Why own a Saab

Safety

SAAB has always made the safety of their cars a number one priority since early on, something few manufactures have done. This is the reason they even faught putting cup holders in their cars for so long. The new Saabs are number one in front and side impact tests. The car is also designed to crush in such a fashion as to take away energy, protecting the drivers and passengers even more. An interesting fact is that SAABs are "moose" tested. For years SAAB has crashed the car into a moose test dummy to test the cars protection as it hits the windshield/roof area. (Apparently a big problem in Sweden.) ABS braking stops panic wheel locking in emergency stops. Traction control limits wheel spin under low traction conditions. It also helps with turning stability.

Turbocharged

This is what makes a Saab a Saab. Turbocharging is a way to add horse power without adding the weight of a bigger engine. With a bigger engine, you must use it and pay for the added fuel consumption and service costs. Turbocharging the engine adds horsepower only when you need it. (Controlled by throttle pressure) It pressurizes the air going into the engine via a spinning vane, which is driven by the BTUs of the exhaust. The engineering comes in to play in its control. A software controlled boost system varies the boost so that it matches the air and load conditions, and octane of fuel. The higher the octane, the more power is available. Too much boost could damage the engine so this system gives the maximum boost without doing so. It gives the car a great feel and improves the thrill of driving it. Just drive one and you'll be hooked like the rest us.

Engine and body management

Meeting federal emissions standards is not an easy task, especially if you want to keep the power and driveability up. This is again where the SAAB engineers shine. They do a great job of controlling all these factors. The engine has very low emissions but still has great power and smooth driving. Many companies have trouble with this but not SAAB. As for the body components, Saab now uses a bus system to connect computers. These computers manage all aspects of the car via signals destined for that computers job. What used to take hundreds of wires to do is now done with only a few. Saab has even made the sparkplugs work as sensors to control engine performance. Now sensors used for one function can be shared by many. The software works constantly to control fuel and power in a flood of carefully written mathmatical formulas. And just like in your home computer, operating systems can be upgraded when improvements come about.

Front wheel drive

Saabs were one of the first with this feature. It pulls the car in the direction of steering which is great for winter driving making a Saab a year round car.

Model choices

Tell me, that after looking at and driving a convertible, it's not the coolest of cars for the money. You'll catch a lot of eyes watching the top operate. Models like the Viggen, the Vector and the Aero are power houses like none other in the price range. They are built for speed and handling. Some cars just have some bolt on items, whereas these models systems are built in. Gotta have a wagon? SAAB makes sneaking up to the front of a school to drop off the kids no longer needed. A few chuckles from the boys gets dispelled when you "lay some rubber" passing them by on the highway. The 9-5 models are great highway cars loaded with luxuries. (ScandiaTek does not recommend the rebadged Subaru (9-2) nor the GMC SUV (9-7))

Costs of ownership

One thing to keep in mind is that SAABs are semi-exotic sports cars. Few of them are made so they are somewhat exclusive, not everyone has them, but they are a lot of car for the money. Sports cars are more expensive to own than others. Trying to compare them to Hondas or Toyotas just because they all have 4 wheels is an incompatible process. Sports cars are made to flash. They are cars that are on the edges of practicality. Too often owners buy them cheaply used and then complain about repair costs. SAABs, like many other sports cars, are expensive cars that are pushed to their limits. All this means that ownership costs can be more. However, because they can last hundreds of thousands of miles if properly cared for, they are still a good bargin. We have several high mileage older Saabs in our loaner fleet that still perform beautifully.

Service

Saabs, as with all cars for that matter, respond well to good service. Regular intervals done by a quality shop make parts last longer. Due to the complexity and interrelationships of the parts, a problem at point "A" can affect point "X". Good service can cut down on diagnosis, misdiagnosis and wasted time thus lowering ownership costs. Manufacturers are trying to make modern cars seem to be less costly to own so they have been deceptively altering (lengthening) service intervals. The negative effects of this shows up later in the cars life.... usually after the warranty runs out. A good example of this are the recent long intervals used for oil changes. This has caused a lot of engine failures. (see www.schleeter.com for details)