Bought a 9-7X...tell me what you think

Jkust

Original poster
Member
Dec 4, 2011
946
Hi all after a couple months of searching for another TV, I finally bought one. My criteria that was nearly impossible to find was that I didn't want a Trailblazer, didn't want another Rainer since my wife has one, and I had to have every option but don't want an Aero. That left me with the 06 (because of stabilitrac) and newer Envoy Denali or difficult to find loaded up Saab 9-7x. I looked at dozens of each mostly 06-08 and every one was a rusty hunk of junk worn out and beat all the way down to 30,000 miles ones and still beat to heck. Mind you these are all plus or minus $20,000 and most I wouldn't have taken for free because of the rust and rehab i'd have had to do. Anyway, I finally found a loaded up 9-7x with low miles, one owner and I have the maintainance history. I was a little torn because the Saabs have a stiff ride compared to the Denali's but I suppose each has its plus's and minus's.
Basically it is a Rainier/Envoy Denali with a few differences amongst the two being:
18" rims (not available on the Rainier), HID headlights, Nav unit that has a slot for the nav disc and for a music disc, interesting type of headlight washer, upgraded brake system, two tone interior and a few other differences.
The one thing missing on the SAAB is running boards which I really like the look of and may get some put on it.

Anyway here is a link to the pics so tell me what you think.

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Boricua SS

Member
Nov 20, 2011
3,080
Ohio
looks damn good man.. and love the color on it!!! i wouldve gotten the Aero though.. maybe because im biased to the LS2's :crackup:

nice buy :thumbsup:
 

07Blazerman

Member
Dec 4, 2011
102
Looks to be in really good shape! Nice find and love the black with tan interior.:thumbsup:

ps I wonder if that shift knob would fit my TB matches my dash kit pretty good!
 

Jkust

Original poster
Member
Dec 4, 2011
946
07Blazerman said:
Looks to be in really good shape! Nice find and love the black with tan interior.:thumbsup:

ps I wonder if that shift knob would fit my TB matches my dash kit pretty good!

Thanks it was a one owner with records and nobody ever sat in the back and not much at all in the passenger seat and because even the drives seat shows so little wear, I am presuming it was a light person. Dvd never got used and I don't think they carried much in the rear since there is no evidence of use what so ever. Nicest/least used interior of the 30 or so cars I shopped. Everything is tight and like new. The wood shift knob is an easy mod if you buy one on ebay. They came in all Rainiers after 2004, all 9-7's and from what I saw some but not all Envoy Denali's. (Some of the Denali's had a silver inlay but I always thought wood was the Denali package.) I'm as picky of a person that has ever lived where my used vehicles are concerned and finally this one has impressed me. The lesson I learned is all of the TV's sold in MN are crap no matter the age and out of state buying is the key.

So far I have driven it a total of 30 miles and ordered new HID's to replace the OEM's and a full front, center and rear cargo set of Weathertech computer fit mats.
 

STLtrailbSS

Member
Dec 4, 2011
1,617
Very clean!! I have never seen a center air vent like that, but this is about the 3rd time I've looked at a saab lol. Very nice buy that thing is loaded! ..........What is to the right of the head unit that slit?
 

Regulator

Member
Nov 20, 2011
2,496
STLtrailbSS said:
Very clean!! I have never seen a center air vent like that, but this is about the 3rd time I've looked at a saab lol. Very nice buy that thing is loaded! ..........What is to the right of the head unit that slit?

I am kind of curious as well?
 

Jkust

Original poster
Member
Dec 4, 2011
946
Regulator said:
I am kind of curious as well?

Guys sorry that's a SAAB owners' secret. Just kidding, it is a signature on Saabs being a retractable cupholder. Press it and it auto folds out and open. Like I mentioned earlier I also have an all options 2007 Rainier with the 5.3 etc, but this Saab is more refined inside and the current 07 Rainier is more refined than my former 2004 Rainier. I'm starting to like the stiffer ride too even in the 0 degree weather. So far the only thing is that it has more agressive tires than the Rainier and so there is a little more road noise compared to the Rainier's near zero road noise. I'm also liking the fact that you don't see these on the road. Yesterday coming home from work, I got sideled up by a Rainier checking out the situation and this morning on the way to a tournament, I got raced by a Saab 9-5 which was pretty quick but not quick enough. The 5.3 has some decent guts off the line.
 

JRTAHOE

Member
Nov 20, 2011
848
Very nice looking :thumbsup:
 

Envoy4Life

Member
Dec 4, 2011
461
It looks great!
 

Jkust

Original poster
Member
Dec 4, 2011
946
Thanks guys. Kind of silly but one of the best perks is it has two keys. Every other one I looked at had only one key. The saab ignition key and the keyless entry fob are one unit so it's crazy expensive to buy another. Now I'm just bragging but even the key fob buttons show no wear.
 

HARDTRAILZ

Moderator
Nov 18, 2011
49,665
Love the look of the Saab! Nice purchase!
 

Sparky

Member
Dec 4, 2011
12,927
I still want to see someone get one of those, then lift it and go offroading lol :biggrin:
 

Jkust

Original poster
Member
Dec 4, 2011
946
Sparky said:
I still want to see someone get one of those, then lift it and go offroading lol :biggrin:

Can't imagine it happening. Only has A4wd so don't thinkg you'd get far off road. I'd be happy just to hop a few curbs with it.
 

Envoy4Life

Member
Dec 4, 2011
461
Jkust said:
Thanks guys. Kind of silly but one of the best perks is it has two keys. Every other one I looked at had only one key. The saab ignition key and the keyless entry fob are one unit so it's crazy expensive to buy another. Now I'm just bragging but even the key fob buttons show no wear.


Every single one I've seen is a one piece key. Can you post a picture of it please? :smile:
 

Jkust

Original poster
Member
Dec 4, 2011
946
Envoy4Life said:
Every single one I've seen is a one piece key. Can you post a picture of it please? :smile:

Just so we are on the same page, only the SAAB combines the key fob and the key in one unit while the other 360's have the seperate fob, and key. In other words if you find a used saab key/fob on ebay, it is already cut for the previous owners car. When I needed extra keys for my rainier I just buy few dollar transponder blank on ebay then get it cut and if I need a fob I get that for cheap also on ebay. I don't have pic but here is one for sale on Ebay. I don't think you can replace the cut key part so don't know how useful it is to anybody.
SAAB 9.7 9-7X KEYLESS ENTRY REMOTE KEY FOB TRANSMITTER | eBay

I presume I cound just buy a seperate fob and key blank in pinch.
 

Envoy4Life

Member
Dec 4, 2011
461
Jkust said:
Just so we are on the same page, only the SAAB combines the key fob and the key in one unit while the other 360's have the seperate fob, and key. In other words if you find a used saab key/fob on ebay, it is already cut for the previous owners car. When I needed extra keys for my rainier I just buy few dollar transponder blank on ebay then get it cut and if I need a fob I get that for cheap also on ebay. I don't have pic but here is one for sale on Ebay. I don't think you can replace the cut key part so don't know how useful it is to anybody.
SAAB 9.7 9-7X KEYLESS ENTRY REMOTE KEY FOB TRANSMITTER | eBay

I presume I cound just buy a seperate fob and key blank in pinch.


Yup, I was aware of that.

Does your Saab have a two piece key?
 

Jkust

Original poster
Member
Dec 4, 2011
946
Envoy4Life said:
Yup, I was aware of that.

Does your Saab have a two piece key?

If you are referring to when you open the key fob/key unit up, I saw the inside of one on an ebay auction and it didn't look like the key could be replaced with another blank that you had cut.
 

Envoy4Life

Member
Dec 4, 2011
461
Jkust said:
If you are referring to when you open the key fob/key unit up, I saw the inside of one on an ebay auction and it didn't look like the key could be replaced with another blank that you had cut.


Hmmm... weird.

Does the Saab you just bought have the single piece key?
 

Code Red

Member
Dec 11, 2011
377
very nice, I'd drive it ;-)
 

Jkust

Original poster
Member
Dec 4, 2011
946
Envoy4Life said:
Hmmm... weird.

Does the Saab you just bought have the single piece key?

Yes it's the same as the ebay auction link.
 

Jkust

Original poster
Member
Dec 4, 2011
946
Now that I have a few miles under my belt I can say it handles like it is begging you to take corners fast compared to our Rainier which does a decent job already. The handling difference is pretty amazing. Of course the price you pay is you feel bumps more. That one inch lowered stance combined with the suspension mods SAAB did as simple as they might have been make the truck handle more car like but feel bumps more truck like or like a sporty type of car. Glad I got this over the too-similar-to-our-Rainier Envoy Denali so far.
 

MDBT

Member
Jan 26, 2012
223
Your saab looks great, very clean. I just picked one up myself this week and having test driven the Ranier and Saab back to back I think it's a significant and very noticable difference. The Ranier was smooth and comfortable over highway pavement where the Saab can sometimes give you more bounce from an expansion joint than you're looking for and more road noise to boot. But on the on-ramp you get a sure footed feel with tight steering from the Saab while the Buick's gradual but ever-increasing body roll tells you to reign it in. Dynamically I would never confuse the two.

We haven't had any snow on the ground this week, being up in Minnesota as you are perhaps you have some thoughts on it's winter weather performance to share?
 

Jkust

Original poster
Member
Dec 4, 2011
946
MDBT said:
Your saab looks great, very clean. I just picked one up myself this week and having test driven the Ranier and Saab back to back I think it's a significant and very noticable difference. The Ranier was smooth and comfortable over highway pavement where the Saab can sometimes give you more bounce from an expansion joint than you're looking for and more road noise to boot. But on the on-ramp you get a sure footed feel with tight steering from the Saab while the Buick's gradual but ever-increasing body roll tells you to reign it in. Dynamically I would never confuse the two.

We haven't had any snow on the ground this week, being up in Minnesota as you are perhaps you have some thoughts on it's winter weather performance to share?

Well first nice to see some else make the leap into the SAAB. I actually avoided the SAAB when I bought our current (actually our second) Rainier just because of the name. Regarding the road noise, the Rainier and the SAAB got the exact same insulation package so they should be really close in the road noise department but yes I have more road noise in the SAAB but for me it is because I have more agressive tires and I think one bad tire that make a slight thump on every rotation. It is a little annoying but the tires have a lot of life in them and are really expensive so I'm living with it.

As for the snow situation, in the twin cities of MN we have had almost zero snow so far. One of our lightest years on record. The couple of inches we have had and the icy roads, the SAAB seems pretty similar to our Rainier. That one inch lower ride height and the much different ride gives you the feeling of a much more secure ride on pavement and corners but on snow really we just haven't had enough to give it a full review. Given both the Rainier and the SAAB are AWD, have Traction control and stabilitrac, really each system kicks in and really makes winter driving a breeze. Our record snow year last year with the Rainier, I realize how well the Stabilitrac works. On the worst day imaginable with snow everywhere, the Stabilitrac makes it seem as though you are driving on a nice summer day even if you are trying to loose control. Really we have our 360's for towing our boats and snowmobiles but they really give you a lot of bang for the buck in the winter. You couldn't find another truck based suv with all these features at these low miles for this little money.
 

MDBT

Member
Jan 26, 2012
223
Odd that you should mention a thump, I noticed one yesterday as well as I took my first highway drive of about twenty miles. I have yet to investigate, I was thinking a wheel weight was lost or that sitting on the dealer lot for so many days caused a flat spot in one of the rear tires. I believe it is the tire package that causes my road noise as well, since the Ranier I drove had highway tires on it while the Sumitomo HTRs that came on my Saab are geared more towards performance.

We're having a similar weather situation here in Ohio. We never have a whole lot of snow to begin with but this year we've barely had any. I was curious how the lowered ride height would impact the snow performance, but I am encouraged by your experience with the Ranier's AWD and the Stabilitrak.

From the pictures it didn't look like yours came with floormats. Mine did not, though I have been looking into the Weathertechs. Did you end up with any floormats in yours?
 

Jkust

Original poster
Member
Dec 4, 2011
946
MDBT said:
Odd that you should mention a thump, I noticed one yesterday as well as I took my first highway drive of about twenty miles. I have yet to investigate, I was thinking a wheel weight was lost or that sitting on the dealer lot for so many days caused a flat spot in one of the rear tires. I believe it is the tire package that causes my road noise as well, since the Ranier I drove had highway tires on it while the Sumitomo HTRs that came on my Saab are geared more towards performance.

We're having a similar weather situation here in Ohio. We never have a whole lot of snow to begin with but this year we've barely had any. I was curious how the lowered ride height would impact the snow performance, but I am encouraged by your experience with the Ranier's AWD and the Stabilitrak.

From the pictures it didn't look like yours came with floormats. Mine did not, though I have been looking into the Weathertechs. Did you end up with any floormats in yours?

Regarding the thump, I'm not 100% convinced it is a tire. I have the full service records for everything done to the saab and for some reason the wheel bearings had to be replaced twice under warranty.
It did come with floor mats but I ordered a full set of black set of computer cut weathertechs the second I got the truck home. I have the full set in my wife's rainer as well. The 9-7 never had a back seat passenger and almost none in the passenger seat so the interior and the carpet in those spots aren't just like new they are new so I wanted to protect it from the harsh winter they predicted but never materialized.


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