On the last post I was asked how the Saab has been treating me. I’ve put probably about 500 miles on it so far and they’ve been mostly pain-free. Compared to the Accord the Saab is a freaking muscle car, with 60 more horsepower and a greater willingness to chirp the tires around corners. It proved its load-carrying ability the day I picked it up by swallowing a wagon (one of Soren’s birthday presents).
One of the questions I haven’t been asked is why I chose a 9-3. I went into it briefly back in August and most of those reasons hold true. The power is a welcome jump from what I had without being too much. It’s still very versatile, and has a great level of standard features (heated seats, side airbags, etc). I like that it’s a four door but not a sedan, and I like that it’s not a big car. Most of all, I find 9-3’s to be very, very attractive looking cars.
What I think is interesting is that despite all the visual similarities between the 900 and 9-3, it’s easy to tell which is newer. Thanks to small touches like more modern wheels, different bumpers, updated taillights and a standard spoiler the 9-3 starts to look the part of a sport sedan.
One of the other fun things about the Saab is all the little extras it has that I continue to discover:
- Each fog light assembly contains two bulbs. One is for the fog light itself, and the other, interestingly enough, is for a cornering light that turns on when you signal in that direction; it’s kind of like the swiveling headlamp concept on newer Lexus’ and VW Passats, but simpler.
- Heated mirrors. I wasn’t sure if it had these or not, since its kind of tough to check with the weather we’ve had lately.
- If you have the wipers on and shift into reverse, the rear wiper automatically activates. This confused the hell out of me the first time it happened.
- Not a surprise, but an awesome Euro car trait: the headlights turn off with the ignition.
- When the ignition is turned off but the key is not removed, the radio is still usable.
- Another non-surprise: rear fog light. Not overly common; it’s just an extra light you can turn on in the back when it’s foggy.
For now, that’s pretty much it. I plan on ordering some new tires in pretty short order, but I’m foregoing the wheels for now. After that the to-do list is nearly complete.
jb said:
that shot of your cat is rad.
21:52 on 19 May 2006
jb said:
oh, and how come when i click on your name (in the upper-left-hand corner of your page) it doesn’t take me to your index page???
21:53 on 19 May 2006
matches said:
First, thanks, but she’s not mine. Second, because there should be a link on the top right now. I added that nav about a month ago and didn’t want the name to link to anything anymore.
23:11 on 19 May 2006
PDF said:
What’s funny is when you first added that nav I was already in the habit of clicking your name when I wanted to go home (not just because of this site, but because that is how websites work). And you broke it. Didn’t we have this discussion, eight times?
And since jb is talking flickr and I’m not talking cars, I’ll talk del.icio.us too. I saw Gogol in Denver once. Good musics.
These comments have officially been hijacked. No remorse.
01:19 on 20 May 2006
majafa said:
well, my post may seem out of place now but…
Glad the Saab is working well. Of all Saabs I do like the “pre-current sedan” 9-3, your car, the bestest.
I really like the idea behind that rear wiper feature and the rear fog light.
GMC Envoy has a similiar “radio stays on” feature after ignition is off, but stays on even when the key is removed. The radio shuts off when a door is opened, or after 10-minutes…whichever comes first. It was great when waiting in the parking lot before class at college.
04:17 on 20 May 2006
matches said:
PDF, I broke it because I like to mess with you. I don’t get to do that in person any more.
majafa, yeah, I like this version best as well, and I’m getting ahead of myself when I say that I could see Viggen ownership down the road.
09:32 on 20 May 2006