bought a SAAB, knock on wood

[davestlouis]

My darling wife was looking for an interesting car, tried to find a VW New Beetle, got disgusted with the high asking prices, iffy reliability and crappy car lots. I stumbled on a 1996 SAAB 900s convertible, and took a look. Dark green, black fabric top, tan leather, 112xxx miles, 5 speed, normally aspirated 4 cylinder. This was the first model after GM took over, and while structurally there's a lot of Opel, it still has the traditional SAAB 4 cylinder engine, turned transverse, with traditional distributor and wires, soft leather, the seats and headrests are of the traditional SAAB shape, neat car. I didn't pay much, so even if it falls apart, I don't feel bad about it. I took it to a hose-it-down-yourself carwash, and it didn't leak, which beats the dickens out of the 87 BMW convertible that leaks from every crack and crevice. I suspect it'll be like any other European car, I'll chase all sorts of weird little issues, but nothing catastrophic. Wish me luck.