Used Saab 9-3 cars for sale

It’s intended to convey the 9-3 estate’s essential message, and the car certainly has the looks to live up to the promise. However, the drive is not nearly as appealing as the Sport Wagon’s styling. It suffers from the same fidgety ride and below-par handling as the saloon, and, while its most powerful engine should be a joy to drive, the chassis can’t handle the power. Hopefully, Saab will find a worthy home for the turbocharged 2.8 V6 petrol. It works reasonably well as an estate, and the cargo bay of the 9-3 has a low load sill, wide load bed and decent space. The rear seats fold almost completely flat and are easy to operate, too, but there are plenty of more spacious estates for less money.

Running Costs
Go for the 1.9 150bhp turbodiesel and you can expect fuel economy of 47.9mpg. The less powerful diesel is even more frugal, but it trades performance for this economy. The 2.8 V6 Turbo guzzles too much fuel for our liking, but the other turbo petrols are easy on fuel. Running a Saab 9-3 Sport Wagon is not likely to hurt your bank balance unless you opt for the 2.8 Turbo Aero model, as its insurance and service costs undercut those of rivals from Audi, BMW and Mercedes. You could save even more cash by using one of the dedicated Saab specialists for servicing, although Saab’s franchised dealers are notably cheaper than its German counterparts. According to a leading warranty company, Saabs are also cheaper to repair than the 9-3’s rivals, so a parking bump or scrape will set you back less cash too.

Convertible
Saab has been selling four-seater convertibles for over 20 years, and the 9-3 is better to drive than the older models, with its sharp steering and plenty of feedback. The ride is comfortable and, with little body roll through bends, the 9-3 is a more than capable car, if not as sharp to drive as the class-leading BMW 3 Series convertible. That's especially the case with the most powerful engines, which can expose the limits of the car’s traction. Inside, too, the focus is on comfort, and the wide range of seating and steering wheel adjustment means anyone should be able to get comfortable. The cabin is a pleasant place to be and, generally, the build quality is good. Even space in the rear is acceptable, and the luggage space is reasonable. With the roof up, you'll notice wind noise over 50mph, but it’s not excessive. And, even when you drop the top, you should be well isolated from any buffeting.

Running Costs
Not only does going for the less powerful petrol versions make sense from a driving point of view, but you’ll also save money on the running costs. The 1.8-litre gives about 32mpg on average, compared with 25mpg for the V6. The diesel returns 44mpg and opting for an automatic with any engine reduces economy by only 2mpg. The 1.8 and diesel have an insurance grouping of 13, so premiums should be reasonable, but that climbs to group 18 for the V6. With service intervals every 18,000 miles, garage bills should be manageable, but you can still save by visiting one of the many independent specialists. The 9-3 shares some components with other members of the General Motors family – the Vauxhall Vectra, for example - so parts needn’t cost the earth.

Saloon
Where it’s good, it’s very good. It has extremely comfortable seats, a sound driving position with a wide range of adjustment, a no-nonsense layout for the controls and the clearest instruments you’re likely to find. In the front, there's good headroom and adequate legroom. There’s decent space in the back, too, although shoulders will rub with three rear passengers. The boot is large, and you can fold down the split back seat for extra space. There are some good engines in a largely turbocharged line-up. Most are quiet on a cruise, and the 9-3 does a reasonable job of shutting out unwanted noise from outside. The trouble is, there's bad news as well. The 9-3 is based on the Vectra platform, but you’d never tell from its soggy handling and the way it thumps over bumps. The steering, too, is about as communicative as a corpse. If you’re after finesse, fun or flair, this is not your car.

Running Costs
A used 9-3 will be cheaper to buy than an equivalent Audi, BMW and Mercedes. Servicing costs should be very similar to those for a BMW 3 Series and cheaper than for a Mercedes C-Class, although you’d find an Audi A4 even easier on the pocket. Still, you can save yourself about one-third on the labour bill by going outside the Saab franchised dealer network and using a good independent garage instead. Steer clear of the 2.8T turbo, and you should get more than 30mpg in normal driving. In fact, most of the petrols are good for mid-30s, and you can bump that up to low-40s for the 150bhp 1.9 TiD, and potentially more than 50mpg for the 120bhp version. Insurance, too, is reasonable - group 10 for the 1.8 petrol, 11 for the diesels and topping out at group 17 for the 2.8T.