2000- 9-3 2.2 TiD SE any thought's?

[pesty]

Guys,

Considering getting one of these. will be used heavily around 30k+ miles a year. Intend to keep it for at least 3 years.

Any thoughts? things to look out for? known faults?

Cheers

Phil

[Sparks]

Hi,

I have a 2000 (W) 9-3 TiD. It is no where near as good a a BMW, but I like it. It is an old school diesel, so very noisy until cruising. Comfortable, well spec'ed (mines an SE) and plently of room.
The wife does alot of town driving and it always returns 38+ mpg. On a very leisurely long run, it will return 48mpg. Not as good as the VAG/PSA units but still not too bad.

Servicing (115BHP model) is every 9K, and basic cost £200. Saab dealer quoted me £360 for the 90K service, so I am going to an independant.

Most likely problem you will get is the Air Mass Meter failing. Symptoms are not reving past 3000rpm, flat spots and general poor power. It is not cheap to fix, so make sure you get a warranty (I had mine done under warranty).

Take a look at the forumn on www.saabscene.co.uk for lots more info/help.

Sparks

[pesty]

cheers. I'll check that out.

The misses went to look at one today and said it was realy nice but she thinks its a bit too small. We test drove a mondeo yesterday which was had loads of room inside.
So she now has her heart set on a mundano. I'm going to talk some sense into her.

[900T-R]

pesty said:

cheers. I'll check that out. The misses went to look at one today and said it was realy nice but she thinks its a bit too small. We test drove a mondeo yesterday which was had loads of room inside. So she now has her heart set on a mundano. I'm going to talk some sense into her.

Want more space inside? Get a 9-5. It's a better, more modern car than the (former gen, Cavalier/Calibra platform) 9-3 in every way, too and for the almost ridiculously low prices they go for nowadays, especially outside the franchised dealer network, you can't go far wrong.

[pesty]

yeah had a quick look at 9-5's on autotrader there is a Tid somewhere near bristol that looks good but all the others usualy have mega miles in our price bracket.

[900T-R]

OK, I guess you're new to Saabs, then.

Within the Saab community, the following guidelines for determining mileage are commonly followed:

0-100,000 miles: not run in yet
100,000-150,000 miles: low mileage
150,000-200,000 miles: average miles
200,000-300,000 miles: high mileage
300,000+: mega mileage

[NiceCupOfTea]

True, mine has 132k on it and it's "low mileage" (hey, it's 15 years old and just run in )

[Sparks]

As an update, which may be of note;

Mine (at the ripe old age of 5.5 years & 93K miles) needs a new bearing in the gearbox. Saab want over a grand to replace just the bearing, an independant said £700-£1000, but that would include a new clutch and anything else that needs replacing.
Alternatively the indie put me on to a salvage yard, and I have a second hand gearbox, which with fitting etc, should be only £5-600.
Not what I needed (i'm already skint), and dented my faith in Saabs a little (even if it isn't a saab engine/gearbox)

Sparks

[Piglet]

See my SAAB breakdown tale on GG www.pistonheads.co.uk/gassing/topic.asp?t=197757&f=23&h=0

I was just starting to rant about the build quality of my 93 SE TiD - until they found the problem!!

Apparently it's not uncommon in that area!