Saab 93 Vector Sport 1.8 T

When the boss asked ‘who would like to spend the next few days with a Swedish beauty?’ well obviously I was first to leap up and say yes. Alas I had jumped feet first again and the Swedish beauty was a Saab 93. Having never owned or driven a Saab before I was not too disappointed and was curious as to how it would compare to my usual German vehicle fetish. The car in question was a Saab 93 Vector Sport 1.8 T, with a list price of £22,230 plus metallic paint.

The Saab Vector Sport packs more equipment than a Swedish porn star, with standard features including full leather interior, climate control, cd player, traction control and alloy wheels. So far so good, however with Vauxhall Vectra underpinnings was this car just a sheep in wolves clothing?

To put the 93 to the test I hit the high roads of Derbyshire and was surprised by the lively turbocharged petrol engine, which was fast enough for most people and has a good motorway pedigree. The ride was excellent, smooth over every surface, with surprisingly good handling and cornering for a front wheel drive. The good people at Saab have successfully retuned the chassis and given the car a totally different feel to its Vauxhall sibling.

Inside the car has a great driving environment, ample space both front and rear, a 5 star N-Cap safety rating and top draw equipment.

So is the Saab 93 a Bavarian basher?

Well the 1.8T engine has similar vital statistics (top end and sprint times) to the new BMW 320i engine. Round one is a draw.

With the sharpest drive in its class the 3 series is a better driving car than the 93. The front wheel drive on the Saab makes it difficult to compete in this round, and it suffers a loss.
With like for like specification and equipment, taking account of discounts that haggling on the Saab can bring, the cost of purchasing the Saab is around £5000 cheaper than the BMW. Round three goes to the 93.

With a retained 3 year 36,000 mile value percentage of 52% only 1% less than the BMW the fleet buyer is nearly £150 per month better off on a typical finance contract. For me personally this is a clear knock out and the Saab 93 has become, on pure value for money alone, undisputed champion of its class.

Review by LStreets. First published in web express magazine.

Full Saab 9-3 range available to purchase at a massive saving on list price.
Special Discount Offers on Saab 93 convertible range, Saab 93 sport saloon and Saab 93 sports wagon.

Vital Statistics for the Saab 9-3 DIESEL SPORT SALOON

Top Speed 138 mph
0 to 60 in 8.2 seconds
34.9 combined mpg
CO2/06 Tax liability 195/26%

Nissan Navara Double Cab

Having just beaten the 8 times winning Mitsubishi L200 to best pick up of the year, and with a waiting list longer than an NHS dentist, I was eager to test drive the new Nissan Navara double cab pick up.

Its sales figures are staggering with over 40% of all new pick ups sold in September sporting the Nissan Navara badge, this figure would have been even higher if Nissan had been able to meet demand. With the new Mitsubishi L200 having just been launched the popularity of pick-up trucks looks to set to increase further. Will the new Nissan Navara keep its new found UK crown or will Mitsubishi regain the status of king of the cabs?

The new Nissan Navara is built in Spain alongside the recently launched Pathfinder, itself a Discovery class SUV. The Nissan Navara shares much of its mechanical layout and best technological features with the Pathfinder and my first driving impressions were that the Nissan Navara is more SUV than transit van. This being despite the Nissan Navara having a ladder frame chassis and leaf springs for maximum load carrying and durability, the Nissan Navara handles like no other pickup I have driven.

With a class leading 171 bhp, which even the all new L200 will not match, and a 297lb ft of torque the new direct injection diesel engine is a perfect complement to the stunning rugged looks.

My test vehicle was the top spec Nissan Navara Aventura double cab manual 6 speed. With full leather heated and electrically adjustable seats, electric windows and door mirrors, climate control, dvd satellite navigation, rain sensing wipers, cruise control, blue tooth mobile, automatic headlights and so on, it was easy to forget that this vehicle was a pick up truck designed as a workhorse not a recreational vehicle to drive the kids to school in. Mind you at just under £25,000 including VAT for the Nissan Navara Aventura double cab manual I find it hard to imagine the thought of many people truly bashing it around a construction site in dirty overalls and ladened with cargo.

The Nissan Navara pick up is available in king and double cab versions. The double cab is appealing to most people as it can combine as a multi purpose work and recreation vehicle. People looking to just use the Navara as an SUV alternative should make sure they test drive the vehicle first, because even though it’s the pickup that most closely resembles an SUV its still a commercial vehicle at heart. So is the Navara king cab? Absolutely. First impressions and test drives are suggesting that the Navara will see off the new L200 and any other pretenders for its crown for a good period of time. Long live the king.

Vital Statistics for the Nissan Navara
Nissan Navara Pick up Top Speed 105 mph
Nissan Navara Pick up 0 to 62 mph in 11.5 seconds
Nissan Navara Pick up combined mpg of 30.7
Buy Discount Nissan Navara Double Cab Outlaw - 2.5TD Auto

You can enquire about Nissan Navara on this car finance website. They are beating What Car? prices every month.