The search is over. No more rental cars. No more reading the bus schedule. No more blurry eyes from staring at Craigslist, Buggy Bank, Autotrader, and Bring A Trailer. The search is over.
Make the jump to see my new ride.

To those who follow me on Twitter and my blog, I apologize sincerely for all the wild goose chases. During my two month search, I seriously considered a first generation Insight, an X-Type wagon in Palm Springs that had a breathtaking $7,000 of work done in the last two years, a Lincoln LS, an overpriced Jaguar S-Type with a manual transmission, countless Saab wagons, another Volvo V50 T5 with a stick, and sundry Mercedes and BMW wagons. I was a hot mess.
During my search, every Saab experience was negative. A 9-3 SportCombi Aero 6M for sale by a dealer specializing in used Saabs was never ready for sale due to long waits for one part after another. A low mileage 9-3 SportCombi 2.0T for sale in Bakersfield was being sold by a private seller who only emailed me back on every tenth day that was a prime number. One Saab mechanic tried to talk me out of a Saab, another was extremely rude, and a third simply denied my existence. Maybe it was a sign.
Despite the not-so-subtle hints, my search kept returning to Saabs. During a search of Los Angeles Craigslist, I found this white/cream 2008 SportCombi with the 2-liter turbo and five-speed automatic. I preferred the 2.6 liter V6 turbo with the manual transmission, but that combination was very rare and magnitudes more tedious and expensive to maintain and repair.

What really attracted me to this 2.0T was that it had just 43,000 miles, which translates into about 6,000 miles per year. It lived its whole life in Southern California. Two issues bothered me– that it had three owners and that it had no service records. But a thorough pre-purchase inspection by an expert gave me the thumbs up. I flew down to LA with a wad of cash, picked it up, and sped back to the Bay Area.

One of the reasons I felt comfortable with the transaction was because the seller is a fastidiously clean Japanese guy. Other than two tiny dings on the driver’s side rear door, the car is cosmetically flawless inside and out. There is zero wear and there are no scuff marks anywhere.

The 400 mile drive back home on Interstate 5 was a breeze. I thought the little four cylinder was going to be underpowered, but it was more than adequate on the Tejon Pass. I appreciated the turbo gauge and the smaller font for three-digit speeds on the speedometer was quirky.

Other than the fact that the Combi feels and drives like a brand new car, I really like the fact that it is so uncommon. Subaru and Volkswagen make perfectly fine wagons, but I wanted something that was a bit off kilter.

One thing that is off kilter is the passenger’s side rear view mirror. Near the outer edge, the mirror’s convex angle is sharper (is that the right description?), thus avoiding the need to crane my neck to check the blind spot. For the first week or so, it was very disorienting.

Another off kilter feature is this almost useless cupholder. It can’t hold my 55 gallon drum of sweet tea, interferes with the AUX jack port, and I’ve accidentally struck it with the back of my hand more than thrice.

The most off kilter feature is the much discussed center console ignition switch. Its novelty wore off almost immediately. I dare not use the cupholder right behind it for fear of spilling liquid on it. Parts, I will discuss later, are hard to come by. But my biggest gripe is how the location becomes a sty when you incorporate phone cords into the equation.
In addition, that’s a bootless e-brake handle on the left. The fact that it’s bootless makes it a de facto guillotine/paper cutter. Last week, I released the handle and nearly sliced my iPhone jack in two.

Parts availability is the price of admission to the Saab club. First, the car didn’t come with an owner’s manual. I easily found a complete set with leather pouch on eBay. The biggest (and only) problem I am facing now is the left brake light. It’s an LED unit and the controller for it is busted, my new Saab mechanic thinks. A new controller can be had from Sweden for $300. It took my Saab guy two weeks to hunt down a used one here in the States. He’s installing it tomorrow, insh’Allah. If successful, the 9-3 will be perfect.
Parts availability is concerning to the point that I upgraded my car insurance policy this morning to include rental car coverage. I can easily see a minor to moderate collision sidelining this car for six weeks or more.

Hopefully, I get to keep this car for many, many years. My beloved Volvo V50 lasted just nine months when a dumbass in a lifted, matte black Yukon with a bullbar creamed it. I’ve had the SportCombi for about three weeks now and driven it 1,500 miles. In addition to normal errand running and a trip from L.A., I just took it over the Sierras to visit Reno. Note the airplane-themed floor handle.

And speaking of keeping the Combi for a long time, I couldn’t stand the thought of Cooper messing up the pristine leather interior. So it was Amazon Prime I went and I bought this seat cover.

I’m not the guy who parks his car at the far end of the parking lot, but I am terrified of curb rash. This is an example of my parking job. The car is about two zip codes away from the curb.
My only legitimate complaint so far is the driver’s seat’s lack of lateral support. Objectively and subjectively, there are tons of cars that are “better” than this Saab. But for me, this 9-3 is perfect. I am happy.

Images source: Copyright 2015 Hooniverse/Jim Yu