3,950 and has a depressing interior, although the most important stuff like the steering wheel and seats beat out all the other Saabs I've tested. The '02 is $3,150 with a pristine interior and exterior.

I guess I'm asking which car is the better deal? Consider that each car has a 10k mile warranty on brakes & tires w/ a 3-month warranty on basically everything else. Is the '05 an infinitely better buy? How do repair costs compare between the two? What are the big issues with the '05 9-3's? What different issues does the '02 9-3 have vs. the '01 9-5? Just how perfect are the '05 9-3's - is reliability less of a concern & are the engines more reliable? Are they going to be much harder to find parts for?

Which would you buy with what's supposed to be a ~$3,800 budget?

[Gen-X'er]

For the most part, I will defer to the other members as I am not all that familiar with the 9-3. I do believe the earlier 9-3 does have the sludge problem and just because it made it to 160K doesn't mean that it is clear of it. It really depends on whether the updated breather was installed, whether the prior owner(s), followed the revised oil maintenance schedule, and whether it has been done previously. It could be that owner 1 was meticulous and owned it until 130K and then owner 2 didn't do proper oil changes. The only way to address it without knowing it's maintenance history is to do the drop.

I'm not really sure about the pedal issue but most cars allow for adjustment of pedals so you may be able to adjust them a little. If not, my guess is that you will simply get used to it very quickly. I wouldn't let the pedal placement be a deciding factor.

You say that the newer model is more responsive and seems to be the better running car. That would probably be my deciding factor. It's probably worth more when looking at BB values, and if it seems to run better, plus no worries on oil sludge, I would go that direction. My only concern is the beat up interior. It's not hard to restore interior. It can be done on your own time and you can control the costs by shopping around. However, there is an old rule about how someone maintained the appearance is a good indicator for how someone maintained the engine. It's not a hard and fast rule but it would be in the back of my mind.

One last thought is that for those members that have experience with 9-3s and 9-5s, they tend to favor the 9-3s. Whether this is because it really is the better car, (they normally claim that they are more reliable) or that it is the car more inline with Saab than GM, I don't know. It certainly looks more like a Saab than the 9-5 which, although a good looking car, has somewhat of a generic, European look about it. 9-3s look like Saabs, 9-5s look like a cross between a BMW and a VW.

As for your more specific questions, as I said above, I will defer to the other members with more experience with the 9-3s.

[DeadLegend]

I'm picking up the '05 9-3 on Monday or Tuesday, whenever the parts finally come in and they can do the rest of the repairs Very exciting! BTW, I think it's technically not too late for me to back out of the deal - are there any things for me to personally look out for on this Saab before I actually buy it? I noticed the metal of the engine wasn't all that pretty - it had that stuff that grows on metal (or happens to it) that sorta looks like water/mineral corrosion (it's light green) - is that cause for concern or is it nothing to worry about? I don't know what else to be wary of... Except for a leaky valve guide seal or fully blown head gasket... I'll never walk into one of those again! Hahaha

[nordwulf]

Post with purchase moved to new thread here: http://saabworld.net/f8/new-2005-9-3...estions-30401/

[pisani01]

well I will tell you all I have made my 01 9-5 aero my main car ,sold my honda crv gave my chevy impala to my son after repairing the lower intake gaskets on the 3.4 engine it.s a must. But my Saab has 107 thousand on it and the last repair was the idler pully and new belt. been serviced and runs fine I do trust it and I don't have many long drives. To tell you all the truth I like to just cruise with it and don't beat her lol