So the question is, why buy a Saab? Outside of its excellent gas mileage on premium fuel and its 14.8 cubic feet of trunk and numerous storage areas, powerful safety features, what is there to recommend this Swedish cutie. In a word, comfort. The chassis, which suffers a bit of flex over medium sized bumps, is relaxed and comforting. The car is quiet, handles well, and even with the base 175 horsepower engine, provides spunky performance. You might call that damned by faint praise, but the family came back from a Beach Boys concert one evening and made a 50-mile journey in 38 minutes without once noticing we were tempting the speed limit. That is an achievement especially with three experienced backseat drivers in attendance.
Mom's view: There is a lot to recommend the 9-3. The five-speed automatic transmission was excellent and the engine barely exhibited any turbo lag as I felt immediately in love with this sexy gray machine. The seats were excellent and the sound system worked very well once I figured out how to manipulate all the buttons. I liked the driver's computer information center and felt comfortable at all times. The glove compartment is large and its refrigerated, but the opening button is nearly hidden. I hated the emergency brake lever's location. It looks like a grab handle next to the center-mounted ignition, but when you release the handle your thumb or finger gets caught. It hurts.
A highlight for The Car Family was the cupholder that pops out of the dash. Very clever, but it looks too fragile for our tastes. We also noted that the passenger seat does not get the same power adjustments as the driver's and the heated seats do not offer multiple settings. Reminds us of the Lexus RX models that only had one switch for both front seats. Now that was stupid of Lexus and I'm sure created many an argument.
The gauges were easy to read, but the climate and radio controls require time to adjust too. But nothing requires more patience than the two center-mounted display screens on top of the dash. The Saab Information Center LCD screen and selection controls contain the time, miles per gallon, temperature, miles to empty, and even a clock alarm. You can also control other options such as the type of alarm, rear seat lock check, ventilation, and more. The problem is that just below it is another screen that harbors the stereo information. Thus you need to spend time familiarizing yourself with this set-up or you have to take your eyes off the road for much too long a time.