Since Apple didn’t announce a G5 Powerbook, and a Centrino Powerbook won’t be here until next year, I’m considering buying a new car. Think of it as an exceptionally large laptop hauler…
Actually, I started thinking about a new car 6 or 8 months ago. Domestics were basically ruled out because the selection of sporty cars with four doors and a manual transmission are pretty slim. I narrowed the foreign field down to the Nissan Altima SE-R, Acura TSX, and Volkswagon Jetta. Ultimately I decided wasn’t thrilled enough by any of them — the SE-R and TSX seemed over-priced, the Jetta was a better value but not particularly inspiring. I figured I could hold out another 18 months, until my old car would be paid off…
Now I’m seeing commercials for the GM Employee Discount for Everyone promotion. For the most part I think of GM’s brands as being the worst of the American car market, the only bright spots are Cadillac, the GTO, and the Corvette — their most expensive cars. But I always seem to forget that GM owns one European car compnay that sells in the US, Saab…
The Saab 9-2X AWD Aero has $5,000 worth of incentives on top of the standard “Employee Discount”, bringing the base price down to a mere $19,425 (plus $3,645 for the Premium and Sport packages). Now we’re talking! The 9-2X is a rebadge job, but it’s a Subaru WRX Sport Wagon rather than some ill-conceived GM platform. The reviews of the 9-2X seem to harp on the lack of Saab’s trademark interior features and the substantial premium over the price of the WRX, but they all concede that the 9-2X is a better WRX than the original and better looking to boot. With eight grand in discounts the 9-2X’s decked-out price is cheaper than the base WRX and the Saab includes several features that Subaru doesn’t offer, such as leather.
There’s also the Saab 9-3 Linear for $22,681 (plus $1,895 for the Premium package). Not as steep of a discount, and not nearly the level of go-fast fun offered by the 9-2X, but a genuine European car with all that Saab funkiness for just under $25k. I wonder if the European Delivery discounts can be stacked on top of that…
I’ve already talked to my credit union, they’d like me to pay off my current car loan first. Juggling the number tonight it seems possible. Time to arrange some test drives. Looks like I’m precisely halfway between the two nearest Saab dealers, which are 30 miles apart, yow…
Gotta work on improving my Karma, too. Financing a car always seems to be a precursor to sudden unemployment. Hopefully the third time will be the charm…
Update: Progressive says a 9-2X Aero would cost 2/3rds as much to insure as a 9-3 Linear. The rates on my ‘97 M3 go up with every renewal, to the point where the insurance payments are higher than the loan payments, so I am extremely sensitive to insurance rates….
Update #2: The 9-2X has become quite popular at these fire-sale prices. The dealer to the South has none in stock or transit that aren’t already sold. To the North they have none in the configuration that I want (5sp, Premium, Sport) but “Steve” thinks there might be something in today’s shipment.
Saab and their dealers do not seem to have adopted to the Internet as effectively as other brands. Few Florida dealers have their own websites, fewer still have their inventories online. Judging by the inventories that I have been able to check, I may need to buy my car from another state…
Update #3: Took a test drive in an Aero with an automatic. I now understand what turbo lag is. Once upon a time I owned an ‘89 Daytona Turbo ES with an automatic. Mashing the Go pedal would smoke the tires and have the boost gauge pegged in about a quarter-second. I suspect it had major work done by a previous owner, but at the time I knew dick about performance cars…
Back to the 9-2X Aero… Flooring it to pull into traffic from the dealer’s lot, I thought it was about to stall. If you’ve ever driven a car with a clogged-up fuel filter, that’s about what it felt like. Up until about 3,000 RPM it was flat-out the slowest car I’ve ever been in. Going down some empty side streets I quickly learned the the automatic does not believe in downshifting. I tried making a sharp turn at 35MPH, mashing the gas and slamming the shifter into 1… It carved up the corner admirably, better than the E36 325 I owned in Germany, but didn’t downshift until I dropped to 30MPH halfway down the block.
The 5-speed manual is clearly a must-have option. Dropping in a chip, fart pipe, and headers ought to improve the low-end power situation. Doing more research earlier today, a common gripe has been that the seats are uncomfortable for XXL-types. I’m more of an XXXL-type myself and thought they were OK, much more comfortable than the buckets found in most sports cars. Maybe they suck compared to most station wagons, but the last car I purchased was a ‘97 M3…
The sales guy I dealt with is not optimistic about finding another dealer willing to transfer an Aero with at least the 5-speed and Sport package (bigger wheels and a moonroof), and right now there’s nothing available on the Ports list. In the morning I guess I’ll start calling far-away dealers myself…
