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Saab 9-3 Sedan

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#41 of 3311 actually by dindak May 18, 2002 (8:53 am)
I think regfootball did like the L-series and he has said the Ecotec is a good engine.   Wonder if there may be good deals on the old models come August.
#42 of 3311 hey logic by regfootball May 19, 2002 (12:39 pm)
dindak is right   See I like GM as long as they put out decent product and stop trying to sell the same crap they sold in the 80's in terms of engines.   The new Malibu/Vectra looks extrememly promising, as it has OHC technology and Euro engineering. That is, assuming Detroit doesn't pervert the basic car with its typical Michigan qualities......I am already upset to hear reports that the horizontal crossbar grille trim is slated for the Malibu, the Vectra beak should be kept in tact as it is. All they need to do with this car is swap the Opel badges with Chevy badges but I am sure they will find some way in Detroit to make it unattractive.....probably will put in a 3.4 pushrod motor or really cheap interior.   For what its worth, I really do like the Alero and L-series, albeit with a small reservation or two. These are really two of GM's base current products.   The new Ecotec motor is quite good and GM NA would do itself well to put this motor in as many cars as it could. I see they are finally starting to do so. But it shouldn't have taken GM till 2002 to put a decent four cylinder in any of its cars when Honda has put solid 4's in its cars basically since the beginning of time.   I'm not against GM per se'. My family grew up on GM vehicles. What I am against about GM is overt signs of cheapness and unwillingness to match other companies in quality of driving hardware and technologies. Plus there has been that certain arrogance in their PR that has always suggested "buy us no matter what we sell" instead of just putting out product that folks want.   Also, I am not a Saab fan. I do think GM's ownership of Saab saved them from the brink of ruin. Saab has to compete with BMW so they had better have the car part down. Or they will fade away.
#43 of 3311 Point taken by logic1 May 19, 2002 (1:59 pm)
My bad.   The 9-3 Sedan and its varients appear as though they may be what Saab has been looking for.   If these cars match their looks, GM can have a nice fwd alternative to people who want to go upscale but do not want the rwd and brassiness of the CTS. Basically you will have GMs version of the Lexi Es300 IS300 brethren.
#44 of 3311 When does the new 9-3 hit the showroom by smu1976 May 19, 2002 (8:59 pm)
Any stated date of release? I have a 99 9-5 coming off lease (great car). The new 9-3 looks great in pictures. I heard the same GM platform talk when I got the 9-5 in 99, a platform is just the steel base frame (which is very expensive to manufactur). From there the Sweedes take over. Your not going to find a Saab handling like a Malibu or Opel. Your not going to get the same torque out of your Saturn like a 9-3 Vector. Your not going to get the safety performance either. Fit and finish are completely different. The old 9000 was built off a Alfa platform. Platform sharing has been around for decades. The cars attributes are completely different regardless of the same platform.
#45 of 3311 by logic1 May 20, 2002 (4:57 am)
I thought I saw something that said late August, early September, but the link is closed now.   You are right about the different dynamics. Saab will share a platform with Opel and some US models. But it will have enough engineering leeway to make the car distinctive.   From what I have seen so far, you will not be giving up too much interior space from your current 9-5 to the new 9-3.
#46 of 3311 platform sharing by dindak May 20, 2002 (5:11 am)
You will be seeing more and more of this over time as car companies push to cut costs and compete. Car business is so competitive that you just can't afford not to share as much as possible globally. I'm ok with that and I'm sure the 9-3 will be nothing like an Opel. GM's Ecotec is a good early example of some other world sharing that is coming to North America.
#47 of 3311 9-3 in showroom in October by ambull May 20, 2002 (5:44 am)
Here's a link with more information. http://www.saabnet.com/tsn/models/2003/ It doesn't say the engine is Ecotec, but "all internal components are unique to Saab".
#48 of 3311 by logic1 May 20, 2002 (6:24 am)
Thanks for the link, Ambull. While Saab no doubt will extensively modify the engine, it is a varient of the European Ecotec.   There is no way Saab could get enough sales to justify the expense of designing its own engine. Modifying, yes, designing from the ground up, no.   Moreover, if GM decides to make the Solstice, most reports say the Saab engine will find its way into the car.   The 9-3 looks promising. Any chance you might reconsider the G20 purchase Ambull?
#49 of 3311 by ambull May 20, 2002 (7:51 am)
Logic, I had a 93.5 G20 and found it underpowered even with the 5-speed. I test drove a 99 or 00 G20 with automatic and found it handled much better, but that transmission was always in the wrong gear. Finding a newer 5-speed is hard to do. I gave up the 93.5 G20 for an old Saab 9000 turbo because it had more room and power. Would still be driving it if a careless driver hadn't caused me to total it. I don't know what I want yet, so that's why I'm keeping up with the new models, although I drive so little I can't really justify a new car. To keep on topic, I like what I've seen so far of the new 9-3. The current one doesn't appeal to me as much as the 9-5, but they're too much money for me.
#50 of 3311 by logic1 May 20, 2002 (8:25 am)
The interesting thing about the new 9-3 is how close the interior and cargo dimensions are to the 9-5. There will be a new 9-5 following a little later. It will probably be a lot different than the current model.   A recent change in titles has me traveling far less per year than before. I figured my current L-200 would be the kind of reliable car that I would not feel bad about driving 30k per year. Now I only drive on weekends or evenings when I go out. So it might be fun to go up a class. Maybe the 9-3 is where I want to go.

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