Hi Scotty!
Have you ever layed your hands on a Saab?
What is your opinion about this Swedish car they don't make anymore?
"Ask the man who owns one" - as I've mentioned in other threads I've been driving Saabs for around 40 years now. I've found them to be quite reliable and long-lasting as long as you keep up with maintenance. (Saabs will not tolerate neglect like a Toyota Corolla will.) I've run them up to multiple hundreds of thousands of miles.
The 9-5 suffers in comparison with earlier Saabs in that it is a GM product. It is based on an Opel/Vauxhall platform and a lot of GM cost-cutting went into them, particularly after the 2005 model year.
The 2.3 turbo engine in the 9-5 compared to the previous 9000 was pretty severely "value engineered" to reduce cost. (Don't even think of buying a six-cylinder model!) Additionally, the 9-5 prior to 2004 had a PCV system that could not cope with blowby from the low-tension piston rings that were used. Sludging was a big problem if the oil change regimen was not religiously adhered to. Any that survive at this point would have had the problem taken care of, in many cases by engine replacement. PCV upgrade kits are available. (The earlier 2.3 engines used in the 9000 were almost ridiculously overbuilt in comparison.)
One plus for the 9-5 is that Aisin-Warner (Toyota) automatic transmissions were used, 4-speed in the first couple of model years, then 5-speed. Transmissions were a weak point in earlier models, particularly the original 900.
If you don't do your own maintenance and repairs you will need access to a mechanic familiar with these cars. To work on a 9-5 and deal with the electronic keys, radio "married" to the car, etc., a dealer-level scan tool is required. This would be the GM Tech2 with a Saab software card. Saab mechanics will have this. You can get a China-made Tech2 clone for a few hundred dollars to service the car yourself if desired. The Tech2, though capable, is clutzy early 1990s technology that is not like the fancy Scan tools that Scotty uses in his videos. There's lots of information out there on using this device since GM utilized them for so long and on so many vehicles.
The parts situation is not as dire as some believe because Saab Parts was a separate company that was not included in the Saab bankruptcy. The company is now named "Orio" and also maintains a network of service centers, mostly former Saab dealers. Many OEM parts are still available and enough of those cars were sold (1999-2009) that there are aftermarket parts as well. (Not as plentiful as for a Toyota of course, but they are out there.) Most common wear items (alternators, fuel pumps, water pumps, brake pads, rotors, etc.) are not particularly expensive compared to other vehicles.
Probably the main thing to consider at this point is that all Saabs are old cars. The newest GM-built models were 2009, a dozen years ago, and most are older than that (15-20 years old or more).
Don't even think about buying a 2nd-generation 2010-2011 9-5. Those were made after the company was sold off to a small underfunded Dutch company, Spyker. Parts and service for those are a very difficult and expensive proposition since so few were sold. Due to their limited numbers aftermarket parts for them are essentially nonexistent. You probably will never run into a 9-4X SUV since less than 500 were made, but the parts and service issue goes double for those.
Since Saabs have always been a niche vehicle and mainstream mechanics usually have had little contact with them your best source for information and support would be Saab-specific enthusiast sites, such as:
https://www.saabnet.com/tsn/bb/general/
Nothing like speaking from deep and long experience.
Not particularly good cars and parts are pricey and hard to find.
I wouldn't buy one myself just because when it breaks, and it will, it's going to cost more than the thing is worth to repair.
Scotty on Saabs:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQ2wonlCz5c
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LUb3eOYVsFc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_VVH-PD2yjk&t=16s
