1998 SAAB 9-3 SE review from Finland

I have not encountered any major faults with this car, but there have been some enyoing smaller items causing irritation.

The ventilation fan keeps a whining noise. Replacing this well hidden part would cost around € 600. But greasing it at every service stop helps for 12 000 km.

Another faulty part is the SAAB Information Display (SID). Of some reason the pixels keep disappearing and reappearing all over the display. The only fix for the problem is replacing the display at € 750.

But the most unfortunate problem occurred a couple a weeks ago when the

heating ceased working at -14 C. It was a rather cold 2 1/2 hour journey home due to a broken switch. (A € 15 part...)

When I test drove the car I got a feeling resembling flying a small airplane. I don't really know why, but maybe it's because of the responsiveness of the chassis. Also the exact steering deserves a mention.

The turbo (175hp) gives a nice performance, especially when passing slower traffic. However the power is delivered rather agressively to the front wheels and this can rock the stearingwheel if you're not prepared.

The cargo carrying capacity of the 9-3 is great, becoming huge when tilting the seats down. The legroom in the backseat is not generous, so longer passengers usually find the backseat cramped.

The car makes a great winter car as it handles well on snow and it warms up fast.