Volvo 850 vs. Saab 9000

[Robert]

I have been an owner of Saab 9000 for a year now, and I got nothing but many great things to say. Now, I am looking for another car for my wife. We are thinking of Volvo 850 & another Saab 9000. 850's interior seems much more plush and roomy..well a side from all that cosmetic stuffs, I am mainly concern with Saftey and Reliability. Any input comparing those two models is greatly appreciated.

[kelvin6]

This maybe biased, because this is a VOLVO fourm, but I believe that a Volvo 850 is safer than the Saab 9000. For example, the 1995 Volvo 850 pioneered the Side Impact Air Bags, which was the first in America. Lesser known safety features include the SIPS side impact protect system. The car is designed to divert forces of a side crash to the center of the car (away from the sides), thus reducing the chance of serious injury to the passengers. There many other safety features, but to keep it short, the 850 is the king of safety at the time it was produced.

Saabs nowadays are just as safe as Volvos. So if you were interested in a newer purchase, then either one is good.

Now on to reliabilty. I really don't know about Saab's reliability, but I describe a few problems that are common.

AC Evaporator tends to corrode or leak, because it doesn't dry off effectively. This can be solved (if the problem isn't present yet), by keeping the fan on for 5-10 minutes after AC has shut off (that means don't turn off the car with the AC on, stop the AC before shutting off).

PNP switch or neutral safety switch (electrical) on the transmission. This one is a simple electrical problem that can be easily fixed, only if the problem is diagnosed correctly.

Door hinge snaps (you can still open and close the door, though), requires re- welding. Solution, don't lean on the door while its open...

Fuel pump relay - Seems to go bad w/ age, mechanics don't ever seem to diagnose this one correctly (if there any problems, please post them on this fourm and we will try to help you as best we can). Solution is a just to replace (easily done yourself).

There are some other minor problems, but you maintain the car properly, it can last very long and be quite reliable. My 850 is at 168,000 miles and it doesn't even feel that old, handles as nice and performs as good/better than cars less than half its age!

Being a college student and all, this car has been very reliable to me, saved me quite a bit of money over my previous car (Mazda 626) in maintance, because nothing has broke down yet! Plus if you get the turbo models, you would probably want to drive the Volvo instead of the Saab! None the less if its for the wife, she should love it.

BTW: When I searching for another car a while back, I did consider a Saab 9000, but picked the Volvo 850, because of the price tag and what it had to offer. I hope you pick well !