Aero 1.9 TTiD (180ps) 5dr Estate

Swift, comfortable, excellent value

Bought this to replace my rather tatty '04 9-5 Aero HOT. I do about 20,000 mile a year, so the change from 34 to 48mpg was welcome. The twin-turbo engine, while not the quietest thing at idle, is flexible and powerful - while I occasionally miss the madness of the 250bhp HOT I certainly don't feel short changed!
Seat comfort is excellent and compensates for the understandable firm ride which is the downside of 18in wheels and Aero suspension. The boot is a good size.
Reliability. It has never let me down but the engine management warning light has been on a couple of times. First was an overactive sensor, the second a broken sensor. Other than that it's been fine and well looked after by my local specialist - Smith's Saab in Sheffield (0114 244 3440). There are a couple of rattles and I'd say that some of the parts quality isn't up to the standards of the old 9-5.
Before I bought this car I looked at the Honda Accord, VW Passat, Merc C, Lexus IS, Citroen C5 but none offered the combination of performance, kit and space of this car.
Finally - it looks great, especially of the rare days when it's clean.
A friend who accompanied me on a 300 mile round trip to Surrey was sufficiently impressed that he bought an '07 Vector Sport TiD - he's very pleased with it.

UPDATE August 2014: A bit of a mystery has developed. The car is losing coolant, resulting in a need to top it up a couple of times a week. No visible leaks or stains on the driveway and my specialist is baffled. I'll keep you posted with this. While it was on the ramp yesterday they noticed that the flexible bit of the front pipe was worn. While in no immediate danger of falling off, wear in this area can send false readings to the engine management and emissions control systems so I had it replaced. The car does seem a wee bit smoother today.

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