1997 Saab 900 Reviews, Pricing & Specs

For a big, heavy car it comes out of the hole quickly, though with a slight tendency to settle back on it's haunches. Nimble handling, excellent turning radius. Excellent highway car. I've had to replace the clutch, the water pump, serpentine belt, idler pulley and exhaust over the last 6 years and 90k miles, not too bad all things considered. This car is solid. Mileage is astonishing, 21 city, 29 highway. I love my Saab.Aug 26, 2009

Performs well, aside from cornering (due to mushy suspension, although it will take the turn regardless). Built well, the body is GM, so it's only alright, but the engine and transmission is still SAAB, so it lives up to the name. Interior styling is what you'd expect from an executive sedan, lots of little luxury features, although the cabin is fairly small, comparable to an Audi A4 or BMW 3 Series. Exterior looks good for a semi-hatchback, still different looking, but looks more acceptable than the Classic SAAB 900, 3 spoke rims stock. The milage is as good as you'll let it be, it loses a fair amount of fuel to the idle as it sits at 1k rpms, city about 16-19 (depending on your spirit) and highway about 25-30. There is an obvious superb turbo whistle when accelerating and is dominant from speeds of 45+mph. The parts though, are SAAB, so some simple things are cheap, but who would have thought a new door latch would run you $190? Just watch out for the belt squeal, which is indicative of the tensioner, ($400).Jul 03, 2009

Performance: Fantastic car. Best bang for your buck. The stock turbo is intagrated so well with the car that the power is nearly on tap when ever you need it. Keep it in low gear and you can build up your boost to provide ample acceleration. Boast up to 195ft pounds of torque from the turbo which translates to lightning fast acceleration. Very easy to the get the car in low gears with the turbo maxed out. Bad part is, its a front wheel drive car so all of that raw torque is translated to wheel spin so saddly takeoffs are not as near as good as it would be if it was AWD or RWD but for control the Front wheel drive platform is best. The saab will eat through snow since the car is built in rallysport tradition. The Saab uses a very effective 4 cyl 2.0 litter engine and yet the turbocharger spews out massive performance that will even rival that of v8's. Because of this the car is super sporty and can contend with just about anything else on the road. It's built on a lighter chasis and with excellent aero signatures. That being said this is a super fast little car that I have been able to max out at 147mph. Spedometer goes to 155 but I didn't have enough road or balls to try for that. Braking is great also. Power to the front wheels already means great control but the ABS will give you a solid and gradual break. Stock breaks and rotors will give you excellent stopping distance and downshiffiting while light breaking can keep your speed constant around cornering all while charging the turbo in the low gear so you can easily begin instant turbo acceleration when you reach the apex of the turn. Handling is a dream. The car is built on a solid frame and the hatchback design always feel tight. The front wheel drive means the car will carve through any road or track with maximum precision. don't worry about the rwd powersliding or drifting. In terms you can go faster and maintain your control without breaking for longer periods of time because of this. Saab has a rich history of early Rally Racing so it knows how to compete in control. Sway bars built into the front engine bay from strut to strut will help to alleviate body roll but I believe the trunch should implament one as well since the car has a very open rear end. The Saab is a tall vehicle moreso than it is wide. Definantly a difft driving experience. Build Quality: Although its half GM at this point it still retains the SAAB heritage. Designed like a jet plane it still keeps the sold Sweedish design and accents and retains a luxury vehicle feel. I think it still has too much plastic in the interior although wooden or carbon fiber dash kits and accents can clean that all up. The SAAB is built like a tank in all areas. Designed to be ultra safe the car needs to be design to take impact with protection to driver and passenger. The car boast some added items that shows its better build quality for instance saabs decision to use a timing chain rather than a belt since belts are cheap and made to fail. Appearance: SAAB is a love it or hate it brand. It excells in its need to stand out and be different and in that sense its one of a kind. Although GM has eventually downgraded them to look more mainstream the earlier saab generations carved its way in the looks department with bold and innovative designs for instance the center mounted ignition. Instead of putting your key into the steering collumn like all other cars SAAB always puts its ignition on the center between the two seats and behind the shifter knob and next to the e break. I didnt know anything about saab until I bought one and I instantly fell it love with its design and factor. SAAB fan for life and very pround to be a part of a very select car manufacture. I have yet to see another 2 door Talladega out there. Cost of ownership: The downfall of the saab is in its non traditional design. For instance the engine is inserted backwards which throws off most mechanics. I have found the car takes pretty average upkeeps but repairs can get expensive because it is lesser known than a Honda or Toyota but if you can do the work yourself the saab is still reasonable. Avoid dealers at all cost as they rip you off for oem parts and instalation. Where the saab excells is Fuel Economy. Its a 4 cyl car built on a light body so it doesnt guzzle fuel. The only time is sucks gas is while driving aggressivly as would any car. When you milk the turbo it will cost you at the pump but I think the perfomance is a good trade for the gas. If you want outstanding fuel economy just let of the gas and don't use the turbo. The car will Do on average about 29 to 30 highway and 24 to 26 City if you abide by the rules. Fun Factor: I couldnt imagine a more fun bargin. Its the driving fun of a Miata with the performance of a Subaru. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED if you can get your hands on one and are willing to become a saab fan. Just take good care of the car and it returns ten foldJul 18, 2008

This is a great car. Mine was purchased for $200 but I had to replace the engine. I ended taking the block from a 2000 2.3L 9-5. I took the N/A block and added a '97 900 Turbo. Everything works well except for a problem with the spark. Despite 2 or 3 dents this car is a beauty. Mine is black, and it just looks like a sleeper. Overall, this is a wonderful car for a true SAAB enthusiast. Jul 09, 2008