Well, I test drove the 9-5 today, as well as a 2006 BMW 330i. I'm posting this sort of as a way to record my own thoughts, but please comment if you want!
The 9-5 drove a lot like my OG 9-3. Does the 9-5 have an independent rear suspension??? I don't know. I had only the chance to take it on smooth roads, so it felt pretty cush. The 9-5 engine was kinda 'growly', even with the stock exhaust. My car with the saabsport exh. is much louder, but the 9-5 has some sort of growl. I noticed not so much engine 'harshness' as I think some have attributed to it. I thought is was pretty smooth, at least in compro to my 9-3.
The 9-5 shifter seemed to be more vague than my 9-3's. Could that be due to the poly trans mount in my 9-3? Possibly. It didn't really feel great though. The clutch pedal was the biggest surprise. It offered
so little resistance, as compared to the 9-3. It made my pedal feel kinda like a rock when I got back in it. The 9-5 clutch engaged higher too, which I don't really care for. My ideal clutch would have about 6 inches of travel and that's it....
The sport seats in the 9-5 were great. I don't think it had the sport package though, which is preferable for me....IDK, do sport seats mean the car has the sport package??? The only package listed under options was the 'visibility' package.
It didn't seem to have much grunt in 1st gear. What else....Acceleration was good, but is much better in 2nd and 3rd in my tuned 9-3. Of course the 9-5 offers much less torque steer.
The 9-5 has been on the lot for a while. The price has been dropped to 15,800. This is a very attractive price for a car with 32000 miles.
Later in the day I took out a 2006 330i, with sport package, luxo package, all kinds of crap. Xenons. Adjustable side bolsters in the seats. Full leather (chocolate brown...awesome!) This car had all the goodies, made the 9-5 look pretty plain by comparison.
The drive. Immediately I noted a really mechanical feel. The steering wheel offered significant heft, and was a nice small size. The shifter, though notchy, offers little resistance getting into gear. The clutch offers a somewhat long throw. More effort was required with the clutch pedal as compared to the 9-5, more on par with the viggen unit in my 9-3. Shifts were had to engage smoothly, in low gears. Perhaps I needs more training with this beefy transmission.
The car offers a feel of heft and security. Kinda makes my 9-3 feel like a playskool car by comparison.
Engine of the 330 revs nicely. Enough power but not overwhelming. The turbo kick in my 9-3 would be missed.
The biggest feature of the car is clearly the handling. Just no lean in this car. Seems to hold it's line pretty tenaciously in sweeping bends. It does transmit a lot to the passenger cabin with 18 inchers on stiff run-flat tires. Speaking of which, a winter tire/wheel set would be practically requisite with this car, which would be pricy considering the tire pressure monitoring system....not that I balk at it, I got a set on my 9-3....
Seems like almost too much car for a daily driver. As compared to my 9-3, the dang thing feels like a muscle car. I wonder what the mileage on one of these is. Will have to look up.
Of course the final stat is the price. The pricing is currently at 29,900, with 31000 miles or so, and the car is certified to 100K miles.
It is clearly more of a drivers car. I liked it a lot. I can afford it. So I guess I need to ask of my self, do I
need a sweet bimmer for 2x the price of the Saab, or do I just
want it.
I gotta get my head straight on this one.
Tomorrow I plan to go drive a 6mt aero 9-3. The 6 cylinder turbo. Saab is offering a lot of money off new ones right now. Hmmmm
Here is the bimmer
http://www.dreyerreinbold.com/bmwindy/precar.asp?fan=GUEST008698B40368A65D89265094509&id=3886