1997 SAAB 900 SE review from North America

Serpentine belt blew, locked up pulleys, smoke filled the cabin and car froze at and skid to a stop; $650.

Ignition switch electrical part failed, caused the car to turn off randomly, first time at 75 on highway (lost power steering, power brakes, almost crashed) ; $350.

Crankshaft pulley sensors failed, $500, caused the car to throw me forward doing 35 and slam my face in to the steering wheel.

Head bolts (2) needed re-torqued, caused loss of coolant out of engine, $550 and may need head gasket replacement soon.

Idle speed and fuel/air mix continue to fluctuate after being reset, $100 so far.

Blew a coolant hose to the engine, emptied the coolant everywhere and filled the cabin with smoke, $170.

Passenger door handle, little metal part inside snapped off and broke, $55 used DIY.

Seatbelts in front lost tension and got slammed in doors, needed replaced, $165 used DIY.

ACC sensor fan in cabin broke, $110 DIY.

ECU computer screen died, $125 used DIY.

These car's just aren't reliable. I LOVE the car and the handling and speed, but it's so unreliable, and I need a car I can count on to not only start,but get me where I need to go. This one can't.

Car was good for a few weeks, then the serpentine belt blew, and every other month since then it's been in to the shop due to some stupid problem.

It's been towed 4 times since I got it, and the cabin has filled with smoke doing 65mph+ twice. Twice it has stalled completely (no power brakes/steering) over 65mph due to serious problems.

Tiny stuff, like a sensor that is magnet on the end of a wire, cost well over $200, and at $90/hr labor, it builds up quickly.

Nobody here except the dealership will touch Saab's for anything, but basic maintenance. The dealer is nice and cut me breaks on parts and labor costs, but it's no good if the car breaks every other month.

Dangerous things like the ignition switch should be recalled (the ignition's on 9-3 models were recalled, but the 900's suffer from the problem too).

The dealer says none of this is out of the ordinary, and that in fact my Saab is doing quite well for it's age. If you can afford the downtime and repair costs, this is a great car, but I can't. I'm getting a Lexus ES300 that's more reliable and cheaper to fix.