Thinking of Buying a 2008 Saab 9-3 Aero S - A Good Idea or Not?

Question

I am thinking if buying a 2008 Saab 9-3 Aero S. Does anyone think that this is a good idea. If yes, why...if no, why? If you own one, I'd be elated to know your experience so far owning this car. What is the car's performance level like? Is it durable? Does it require a high maintenance level? Your candid answers are expressly welcome.

Answer 1

Get the V6 version. The V6 suspension is tuned great. You would think you were in a different vehicle if you had driven the 4 cylinder first. Change the oil every 4000. The free maintenance service intervals are too far apart. Although changing your oil at these times has proven to be safe, I still recommend every 4000. I wish Saab had stayed with using Michelins on their cars. The Pirelli's and the Continental's are an inferior tire. Make sure that you rotate your tires every 6000. It is included in the maintenance service but again that interval is somewhere between 10-15K. The warranty on Saab's are 4 years or 50,000K. Make sure that you read your owner's manual because certain emission components are warrantied for longer periods. I would highly recommend purchasing the SAAB certified extended warranty. This effectively gives you a 6 year or 100K warranty-bumper to bumper excluding a few items. I've owned 3 Saab cars and can't say enough about them.

Answer 2

2008 Saab 9-3 Aero

Answer 3

Saab 2008

Answer 4

I bought a 2006 9-3 20T program car in showroom condition. I couldn't tell the difference in features from the 2007, other than about $4,000. I love the ride, interior, acceleration and appearance. I hate that the integrated blue tooth does not work fully with U.S. phones. If you cannot use a button it should not be on the steering wheel.

For 2008 it is supposed to be fully integrated. There was 0% financing through gm a few months back, and a 100,000 mile warranty. They offer free major service up to 60k I think. That's belt adjustments filter changes etc. Oil changes they say are not necessary often, for some reason. I changed mine at 13,600 (bought it with 9,000) and the oil change shop said the oil looked very degraded - most likely because of the H.O. turbo.

I had a list of things I wanted when I was shopping for a car. AWD being one of them. I drove the SAAB and created a new list primarily built around fun.

I have my high speed warning sound set at 100mph. At 90 it always seemed to be going off. This car feels super fast. I'm not sure how fast it is on paper, but damn. And this is the 4 cylinder. I drove the Aero and couldn't tell the difference, except for a slightly choppier ride with the lower suspension and 17" rims. Other than that my 2.0T had more options than the Aero I compared it to. Before you get the new one, compare the two levels.

Some features like the 6 cylinder may not be a great advantage for the price. Most others are available on both models, like the awesome cold weather package...

Hope this helps.

Answer 5

The (9-3) car is a GM car now. The 4 cyclinder engines are the same engines in the GM Cobalts. I would get the 6 cylinder. The last good 9-3 was 2002 - they have and are capable of insane power with a simple chip change & performance exhaust. However, the newer body style 9-3 are much better & safer. The 9-5 is a GM but made in Sweden with the great turbo intercooled swedish motor. These cars are also capable of insane power with very simple modifications. Always get the AERO version if you can afford it - these have the best resale of all the SAABS- next to the VIGGENS .. But, the Viggnen has basically the same power train as the 5 speed 9-5.

Answer 6

If I were you, I would wait around a year or so until it gets thoroughly tested on reliability. Saab has a history of having bad first year reliability, but usually make up on the next year by making some tweaks to it. If you really wanted a new car fast with better performance, luxury level, and durability, I would go for the BMW 3-Series. It is on a complete different level of everything than the Saab, plus it has the BMW warranty which is better than, GM, Toyota and Ford. The Saab is a great car, but the Bimmer is a step up from the Saab.

Answer 7

I really really like my Saab. Got an 06 Saab 93 Sportcombi. Automatic. Automatic is very well done in this car, my first auto in 15 years. Look at the 08s in the fall of 07 they have completely revamped the outside of the vehicle and quite frankly the new styling is incredible. The interior is the same as my 06. You will not sit in seats more comfortable than these. But the ride can be a bit bumpy with the Aero's suspension. If you want all out performance. Wait for the AWD coming in sping 08.

For maintenance the car is very hands off. The air filter lasts 60 000 kms. The oil can go up to 15 000 kms and the 30 000km inspections are relatively minor costs. But this is no Jiffy Lube car the oil needs to meet very exacting standards of GM LL-A-025 and only 3 companies have it ELF oil 0W-30; Motul 0W-30 and Mobil 1 0W-40. The sludge problems with earlier Saabs have been traced back to wrong oil use and sludge creations due to this.

The car is tough, it aint going to rust easily and has a great rust perforation warranty backing it up. The car believe it or not has wood/plywood in it as the backing of some of the trim. A nice change from plastic everything and typical of Saab to use it as a dampner for external noise. The car is quite when driving and going 140 Km/hr is easily done without it feeling you are going 100 Km/hr. Gas mileage is awesome for a 260 HP car and the car's electronics are very intelligent you can use 87 to 91 octane fuel, if your willing to sacrifice abit of performance for fuel prices. ( go mid grade)

Only complaint fit and finish issues and some electronics. The car is loaded with electronics, maybe to much. Its computer will tell you that your left rear light is burned out or that your coolant level is to low. (not just a check engine light)

The car is safe and main reason I bought it. check out www.euroncap.com the crash test for the 03 saab 93 (same car) is very impressive. Im a Firefighter/Paramedic and I'm tired of seeing the results of subpar cars losing vs better built european cars.

Problems:
A couple rattles that were easily fixed by the dealer. battery problem causing a battery drain.

Great car for great prices. You could buy an equivilent Audi for about $10 000 more but trust me, they dont drive like a Saab.

Sum up, for the safety, price and performance and styling, you really have a hard time convincing me to spend more on a volvo or audi or BMW
Later

Answer 8

The 2008 Saab is a great designed platform, handles well. With regular maintenance you should get many years of great driving fun.
To correct a point the Volvo is not the same company or anything like the Saab.

Answer 9

A friend of mine has one, not me.
Performance wise it's a rocket, the aero version !
He had no problems so far after 2 years.
If you service it regulary it will probably run forever.
He thought that the first service after 30 000 km was too long and had the oil changed after 11 000 km.
It's not a large car though, if your planning off hauling a lot of stuff around then look for a larger.

Answer 10

Saab is a great car for sure and safe! For what i know the safety on that cars means even much more weight, expecially for the convertible models. so check out for gas consumption.
I've been a Honda owner (car and motorbikes) for 13 years... i can say i will go on buying Honda, nad i suggest it to anyone!