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Commuter Car Advice

Here it is. The Swedish Express 2.0. Pure driver. Nothing fancy but you asked.
We'll see if I can squeeze another 200K miles out of it.

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I test drove all 3 major American manufacturers eco friendly cars (Focus, Cruze and the Dart) and bought a totalled Cruze. To me there was no comparison, the other 2 drove like eco cars where the Cruze drove like a midsize and after having it over a year I really like it for daily commuting. Of course I will not buy anything but American so I don't know about the rest of them???
 
****, we have 7 cars in the current fleet and the only one built in the US other than my Runner is a Toyota. There is no such thing as a "foreign" car these days.
Only the econimics.
 
Thanks, yea that pretty much confirms my research. Plus the 535 I was looking at was a pre March 2008 which were particularly prone to these issues. I searched the VIN with a dealer and they said all the warranty work for these issues had been performed on this car but still, too high dollar of a risk to try and push to 300K miles. Twin turbos, too many moving parts that are high $$ to fix.

However the search is over. I bought a 2009 Saab on Friday. 80K miles, one owner, full service records. This guy took it to the dealership religiously every 6000 miles for a check up. The car is like new save for a little wear on the driver seat. Turbo charged 2.0-4 banger. I didn't think a 4 cylinder was capable of producing 210 HP. This thing runs and drives unbelievably. Should be a good highway cruiser and perfect tool for the job. We'll see if it's up to the test to be pushed that far.

I know it's a dead make but so is my Plymouth. Parts are plentiful and cheap. Let's put it this way, BMW 5 series twin turbo, $1,900 for one replacement turbo. Saab 9-3, $600 for a replacement turbo in which it only has one.

Wish me luck.
I read the whole thread & was thinking Saab the whole time. A Friend of mine went Saab religious back in the 80's with the 900's & has been dyed dead red Saab-ite ever since.....thing that really impressed me were the brakes....outstanding imo.
My thought is anything i buy new(never have) would be American, in hopes that most of the money would remain in American economy. Used purchase i go foreign...Saab, Volvo, Subaru, Lexus/Toy among my first choices....as daily drivers.
I can comfortably say the older gen Lexus is fairly bullet proof., at least the 4.0 ltr V8. I chose the lexi as the engine for my chopped bug, i bought two of them, one run & leak checked, the other an overheating victim. Both motors were 97, out of LS 400's, each w/ 125K miles.
The broke motor we tore down. It had been driven til it stopped. Intake cam belts were literally burnt off, so all the intake valves bent, the motor oil was baked golden. Head gaskets were completely blown, every cylinder full of water. Motor was torn down within a month of the incident, so rust was not an issue. Bearing surfaces were Pristine! All barrels were pristine with no deck ridging what so ever. Look at the barrel focused in pic & You can see the factory hone lines!! Beyond decking block & heads & replacing the intakes, this motor could be put back together with original parts, although Paul will replace all bearings & valves. No scoring of cyl walls.....they dont even need honing. With six bolt mains, my feeling is that these are very bulletproof engines, especially for being all aluminum. Great products, but toyota corporate are ********, offering no support, lip service to the DIY user. (Side note: Alfa Romeo will bend over backwards to help the DIY. They were very cordial to me, with prompt response to my inquiries about the old two liter 4 cam aluminum V8.)
I think Saab was a Good choice Runner. Sorry Mopes, i think the New Charger is downright ugly, & the fit & finish leave a ton to be desired.

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****, we have 7 cars in the current fleet and the only one built in the US other than my Runner is a Toyota. There is no such thing as a "foreign" car these days.
5 vehicles in the drive/ carage. 4 are dodge, work van is a ford
 
Thanks for all the input boys. I'll do the maiden voyage of 150 miles tomorrow morning. Looking forward to it. Damn smooth ride.

There are three things I don't like about this car so far.
1. It's black.
2. Too many GM logos scattered about under the hood. (Foreign car??)
3. It's black.

A couple more pics after a day under the buffer.

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Thanks for all the input boys. I'll do the maiden voyage of 150 miles tomorrow morning. Looking forward to it. Damn smooth ride.

There are three things I don't like about this car so far.
1. It's black.
2. Too many GM logos scattered about under the hood. (Foreign car??)
3. It's black.

A couple more pics after a day under the buffer.

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Black is a bitch to keep clean, & its hot, but still my favorite color for shorts. A set of nice laced wheels would set that short off.
 
Black is a bitch to keep clean, & its hot, but still my favorite color for shorts. A set of nice laced wheels would set that short off.
I was thinking mat-black 5 or 6 spokes. Possibly even stepping up to 17s. However I need to discipline myself to put my bird back together. Don't need to waste money on **** for the commuter. Was a blast on the commute today though. It has a max speed setting that beeps at you when you hit that speed. I set it to 100 mph. It only chirped at me 3 times.
 
I was thinking mat-black 5 or 6 spokes. Possibly even stepping up to 17s. However I need to discipline myself to put my bird back together. Don't need to waste money on **** for the commuter. Was a blast on the commute today though. It has a max speed setting that beeps at you when you hit that speed. I set it to 100 mph. It only chirped at me 3 times.


only 3?? your full of s*** too :poke:
 
I was thinking mat-black 5 or 6 spokes. Possibly even stepping up to 17s. However I need to discipline myself to put my bird back together. Don't need to waste money on **** for the commuter. Was a blast on the commute today though. It has a max speed setting that beeps at you when you hit that speed. I set it to 100 mph. It only chirped at me 3 times.
How do You like the brakes?
 
Turned my "Charger" commuter car into something different.
As you may know, I have issues with calling a 4 door with sedan window frames a Charger.
It fits like a Dart. It hasn't got the room of a B body, not be inside or in the trunk.
I switched Sept. 1st from the 66 Belvedere II as a daily driver for 2 months straight into this 2013.
It's not a B body to me, it's halfway between A and B.
I had decided it was a Dart, and was gonna badge it that way, but by an incredible coincidence I acquired actual Chrysler lettering.
My children declared I am a time lord years ago, and maybe I am.
This is my commuter car now.
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Don't they build these at the Brampton plant in Ontario? Furthermore, just where is FCA Global headquarters based out of?
I am happy to know where it was built, just like my Windsor Dart and my St. Louis Belvedere. I think of FCA as Fiat-Chrysler-Allis, because of my farmland-steelmill roots.
 
I believe they are 11.9".
Pretty big rotor for that size car, are they single piston calipers or multi piston? The brakes on the old 900 S turb were faultless...nothing lasts i guess.
 
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