The ability to run on E85 makes today’s Nice Price or No Dice Saab a flexible fueler. Let’s see if this high-mileage ethanol imbiber comes with a price that’s not too corny.
In the relationships between journalists and businesses, the embargoing of information is an agreed-upon means for the former to meet deadlines while still allowing the latter to offer surprise and delight to its customers. The 1987 Toyota Supra we looked at last Friday brings to mind an instance when that tacit agreement was broken. Two years before our car hit the streets, and before Toyota had made any announcements about the impending model, a series of pictures of an undisguised version of the unannounced car crossed the desk of an editor at AutoWeek (then a print publication.) The magazine decided to run the images, breaking the embargo against their release and incurring the wrath of Toyota’s marketing team.
The blowback was AutoWeek losing out on some early access information for a time, but the scoop probably proved worth it for the journalistic feather in the cap it provided the publication. We had no such drama with our now well-known Supra. Featuring a fairly fresh coat of paint and a T-top roof, it proved pretty as a picture in the ad. That presentation, along with a $9,000 asking price, combined to earn the big Toyota a 59% Nice Price win in our voting.
Saab story
Toyota also wins when it comes to car production. The Japanese juggernaut is presently the world’s largest car maker, with production totaling over 10 million cars and trucks last year. Saab, on the other hand, is… well, long out of business, the small Swedish manufacturer having shut its doors in 2011. Long before that, though, Saab established a modest but loyal fan base and a general reputation for the fun, safe, and arguably quirky nature of its cars.
Bought by General Motors in 2000 (the company maintained a 50% stake in Saab all the way back in 1989), the company’s cars started to lose some of that quirky nature as it was saddled with developing models from “off-the-rack” platforms from GM’s German division Opel, and global platforms that tended to suffer from a one-size-fits-all approach to design.
The 2010 Saab 9-5 we’re looking at today is one of those GM-era cars. It is imbued with some Saab DNA—the ignition (here a button, not a key) is between the seats, and the car has unique styling that at least feels familial. Other than that and some suspension tuning, though, it’s pretty much the same chassis as under an Opel Insignia or Buick Regal.
How Swede it is
The last 9-5 was also the last Saab to go into production. That run lasted less than a year before a bankrupt GM Old Yeller’d both company and car. In total, less than 12,000 9-5s were built before the lights went off for good.
That makes this a fairly rare car, and the BioPower E85 engine makes it even rarer still. It’s done a remarkable 220,000 miles, showing that the passing of a parent company need not spell doom for the models it produced. It’s got some impressive deets, too: That flexi-fuel engine makes a solid 220 horsepower and 235 lb-ft of torque. Routed through an Aisin six-speed automatic transmission, those ponies spin all four wheels via an all-the-time AWD setup. According to the ad, it’s fully loaded—although the absence of a center stack screen does date the car—and the seller says it “looks great!”
On the exterior, the deep blue paint presents well, belying the car’s age and miles. Those factors are evident in the factory wheels, though, which are a bit beat up. The cabin is in a similar state, with the leather on the driver’s seat and the floor mat below that showing substantial evidence of occupancy. Only the latter has been worn through, though. Everything else appears to be in solid shape, and the styling has held up as well.
Corn-pone?
The Saab comes with a panoramic roof, a clean title, and an unfortunate number of stickers on the boot lid and rear bumper. Those demonstrate an affinity for wire hair terrier dogs, among other things, and would likely need to be removed lest people think the new owner is someone who befouls their ride with bumper stickers. Nobody wants that.
Of course, we must consider the car’s $2,950 asking price before we even think about going all-in on de-stickering it. This is a fairly rare opportunity, and the car does seem to be in decent shape. Plus, while limited in its description, the ad at least doesn’t call out any mechanical malarky that could call a purchase consideration into question.
Where do you stand on this flexi-fuel Saab and that asking price? Does that feel like a steal despite the high miles, the dead brand, and the dog stickers? Or has this Saab’s time come and gone?
You decide!
New York, New York, Craigslist, or go here if the ad disappears.
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