Test drive Saab 9000 CD 1994 - 1997 sedan

Saab, only Saab!

Now I only want Saab - this car convinced me of its reliability, functionality, its convenience. After that, neither the famous engines from BMW, nor prestige from Mercedes.
 
The subject of our conversation is the Saab 9000i 1990 Reb. Before getting to its current owner, the car spun 90 thousand kilometers along the Swedish roads, then another 50 thousand on uneven Russian asphalt. Now the number 189,000 is listed on his odometer, and nothing but flattering words can be said to be addressed to his appearance. However, the owner knows better ...

IMPRESSION...
Transfer from a nine with an engine volume 1300 to a two-liter, 135-horsepower Saab, I felt the difference very quickly. Rooting steering, cruise control, comfortable seats, a pleasant interior - all this in the complex made an indelible impression on me. If earlier, I, passing around the city of 200 kilometers, was tired, my head began to ache, now the ride is not at all tired. Who drives me in the car, having the opportunity to compare, says that there are very comfortable seats, that their back is resting in them. Maybe it will seem to someone that for such a machine of a two-liter sixteen-valve engine is not enough, but I am sure that it is ideal for urban conditions where you need to have time to glorify in time. But acceptance is also considerable convenience. I like the Saabov aircraft design of the internal space of the car. Compared to the nine, here the eye pleases everything, even how light bulbs burn the instruments in the dark. The impression of the appearance of the car is great. Remember, Michael Schumacher in F1 had a car with an original bow, it was also called a shark? So I have the impression that my car has a shark's appearance. It even seems to me that the sedan looks a little worse than the hatchback. And the spoiler on the back door fits very harmoniously into the appearance of the car.

Saab and traffic police
Once they slowed me down on the Moscow highway for speed. While settling all the formalities, at the same time, and talked with the inspector. I asked where you can turn here, and he suddenly fell silent, looked at me and answered: why do you need to go on a soil? I understand that I would go on the Lada, but here on such a car ... In my opinion, it is better to drive extra five kilometers. And another time, he also exceeded the speed of fifteen kilometers, and when explaining with the inspector, he simply referred to a good mood. He gave the documents, said: Well, I would! On a car ... - and let go. Little things, but nice.

Not very, very
From what caused trouble? I can say that I got used to clutch for a long time - in my opinion, this pedal has too much free move too much. And the car ... twice she failed me in two and a half years, and both times due to my fault - for the first time I asked to put the fuel cutter, and this device at the most inopportune moment was embarrassed. In the morning, he was all compartment and the car simply did not start. The second time I forgot to pay off the light bulb in the cabin, did not pay attention, and she discharged the entire battery. And so with mechanics absolutely nothing unforeseen happened. Planned repairs spoil life only by their high cost. In addition, I had to look for people who can well repair Saab. Two times I changed the front seal, and always differently. In the first case, the motor began to work a little differently, the vibration appeared, and in the second-it seems that no one opened the hood. Among the constructive shortcomings that showed on our roads, I can note too small clearance. The combination of a long base (4667mm) and low landing is categorically not suitable for our roads. I do almost always, even at the congress from the low cutters, and at the same time the middle part of the muffler with an absolutely unnecessary corrugation suffers. Two or three times I just broke the muffler. I put the Carter defense, she added several millimeters, but without it you can’t go to our streets at all. My other constant headache is cast -iron clamps on the muffler, which simply constantly break. The anti -corrosion resistance of the body is beautiful. Agree, the complete absence of rust spots on the back of a ten -year -old car is an excellent quality indicator. True, small branded mudguards allowed the road mud to properly reproduce the thresholds, after which it was necessary to cover them with anti -gravity and put more impressive protection instead of the inappropriate factory. The steering, even after the sharp Samarovsky, certainly like it. The complaints relate only to the number of revolutions from the stop to the stop (all 3.5) and the too large radius of turn - I do not pass where the thirty -first Volga unfolds! In plus, with confidence I can bring the exchange rate stability of the car and the practically no body roll during turning. I noticed that in each of the turns that I took place on my last cars, on Saab I fit 10-15 kilometers faster than on a nine. In my opinion, in my opinion, a reasonable compromise is achieved in the noise insulation of the salon, in which external noise does not annoy how it happens on most domestic machines, but does not deprive the additional feeling of the car. As a result, the main result is achieved - the driver does not get tired of driving. A catalyst is installed on my car, and I refuel with 95th gasoline. The flow rate on the highway is 7-7.5 liters, in the city in winter - 13 liters, and in the summer - 10-10.5 liters per hundred kilometers.

FUTURE PLANS
Now I only want Saab - this car convinced me of its reliability, functionality, its convenience. After that, neither the famous engines from BMW, nor prestige from Mercedes. I became a real adherent of the Swedish cars, and if I need what is called an honest and beautiful car, I will choose a Saab 9-5 or a new Saab 9-3.

Recorded by Alexander Yevtokin
 
 

Source: Wheel magazine [No. 42/2000]