You’ve bought a what?
Goodwin’s gone green
Andrew Frankel looked appalled when he first saw it and photographer Luc Lacey is concerned that the car is so ugly that capturing its image may permanently damage his expensive camera. But I don’t care because I am in love with our new Saab 9-3 convertible. It’s not actually new, it’s a 14-year-old on a 2004 plate. Yes, it has noticeable scuttle shake and, yes, it would have come last in a contemporary group test against German opposition.
Buying this car has given us an instant pay rise. Like many of you, the Goodwin family has been down the leasing route. For the past few years, after a run of new cash-overthe-counter Fiat 500s, we’ve been leasing cars that we couldn’t possible have bought for hard-earned. We’ve got some cracking deals on some very luxurious motors. Cracking deals, but still quite a few hundred quid out of the joint account each month.
But there’s another problem with leasing: it’s not really your car. And that’s a problem for me. I can’t look you lot in the eye if I don’t actually own a car. Test cars don’t count and neither do lease cars. You’ve got to have put your wallet on the block and committed for better or for breakers’ yard.
But back to our Saab. It’s in Caipirinha green. Named after a Brazilian cocktail and the launch colour for this second-generation 9-3. It’s an eccentric colour but was our preferred choice. It had to have a petrol engine because I’m nervous about there being future MOT trouble for older diesels. That and the fact that I don’t like diesels and have only ever owned one car with a compression ignition engine, and that was a Citroën BX estate. A manual ’box was essential too, not least because the thought of a modern automatic transmission going wrong fills me with fear.
I used to always buy privately but now that consumer protection is more robust than it used to be, I prefer going through dealers. A squint on the internet revealed that Simply Saab in Bristol looked to have a fine selection of rag-top Saabs, including one in Caipirinha. Bristol is a bit of a hike so I sent Dan Prosser round to give the car an initial kick of the tyres. It had 126,000 miles on the clock and was up for £2995. Prosser reported back that the car was tidy, and had a couple of paint bubbles, a tiny tear in the plastic bumper and leather upholstery that had clearly been sat
on for 14 years. Yes, he said, worth a look. So I drove down to Bristol and met Simply Saab’s MD Andy Caddick. Turns out that he has a substantial collection of racing motorcycles that includes a few Ducati Motogp bikes. We got a bit sidetracked on Rossi and Roberts but the car turned out to be perfect and my new best friend gave me a sizeable chunk off the car.
A week later and I’m on my way home in my £2300 Saab. The engine is the star element of this car. Light pressure turbo, 175bhp from 2.0 litres. Very little lag but just a hint of delay so that the engine has more character than today’s Portakabin-shaped torque curve power units. Gearbox nice and smooth, no shunt in the driveshafts and only a bit of scuttle shake. The biggest surprise is the fuel consumption. Bristol to Hampton with the roof down (no air-con) and I averaged 43mpg. The 9-3 is not a driver’s car, whatever that means in 2018, but all I have to do is remember how little money it has cost. Barely a PCP deposit.
Importantly, Mrs Goodwin likes it. She paid for it and it’s her transport to work. I’ve already tracked down a local Saab specialist called Chris Mcguinness. I haven’t used him yet but he has an impeccable CV (ex-saab main dealer; lots of letters after his name) and has the sort of telephone manner that inspires huge confidence. He also said that Simply Saab was very reputable and, as I saw when I was down there, is the go-to firm for second-hand spares. The latter fact, according to Caddick, is why it is able to offer a no-quibble three-month warranty. The car only has to last seven months and we are ahead of the game because that’s how much our last lease car cost over the same period. I’m pretty sure the Saab will last. I’ve owned more than 40 cars in my life and most of them have been old crates. I have a feeling when I’m onto a winner and I’m back in my comfort zone with old cars. And if it does self-destruct in a couple of years, we’ll simply get another one.
I can’t look you lot in the eye if I don’t actually own a car. Lease cars don’t count