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Welcome to Saab92x.com!
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Trying to make a long story short: I bought my 9-2x Aero (premium/cold/5spd) new back in '05. She's treated me well; zero major problems. But at this point I'm itching for something new. I was happy with the Saabaru until my wife picked up a new 2017 CR-V (replacing her highly entertaining 2005 Forester XT). It isn't that the CR-V is particularly appealing, but her car-buying process got me thinking. Which, in my case, is never a good thing. Now I can't help but see all the modern bells & whistles I'm missing. I've been trolling various auto sites, and looking at maybe a WRX, GTI, Focus ST, or Civic Si (if the new one ever gets released). Something new/fun with decent power & amenities.
So, if I do go ahead with a new car purchase, my question: what should I do with the Saabaru? Logically I figure I ought to try to sell it, but man I do not want to deal with that. I've never sold a car to a private party. But I think my car is a relatively decent specimen. I don't have a lot of mileage (about 84k), everything works, no accidents. I've never even really driven it hard, and I've done nothing in the way of performance mods, as noted here:https://saab92x.com/viewtopic.php?id=81042. Never did buy an AP. The only significant mod I've done was replacing the HU (with a Pioneer AVIC-F700BT). I need to do the timing belt but I've kept up with maintenance/oil changes.
Option 2 would be to trade it in on whatever new vehicle I select. This would be much easier. It's the path of least resistance, so it's also the direction I'm currently leaning. But is this idiotic? I can look up the kbb numbers but are these realistic? Does anyone have recent trade-in experience they're willing to share?
Option 3: I could just keep the Saabaru. It's certainly the fiscally responsible decision. I'm not sure I'd want to dump a ton of cash into a 12yr old car, but I can put some money into the 9-2x to liven things up a bit (along the lines of the AP).
As noted in the title, this is not secretly a FS post. If/when I go that route, I'll do it the right way, with feet & meat. For now, I'm just looking for some opinions/info/experience from my fellow 9-2xers. Sorry for the long post, and thanks for reading.
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Generally, anything but trade it in. The dealers always rape you on trade in compared to selling it unless they are offering some 5k on top of trade in value incentive. If it is an unmolested, low mileage, one owner car, you will get a lot more for it from an enthusiast looking for exactly this car.
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LordZed wrote:
Generally, anything but trade it in. The dealers always rape you on trade in compared to selling it
Work at a dealer, can confirm. The only time you should consider trading in is if you owe on a loan or if the tax savings equate to close to what you would get selling it on your own
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Yeah... I think they offered me like $1,900 trade-in on my 9-2x. Had about 150k miles, a VF48 swap with supporting mods, and a CEL I hadn't fixed yet lol.
Sold it to a local guy for close to 4x that.
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I would agree that selling this car private party should work well for you. 1 owner, low miles (for the year of the car), and unmodded! This should be a hot commodity for 92x prospective buyers if interior/exterior condition is good.
The only thing you’ll need to consider is the timing belt as it’s overdue from the time element of the service interval. I’d recommend having that done prior to selling so you can give buyers peace of mind and not have to negotiate a lower selling price because of that not being completed.
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Thanks guys, you basically confirmed my suspicions. The prospect of selling the car myself is a little daunting, but I'll figure it out. I'll poke around the FS forum and see what similar cars have sold for.
ikbrown wrote:
The only thing you’ll need to consider is the timing belt as it’s overdue from the time element of the service interval. I’d recommend having that done prior to selling so you can give buyers peace of mind and not have to negotiate a lower selling price because of that not being completed.
This has crossed my mind. I guess the question is whether a discounted sale price (minus a "timing belt discount") would be less than the full price minus the cost of doing the timing belt now. I imagine so. I'll get a quote on the TB and see what makes sense.
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MaxPower wrote:
This has crossed my mind. I guess the question is whether a discounted sale price (minus a "timing belt discount") would be less than the full price minus the cost of doing the timing belt now. I imagine so. I'll get a quote on the TB and see what makes sense.
If I was going to purchase one that the timing belt wasn't done on, I would probably offer about $800-$1000 less than asking.
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MaxPower wrote:
Thanks guys, you basically confirmed my suspicions. The prospect of selling the car myself is a little daunting, but I'll figure it out. I'll poke around the FS forum and see what similar cars have sold for.
ikbrown wrote:
The only thing you’ll need to consider is the timing belt as it’s overdue from the time element of the service interval. I’d recommend having that done prior to selling so you can give buyers peace of mind and not have to negotiate a lower selling price because of that not being completed.
This has crossed my mind. I guess the question is whether a discounted sale price (minus a "timing belt discount") would be less than the full price minus the cost of doing the timing belt now. I imagine so. I'll get a quote on the TB and see what makes sense.
Keep in mind the diminished value and headache if you blow your motor between now and when you plan to sell it. Is it worth it?
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drewsro wrote:
If I was going to purchase one that the timing belt wasn't done on, I would probably offer about $800-$1000 less than asking.
Yup, instant minus $1k in price to me.
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hammyt wrote:
drewsro wrote:
If I was going to purchase one that the timing belt wasn't done on, I would probably offer about $800-$1000 less than asking.
Yup, instant minus $1k in price to me.
Yea, exactly. And figure $500-$800 for the service depending on shop rate where you have the car serviced. Get a quote but I think you'd come out on top doing the service before selling.
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Now I can't help but see all the modern bells & whistles I'm missing. I've been trolling various auto sites, and looking at maybe a WRX, GTI, Focus ST, or Civic Si (if the new one ever gets released). Something new/fun with decent power & amenities.
Option 3: I could just keep the Saabaru. It's certainly the fiscally responsible decision. I'm not sure I'd want to dump a ton of cash into a 12yr old car, but I can put some money into the 9-2x to liven things up a bit (along the lines of the AP).
Sounds like you're itching to do something.
If it's really new fangled bells and whistles you want, and you've fallen out of love with your car you should sell it. If you truly don't want to waste time or have extra hassle selling it, set a price in your head you'd be happy with that's just slightly more than you'd get from the dealer/tax incentive, then list it for sale. In the meantime, have fun looking and test-driving out all the new-fangled things. It's more of a hassle when you are trying to eke out every last penny from an item, less so if you just want to feel you didn't get completely taken at the dealer on trade. If you'd rather sink 25-40k or take on a new lease for a nice copy of the cars you listed (since to get the bells and whistles you won't be getting a stripper model) than modify your current car then it's a no-brainer and plenty of people would love to have your Saab.
If the new bells and whistles are things you'd get over, then you could very easily liven up your current setup too with minor/major mods depending on how far you want to go. You'd be surprised how fun these can be with a bit more extra oomph, more dialed in suspension, new bushings, etc, particularly if you're not financially strapped. Of course you'll have to do timing belt and other maintenance for an old car, and you do run the risk of blowing everything up. Since you're eying a new car anyway and time/hassle is more of your concern than money, consider yourself with a fresh slate to have fun with a paid off, very capable car.
To minimize hassle down-time have a shop/tuner do everything for you within a budget of your choosing, with a proper selection of parts and pro-tune. Example path: AP, upgrade downpipe, VF48 off a new sti, fuel pump, injectors, sti tmic, and boost controller you're looking at probably no more than 5k with everything installed and tuned (being very conservative on pricing). Or instead get an EJ207 with turbo, injectors and downpipe included for roughly that cost or a bit more. Factor in another 2k or so for a new suspension, sway bars and endlinks and maybe some bushings. On top of the 1k for the timing belt you'd then have a plan for giving your car STi power and much tighter handling for under 10k (rounding up to be conservative). Sure that's more than you'd get for selling the car now, and if you did all that it still would be more than you'd get for selling the car, but it's a fairly concrete plan. Your car might blow up immediately after doing that, in which case you'd be out whatever you spend, so budget accordingly.
Alternatively, take this as an opportunity to learn more about working on cars if you so desire, since you're playing with house money here and do things more inexpensively, while learning new things at the same time. Find a local subaru group/folks to help you out if you don't have that support already, and you'd be surprised how much you can learn relatively quickly.
Worst case scenario, you do damage it, then you're basically back to taking it in for trade and getting virtually nothing, with the benefit of the experience modifying a car you may not have anytime soon again (if you are keen for that sort of thing).
It all comes down to personal preference, and how much of an adventure you still want to have with this car that's treated you well for all these years.
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Thanks for your thoughtful post, countriccati. Gave me some food for thought over the past couple of days. This:
countriccati wrote:
Sounds like you're itching to do something.
...is truth. I do indeed feel like I need to do something. Modding the 9-2x has certainly crossed my mind - hence the WTB AP post I put in the FS forum a little while ago. And I look at what some other folks have done to their cars and I'm simply amazed. I checked out everything you've done to your car (via the link in your sig), and man, the end result is absolutely fantastic.
But - I've been musing over performance mods since the warranty expired. Longer, even. Besides the AP, I remember considering a short shifter, UP, DP...I pored over the relevant threads here and over at nasioc. Yet here I am, 12 years after purchase, having done nothing. Part of the problem is that I'm probably the least handy person on this site; I have no decent tools, no experience, no mod-minded auto shop nearby. Worse, I have the attention span of an excitable puppy. The HU was a bit of a project but I do have some experience with electronics (and some tools), so I kinda knew what I was doing there. I just don't think I'm cut out for the real mechanical work.
I haven't totally ruled out the mod route, though clearly I'm leaning in another direction. I think it's probably time to move on. The Saabaru has served me well, but I'm just itching for something else. This thread has succeeded in convincing me of something I already knew: trading it in is a terrible idea. Not only can I get a lot more for it via a sale, which would help offset the cost of a new car, but (hopefully) I can get it into the hands of someone who will actually appreciate it. I'd like to see what a new owner could do with the car.
Anyway, thanks for the 2 cents.
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If you keep the car, sink a grand into it and go stage two. The car stock vs. stage 2 is significant, and really wakes it up. Of course, you're on the hook for a timing belt too, so do that first. An AP and a stage 1 flash is a nice way to hold you over until you buy the parts to go stage 2.
If you are not going to keep the car, sell it privately. I managed to sell mine without even trying or posting an ad - the demand for an Aero is there.
Trading in a 12 year old car is the least intelligent option, financially.
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http://www.factoryfive.com/kits/project-818/
9-2X is a 100% donor
Last edited by waitwhat (2017-03-08 22:54:51)
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Now you're thinking out of the box. Great 2nd post!
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waitwhat wrote:
http://www.factoryfive.com/kits/project-818/
9-2X is a 100% donor
YES!!!!!
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For what it's worth, your car IS very desirable. For these reasons:
Mileage: 84,000. Very low for the year.
Color: Deep Blue Mica. Not as common and beautiful.
Transmission: Manual
Option Packages: Both
And last but not least: NOT Modified!
You would be able to sell it easily and for a very good price.
If you feel you are ready to move on and are not comfortable with modifying, sell it and get what you really want.
My two cents.
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One of just 76 5MT blue/leather cars! Only 443 blue Aeros were ever made, so quite rare. Low miles and no modded are definitely rare traits on the 
now. You could probably get good money for it selling it privately.
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If you turn an 84k mile, unmolested 9-2x into an 818 you have no soul. Find a wrecked WRX for that shit.
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hammyt wrote:
If you turn an 84k mile, unmolested 9-2x into an 818 you have no soul. Find a wrecked WRX for that shit.
Agreed. Someone will love to buy your unmodded low miles saabaru
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waitwhat wrote:
http://www.factoryfive.com/kits/project-818/
9-2X is a 100% donor
lol, wow. I can honestly say this is not a possibility which has crossed my mind.
I appreciate everyone's opinions. One of only 76? Who knew?
At this point I'm definitely leaning towards selling, and if/when I do, I'd love to see it go to a member here. Or at least to someone who truly appreciates the 9-2x. I feel like a bit of an idiot getting rid of a perfectly good (and paid for!) car merely because I'm bored and too lazy/unskilled to deal with mods. But I did happily stick with the Saabaru for 12 years, which is WAY longer than I've owned any other automobile. I've wrung enough value and entertainment out of it, time to let someone else enjoy the car.
At least, that's how I'm justifying it to myself.
The thing I'm really struggling with now is pricing. I went through a year's worth of posts in the FS forum and noted the asking prices for 5MT Aeros. They're all over the map. I can't find much in the way of comparable sales, due to either mods or mileage. There's also no way for me to know what the cars actually sold for - only what the sellers' asked. And in many cases, sellers deleted asking prices after the sale. So: is anyone aware of the sale of a car like mine? I want to come up with a number here that isn't offensive, but I also don't want to leave a ton of money on the table.
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MaxPower wrote:
At this point I'm definitely leaning towards selling, and if/when I do, I'd love to see it go to a member here. Or at least to someone who truly appreciates the 9-2x. I feel like a bit of an idiot getting rid of a perfectly good (and paid for!) car merely because I'm bored and too lazy/unskilled to deal with mods. But I did happily stick with the Saabaru for 12 years, which is WAY longer than I've owned any other automobile. I've wrung enough value and entertainment out of it, time to let someone else enjoy the car.
At least, that's how I'm justifying it to myself.
The thing I'm really struggling with now is pricing. I went through a year's worth of posts in the FS forum and noted the asking prices for 5MT Aeros. They're all over the map...I want to come up with a number here that isn't offensive, but I also don't want to leave a ton of money on the table.
It's perfectly fine to not have the patience for dealing with mods and just find a car that comes from the factory with what you want. On this forum almost everyone is into modifications, but everyone who's honest will tell you it's a rabbit hole.
Price the car as you see fit. Simple economics will dictate some things for you--when people price cars too high they get few bites until they come down (and various complaints about the price), if too low you get a riot on your hands with people offering to pay you more than you asked, within reason. You will not offend anyone who matters by listing your car at a price you are comfortable with. If you are ok to wait for a bit, price it higher, if you really want it to just be sold and over with quicker, lower.
Your particular example, being basically stock, factory options, relatively low miles, and presumably fairly clean and well maintained, might actually be worthy of submission to BaT https://bringatrailer.com/account/listings/new/. Relatively inexpensive to list, buyers are serious and knowledgeable and can't back out since their bid is actually held on a cc. This month the sellers fee is only $49 for some reason, you would only pay it if it sells. A number of us have been hoping one of our cars makes it on there, no harm in trying to list it. (Personally have no affiliation with the site, if you do end up listing it feel free to put my user name (same as on here) in the referral form since there's a referral bonus 
Entirely depends on how your car presents, paintwork, headlights, interior, maintenance records, etc. Not having the timing belt done will hurt you as others have mentioned. If you car is truly in excellent shape, submit it to BaT. If they don't accept it, so be it, you'll know you tried.
Otherwise, list it here for $10k just to pick a number out of a hat, be prepared to wait for a bit, and have your own price in your head you won't go below. If the body is rough in any way knock that down accordingly. You almost certainly won't get more than that, but if you start there you might not get much less. It's all about finding the right buyer who really wants it for a price you're comfortable with. Good luck!
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Post some pics. Many folks have sold their cars here and are still involved on the forum. Let's see how it looks, and we'll try to give you an honest assessment. I've sold two of mine. Drewsro had been looking for awhile and is also in the industry. Need photos though!
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Id say you can clear 8-9k easy if it is true minty fresh status. Even with a timing belt pending, you will come out pretty well given the one owner low miles status. This is of course, if it has a straight body, no accidents, and the interior is clean. I got 7.5K for mine with just over 100k miles, modded, and third owner.
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Let's see some photos and craft a FS post for him.
$10 says it's sold in two weeks.
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