My First Saab - Born December 11th, 1990 - A 1991 Saab 900 3-door 5 speed in Citron Beige with Grey Cloth Interior
There are not many things I thank GM for, but my Dad was an all-american car guy and a WWII vet. In 1990, while working for the family business and going to night school in Philadelphia, I was toggling between two high mileage battle wagons, a brownish 1983 Buick Regal Wagon (you remember that GM phase where they didn’t have the back door windows open to save fuel (probably by reducing the window motor weight)) and a bigger (with a better radio) white 1981 Mercury Colony Park Wagon (with blue interior - why blue?) - both with wood paneling. One would run well for a week or two, then I’d drive the other one. The Buick was doing something funky with the transmission, the “Merc” would typically stall out when taking turns fast - I can still remember the rush…
Because GM had purchased 40% or so of Saab, my Dad was willing to give the Saab a look. I placed the remaining hub caps on the driver’s sides of each car and my Dad and I drove both wagons to Cherry Hill Saab. The Saab dealer was on the “Racetrack Circle” in New Jersey (across the street from a Horse Track, but also on a circle (rotary) that was one of the most aggressive in South Jersey. It was where Route 38 intersects with Route 70 - the kind of circle where the Merc might stall come to think of it…
Cars considered:
- Oldsmobile Achieva - I newly offered GM econobox that was being advertised on TV
- Volvo 240 Wagon (the stripped down no power windows, front door speakers only) - for some reason Volvo was OK because of safety
- Stretching budget - maybe a used Buick LeSabre 2-door (which actually wasn’t bad looking outside, but still had the GM “Play School” radio cassette and interior)
- And obviously, Saab 900 Base 2-Door Hatch - cloth interior, 5 speed manual - which had a great lease special at the time
My friends at college were all driving euro cars. They were from India, Turkey, Germany and all had way cooler cars (Porsche 944’s, Alfa Romeo Milano, 300Z, Mitsu Starion and even a, newly back in America, Audi 90) in their stables. One thing was sure, ‘you have to get a manual’.
For some reason my Dad listened to me. For the cost of repairing the Regal and the Merc every few weeks, we could lease a brand new Saab ( I think it was about $308/mo). It was there in the showroom - I can remember the smell. Timelessly painted in Citron Beige (a light goldish color). The hatch was a perfect alternative to the wagon for business deliveries. The removable radio looked like a new i-Mac compared to the interior of the other cars we were considering, plus I could remove it when I parked in West Philadelphia for classes. My life was complete, I couldn’t imagine ever needing anything else.
Now it's time for me to embarrass myself. One thing about growing up with a fleet of american battle wagons, you never get the opportunity to learn how to drive stick. My Dad signed the papers and had to rush off to a meeting. Remember the “Race Track Circle”? They got the car out of the showroom and I attempted to drive in the parking lot, but guess what, I wasn’t able to get it off the lot. I was lucky, but not stupid. I was not about to crash this brand new car with 11 miles on it, 50 feet from the dealership on the racetrack circle of death. I got out of the Saab and with my tail between my legs, got the salesman to let me follow him in his automatic 9000 back to my house.
That car sat out front for about a week. I washed it every two days - from top to bottom. At night, after dinner, my Mom would take me out and teach me how to drive a stick. I drove her, more modern, 1988 Colony Park Wagon (with the 5.0 in it) and eventually I got good enough to drive the Saab. I could have skipped this part of the story, but what the heck, it happened.
I could keep going on, but that car changed my life. Remembering this part to write it up has been a ton of fun. I drove so much that my mileage was way over. I think I had 92,000 miles before the lease was over. We were buying this baby, but it never let us down and we kept it in the family until the mid-2000’s. I think I sold and bought it back between brothers and brothers-in-law at least five times. At some point, I did have to stop washing it every two days though…
Happy Holidays! Enjoy your Saab,
Dan
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