2006 Saab 9-3 consumer reviews

At first glance, it is apparent that this car is different from many others on the road. While the company has a bad rep due to it's going out of business, SAAB cars are designed to be a joy for the driver. Anyone that I have let drive my car agrees with me that it is fun, sleek, and comfortable. Purchased used and runs like any beamer you can find today, but at a much lower price and a much cooler design.

Great looking car with a great basic design. The AERO is a step below the sports car the way it is electric shifted, though plenty of quick power and sure handling. Personally don't need things done for me such as the auto delay wipers, auto climate, auto dimmer rear view mirror... that doesn't dim well, I prefer my settings of things. Looking forward to the SAAB electric car.

This vehicle has got me from place to place without a problem and starts up every time without a problem. It's a great car and still has more potential in it.

Bought the car new May 2006 with 6 miles on the odometer. Today, after 9 years and 10 months just passed 141,000. The car was before its time. They had turbos well before they became popular with the mainstream manufacturers these last 5 years. They drive on regular and still can go from 0 to 60 mph in about 8.5 seconds (7.9 seconds if I put premium in). Although some complain about the GM parts bin I actually like it because it introduced reliability to Saabs. Over the last nearly 10 years I replaced the alternator at 70,000 as the battery went dead every three years (fixed the problem) and recently replaced the heat/ac blower motor and power steering pump. Total cost of all three repairs over the life of the car - just under $1000. Otherwise just regular maintenance and taking care of it. The handling for a front wheel drive car is fantastic, and I can keep up with BMWs in the curves. Imagine the owner's shock when a mundane Saab keeps up with them. It is fun to drive. The ride is a little harder than most other sedans because ride takes a backseat to handling, but it does not disturb my family and my kids still fall asleep at night in the back seat. Gas mileage has been great as well. On a recent 500 mile round trip between CT and Boston, MA, I averaged 36 mpg cruising on the highway between 70 and 60 mph. In CT traffic I tend to get as low as 24 mpg and usually average 27-28 mpg. I keep thinking I will need to get a new car but everyone tells me if I keep taking care of it the GM version of this car does last a very long time - at least 200,000. Probably will have to buy a new car in a few years but when I do, I can only hope it is as economical, fun to drive, and reliable as this car has been.

I have only owned this car for 1 1/2 weeks and so far I love it. I bought it used and it was having a stereo issue but my husband and I repaired it in 10 min with a you tube video. It has a lot of speed, and is so fun to drive

I recently traded mine in, I had it for more than 8 years and put 173K miles on it. I changed the battery at four years, had a cranking sensor problem at 6 years. Other than that, just changed fluids and new tires when needed. Only complaint about the car is the suspension wasn't particularly good..crunchy, noisy, bumpy. Other than that....flawless. As far as I know, the dealer I traded in to sold the car in a day or so.

I've had my 2006 saab 2.0t for almost a year. All I have needed to do is change the oil, and do normal maintmence. It runs great, has good power, and does great in all weather. It does great in the snow, it never left me stuck in this terrible michigan winter. The only con of this car is the rattles, if you have the radio on the door rattles and that bugs me. Other than that great car and I would really recommend it!

Saab is out of business - sort of. They withdrew from the US market, but still make the 9-3 car under new ownership for Sweden and China. Thjis means parts are avaialble for the foreseeable future for this model only. In any case, we bought ours new in 2006 and have never regreted it. Nothing went wrong for 70,000 miles, just using the Oil Life Management System and keeping the car running with oil changes about every 10,000 miles. At 70,000 the alternator needed replacing. That solved the dead battery every two years issue - took two batteries our four years to solve). At 117,000 miles we need to replace the brushes and the shocks in the suspension, plus one spring broke. Total cost, $1300. Suspensions in the northeast go at about this mileage, my previous Hondas and Toyota needed the same at this point. At 100,000 I needed a headlight, and needed the second headlight at 120,000. Again, normal wear an tear. At 120,000 also needed a new vaccum pump for $300. Nothing major, just minor annoyances. The car has great handling and can keep up with the 3 series from BMW if you push it. Ride is not as nice as the BMW but it comes close enough. Back seat room is limited, and the standard 2.0 L turbo engine with 210 horsepower gets the car going in a hurry with a 0-60 time of about 7.8 seconds with the automatic transmission. Better yet, the gas mileage is very good with 24 average in city, 32 mpg on the highway (although have done as good as 36 mpg a few times). The seats are comfortable in the front and the fit and finish is not bad. The suspension rattles a lot when it wears, so for about from 70,000 to 117,000 it rattled - but now that it is new, all ther rattles are gond again. So a nice, reliable sports car that is fun to drive and good for long trips as well. What is there not to like?

The best car I ever had. 75,000 miles and still running like new. The space in the back is not spacious enough for a tall person. Otherwise, a great car.

I love my 2006 SAAB 93 it had a nice sporty drive feel and is extremly comfortable for trips. The trunk has a tone of storage and the passenger room is on the better side of average. I also love the body style. The interior is a nice grey leather and the materials are fantastic and feel high quality. I docked 2 points off on the interior however due to the useless phone buttons and poor dash design that has an overwelming number of buttons. I took 1 point off value since if you bought it new the value dropped really fast once you drove it off the lot. I also took a point from performance just due to the fact that the engine is capable of more power if tuned, although its fine the way it is. Lastly I took points off for reliability since around 60k miles I had both my front coil springs sheer, don't know how. I also had one window regulator fail.