[twills]

I've had only Saabs since 86 and just turned in my wife's leased '04 9-5 and traded my '05 9-2X for new Subarus. I didn't like the impact of GM on the Saab line, the lag in the 9-5 turbo and for me the closest Saab dealer is about an hour and a half away. Even tho the 9-2X Saabaru was a Subaru Impreza wagon rebadged, the 07 Impreza looks a lot better. I bought 2 new Impreza Limited Sport Wagons (turbo) for us and an Impreza sedan for our daughter, of course all are AWD cars - needed for this part of MD. Last winter the 9-5 was often sidelined as it couldn't handle the winter roads here safely but the 9-2X AWD was great. My '89 C4 performed better than the 9-5 during the winter.

It was also a pleasant experience going from the average $38K for a Saab to an average of $23K for the Impreza. Next the STI?

[Clarke]

Saab should have stuck to building aircraft IMO. Can't go wrong with the Honda or BMW.

[Rick V]

Originally Posted by Clarke

Saab should have stuck to building aircraft IMO. Can't go wrong with the Honda or BMW.

X2
Once I figured out I will never be able to understand why Saab does things the way they do it, I got along well with the brand. Kinda like working drunk.

[Mike W]

Originally Posted by good hands

about 30 on the highway.

x2, I got 27.5 according to the computer on the highway when the engine had 30 miles on it. Having a manual was easy on the break in, I just went from 4th 5th or 6th and always stayed the same speed while adjusting the engine speed. I expect more than that now that the engine is just past it's break in period. And I hvae the 2.8L V-6 with a heavy foot.

If you can swing it, you may want to look new. They are offering 3K cash back, and if you get a stripped down 2.0T, you would be right around where was mentioned previously. I got the Aero with every option except for Navigation and the automatic and feel that I got a prety good deal. About 10K less than what my parents paid for their IS350 similarly optioned.

[pookie]

Well we drove two Saabs, a Nissan and an Audi this weekend.

The first Saab we drove was a 03 9-3 Aero with 36K miles and it had a 5 spd. I thought it was a really neat car and a smooth drive and ride. I thought the 5spd had a really short throw and it revved pretty freely. Seemed to have pretty good pick up too. It was really quite I mean we have my Jeep her Liberty and my 911 so pretty much anything is quite compared to those 3. I'll be honest I was really impressed with the car. The dealer not so much but the car was nice. I liked the fold down 40/60 rear seats. Plus it also had a pass through as well.

Then we went to Carmax just to drive stuff. First she drove an 04 9-3 Linear auto with 25K. She thought it was nice, not as nice as the first one, and she would rather have the 5spd. I think her not thinking it was as nice had to do with the Aero having a lot more options that the Linear didn't have. Then she drove the Nissan which was nice too, it was an 02 with 82K miles, and rode really smooth, but had some weird wind noise going on. Finally she drove a 04 Audi A4 Quattro 1.8T. This was the only test drive she cut short. She didn't like the car, she thought the 1.8 was underpowered and the whole car felt heavy. I think that might have also been influenced by the Quatro but I don't know for sure as I didn't drive it. We were then going to drive a Mazda Speed 6 5 spd, but when looking at the MPG it only got 25/HWY where the Audi got 27, Nissan 30, and suprisingly the Saab got 32/auto and 34/manual tranny.

So far the Saab is the leading contender but we aren't done driving stuff yet. The 944 guy and I couldn't hook up so she didn't get to drive that one yet.

[Rick V]

BMW,
Don't pass on driving one before you buy.

[racer]

I have been a VW fan for decades... I really like, as a commuter, my 2005.5 "new" jetta. Base model. However, maybe a Jetta GLI (200hp, 200fl lb of torque, optional DSG gearbox etc etc) should be considered.

This thread grew so long I apologize if I overlooked a price point for you. Jettas run from $18-$26 if i recall correctly.

Or, you may have to wait, but a TDI (diesel) Jetta gets about 40-45 higway mileage. Seems no one ever sells one so used ones are hard to find. Can't recall if they are importing TDI's this year.

[pookie]

Rick BMW is still on the list. We just weren't going to screw around at Carmax driving the 05 and 06's CI coupes they had. I think those are bad arse, but its not my ride.

Thanks Dave we looked at Jettas and we looked at the Golfs. I really like the Golfs but my better 1/2 likes neither. The only used TDI's I have ever seen are the late 80's Golfs and the early 90's Jettas. All of which looked like they were on their last legs. I think I initially posted a budget of $15K but tha has already jumped up to $17K with some of the cars she is looking at. I bet if it were me looking for a car thought that budget would have been planted at $15K.

I sadly sold my Wrangler today, dropped it off a few minutes ago. I got my asking price which was great and the cash is ready to be plunked down on her commuter. The good is that it's not to hot here in the mornings so I have been driving the 911 to work and not getting there all hot and nasty. So we have time to look at and drive everything before we make a purchase.

[Mike W]

I too like Jettas. I was seriously considering the GLI Jetta as the new (2.0L actually responsive for ULSD) TDI is another 6 months away.

They were very nice and I was ready to by but then I did a price comparison. I got my Saab for 1.5K more than the GLI I was looking at.