Friday Snippets (well, it’ll be Saturday when you read them)
It’s late here and I have to get up early tomorrow for a long drive.
Consequently, I don’t have time to write a proper passage on the AutoSavant review of the Saab Turbo X.
I can highly recommend it, though. It’s a good, informative read and was written by Kevin Miller - a three-time Saab owner and someone I’ll be meeting tomorrow in the big TS meetup.
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Today was a red-letter day for our vacation. Not only did I pick up my Saab for use during the great TS Pacific Northwest Meetup, I also had my first experience driving a stick with the driver’s seat on the wrong side of the car.
Firstly, the car. A fuller post on how it happened and who assisted will be forthcoming later, but in brief, it’s a 2008 2.0T Saab 9-3 sedan in Titan Gray metallic, with black leather inside. I’ve taken photos of the car, but didn’t bring my card reader with me to Canada, so I can’t get pictures off my camera right now.
Fortunately, someone loaded a picture of a very similar car on Flickr today. This is a BioPower model, so it’s not the same, but it’s pretty similar.
I was following my brother-in-law back from the dealership and it was quite a hairy exercise. DJ was rather frustrated by the slow Vancouver traffic and I was panicking trying to keep him in sight. My southern hemisphere bearings are so mixed up and there’s no way I could have found my way home if I’d lost sight of him. Thankfully we both made it back.
Why does Vancouver’s road system have to be so complex? (I know, it’s the river)
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On to my first experience driving a manual left-hand-drive car…..
In case you don’t know, I’m from Australia where we drive on the right side of the car (literally and figuratively) and the left side of the road.
Today I was surprised by the news that my brother-in-law recently bought an old Mazda Miata (MX-5 to some of you), which he took me for a ride in this afternoon. Half-way through, he pulled over and offered me the wheel. What could I say? First drive of a Miata and first time shifting gears with my right hand.
It’s an interesting experience and one I’d recommend to all comers if you get the opportunity. It’s a challenge to keep your car in the right place and get your hand in the right place. Everything’s backwards but it all worked out in the end. I didn’t miss a gearchange and got back home without breaking the law.
The Miata’s a lot of fun, too. I’d like an extra 30hp in it, but it’s got great balance, a fun exhaust note and there’s very little to distract you from the joy of driving it. I can see why they’re so popular.
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On to Saab stuff, eh?
Saab have released a new microsite where you can take the Turbo Gene Test and see which Saab is the right one for you.
There’s six questions for you to answer and it’s a fun exercise, tastefully set out, as Saab microsites usually are.
I was not surprised to see the following was selected as the ideal car to match my profile. I’ve loved the SportCombi since the first day I saw it.
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I don’t normally do this, but for Richo I’ll make an exception.
If there’s any Aussies out there looking to upgrade their Saab, they will rarely find a better opportunity than this.
Richo’s Viggen is up for sale.
The big drawcard on this car is that it’s got a brand new engine that’s done just 3,000km since being installed a few months ago. The car’s got an Abbott steering rack clamp and brace, BSR tune, custom made anti-roll bar at the rear, air filter kit, Bluetooth, amongst other things. Richo hates squeaks and rattles so it’s whisper quiet as well.
I drove the car just over 2 weeks ago in Sydney and I can tell you it’s as solid as a rock.
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sad……
Good work on the 9-3, Swade. Kudos to Saab Canada. Can’t wait to see it in …….. 8H54M ….. OMG I’d better go to bed !!!
I was in Richo’s Vig last night myself Swade, we had a meet up at the BBC.
Yep, no rattles!
I rather don’t state what I want to state as he will come back and counter back any of my comments and even dare to say that it is harrasment !!!! More to come soon as he’s had a moment of madness.
Enjoy the 2.0 Swade.
That was a fun test. I get a 9-3 Sportcombi Aero TTiD, guess I have to move to Sweden (or wait forever in the USA). Plus, in my profile, I found out that I’m single! I didn’t know!
Hey!
According to the test, I’ve just bought the wrong car. The test tells me that a 9-3 SS TTiD is the choise, but my choise (before this test obviosly) was a the 9-3 SC TTiD.
Who is wrong? Me or the test?
Swade, our road system hasnt changed much in nearly 40years and dont even get me started on all the potholes I have to dodge in a day. Anyhow am leaving for work now so I hope all of you guys have a blast today in Washington. Wish I could have gone.
My last time driving in Vancouver was in 2002. I think that their traffic will flow better once they legalize “left on green.”
Swade,
Just wait till you get back home. You’ll be turning on the wipers to signal for turns! That’s what I was doing after spending two weeks driving around New Zealand.
-Brian
Kool microsite! I «chose» the SC 9-3 aero TTiD, which I would highly consider if it was available in Canada. In reality, if I had to part with our 01 9-5, I would look for a used SC 9-5 aero with low mileage.
Nope. Only literally.
So, I’ve been using Google Chrome for a week, and I noticed that when I mouse over a TS story on my iGoogle page, I get a mouseover tooltip that is the height of my computer screen…it has the whole story in it. It’s crazy.
Test says 9-3 Aero TTiD…which is unavailable where I live. I’d rather have a 2.0 than an Aero, but I’d rather have a TTiD than a 2.0, so I guess it’s accurate.
Uncanny. For me the test picked the 9-3 Sport Sedan Aero BioPower.
In March I purchased the 9-3 SportCombi Vector BioPower (Hertz’ed to 190hp/205hp). I actually wanted the sedan, but the dealer talked me into the combi (by “accidentally” giving me a combi for the price of a sedan).
I feel that my car is a good match for me, but I would not mind more power under the hood. My claim to fame is that I managed to push my car to 245 kph, but the car was very reluctant whenever I pushed beyond 215 kph. (this was on the autobahn — I do not break the law …much)
But kudos to the test. They nailed me at the first go. When the XWD BioPower arrives, I might be tempted to upgrade. In the meantime… Could someone explain to me why the TurboX can’t run on E85? I thought the changes required for a BioPower conversion are minimal?