2005 SAAB 9-3 AERO TS review from Romania
"A fast, stylish discreet driving machine"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
Airbag malfunction, the dealer found the source of the problem and promised to correct it, but after 5 weeks I still waiting for the spare part to arrive. (Sensor located in the front bumper)
Various rattle noises and constant squeaks coming from the dashboard and door panels! This noises started first at 1000 km and getting worst day by day.
Poor quality plastics in the interior!
The leather is giving an overall cheap, unsophisticated and rudimental feeling.
Seats have started to wear sooner then I expected.
Couple of day ago driver side window refuse to go all the way up in auto or manual mode and after 20 minutes of struggling with the controls I managed to close it and never open it since! I called the service and they promised that they will correct the problem!
Although the dealer is very nice and polite they seem to have difficulty in solving any kind of problems, and generally give the impression of inability and poor technical expertise.
General comments?
Despite all this problems I like the car! It looks great and it is different from anything else on the road!
Speaking about the road it handles very nice and sharp and the engine is puling hard. For this money (35000euro+tax/VAT) you can’t get anything faster or agile form any German competitor!
If you learn to master the turbocharger it offer big time power witch translate in to fun and relaxed drive when it comes to overtaking somebody even at high speeds!
It runs smoothly at high speeds with a very decent consumption for sustained high sped like 180-200km/h something like 9liter/100km with the six speed manual transmission!
I found the seat very comfortable and I am quite a big person (1.9m/95kg)
I recommend to choose the optional 300W sound system with 6 CD in the dashboard (like I done) it sound great (it is true that the standard issue 70W or 150w systems are rubbish)
The ergonomic in this car is perfect! And I am a designer!
Overall if you can live with small problems and minor inconveniences like going to the service in every moth ;-) ) the car is good to have! it will put lot of smiles on your face and set you apart form the crowd!
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| This car is bittersweet |
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Don't Know |
| Year of manufacture | 2005 |
| First year of ownership | 2005 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2005 |
| Engine and transmission | 2.0 turbo petrol Manual |
| Performance marks | 10 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 5 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 8 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 3 / 10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 10 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 7 kilometres |
| Most recent distance | 5000 kilometres |
| Previous car | Opel Astra |
| Date of Entry | 9th September, 2005 |