In the late 1930s, the biggest aircraft supplier for the Swedish Air Force in the days of WWII was Svenska Aeroplan Aktiebolaget, or Swedish Airplane Corporation when translated. When WWII came to an end, this little outfit based in the Swedish town of Trollhattan decided to expand their horizons, and explore other types of vehicles. Eventually, they settled on automobiles. As a result, Saab Automotive AB spun itself off from Saab AB, and the rest is history.

Although Saab's earliest cars were a little unorthodox, with their heavy use of two-stroke engines, Saab eventually rose as a left-field choice for those looking for a more unique, characterful and much safer alternative to German luxury cars. Today, one of their most well-known models is the 9-3. Even though it does have some Saab weirdness, it's very approachable, making it a great used car.

Overview Of The 9-3

The Saab 9-3 is the successor to the famed Saab 900. The first generation had a relatively short run, from 1998 to 2002, with the second generation arriving in 2003. The second generation made some great improvements to the formula, and it's the only Saab model that carried on even after Saab went bankrupt in 2012. In other words, three different companies manufactured the 9-3 by the end of its life.

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The second generation 9-3 was overall a bigger, much more substantial vehicle than its predecessor. The styling was unmistakably Saab, with the familiar grille design, some fantastic alloy wheel designs, clear taillights on most models, and it's very difficult to mistake it with something else. Saab offered this generation 9-3 as a sedan, a station wagon and, of course, a convertible. At the time, the 9-3 competed with the likes of the BMW 3 Series, the Audi A4, the Lexus IS, the Mercedes C-Class, the Volvo S60 and, to an extent, the Cadillac CTS.

Saab 9-3 Powertrains And Drivetrains

Saab offered a variety of powertrains on the 9-3 for most global markets, including E85-enabled BioPower, and a couple of diesels sourced from Fiat. However, North America got only two powertrains. The base engine is a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder with 207 hp and 221 lb-ft of torque. The more powerful one is a 2.8-liter turbocharged V6 with 252 hp and 262 lb-ft of torque.

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The latter was available with even more power in the special Turbo X model. Saab made the 9-3 Turbo X to celebrate 30 years of using forced induction. The Turbo X's V6 had 276 hp and 295 lb-ft of torque, and it was the only way to get the 9-3 with AWD (or XWD, as Saab calls it) in North America, at least until the 2010 model year. Otherwise, the 9-3 is FWD, with either a six-speed manual or a five-speed automatic taking care of transmission duties. Saab certainly knew a thing or two about how to make a car handle decently, despite it being FWD, and the 9-3 definitely delivers. It's not a total hoot, but it can put a smile on your face behind the wheel, while being decently comfortable at the same time.

Saab 9-3 Comfort And Quality

Saab's interiors are well known for having some unique touches that separate them from other automobiles. The distinctive green lighting on the buttons and instrument cluster, the ignition tumbler mounted in the center console, and the dubiously useful Night Panel button. All of those items are very much present on the 9-3, in combination with a few General Motors pieces. The facelift received a GM navigation system, basically identical to what you would find in a C6 Corvette. Other features include heated seats, dual zone climate control on the upscale trim levels, as well as cruise controls.

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In terms of quality, the 9-3 is a similar to story to just about every Saab. The interior quality is not bad, but it's not Rolls-Royce levels of plushness either. Reliability should be alright if well-maintained, but there's the caveat that Saab hasn't been around for a decade now, and spare parts may be a little difficult to source. One potential option is to look at European parts catalogs, as some Opel models used the engines found in the 9-3. It's pretty easy to work on, and one of the best aspects is the gas mileage. For the performance it offers, you won't have to pump gas in the 9-3 as much as you might think. The 9-3 sedan and SportCombi seat five passengers, whereas the convertible seats four. The trunk on the sedan boasts 16.3 cubic feet of space, the convertible 12.4 with the top up and 8.3 with the top down, and the wagon has 29.7 cubic feet of cargo space.

Saab 9-3 Prices

Even though Saab enthusiasts swear by the 9-3, it's not everyone's first choice as a cool used car. As a result, prices have stayed very low, unless you count the Turbo X models. Those are pretty hard to find, and they're getting expensive. Otherwise, a later 9-3 with AWD, in good condition, and around 90,000 miles should set you back around $15,000.

That's a decent price for something with a Saab badge, much less a cool compact sedan with an available manual transmission, a good drive, great fuel economy, good reliability, and all the mod cons you need. For now, it'll do until a modern Saab revival happens.