Today's (one day late)
Mid Week Match-Up comes from Mike R who writes:
Looking for some suggestions on a car/truck. Here's my situation. My family has 3 cars. 2002 GMC Yukon Denali, 2007 VW Passat 3.6 4motion wagon, 1987 Porsche 911 Carrera for weekends. The
issue is the VW. Runs great, rarely let's me down, has no lien, looks
somewhat cool (black wheels, dark tint), is reasonably comfortable to
drive, decent power, AWD and enough room for two kids car seats and can
haul some stuff. Sounds great right? It is, but it's not lighting my fire anymore.
I
live in Omaha, land of understated wealth and pick up trucks. I
wouldn't mind a pickup, nothing full size, more like a early 2000s 4
door Toyota Tacoma but really I just want something with four doors that
I can haul kids and stuff occasionally with AWD or 4WD and a decent
amount of power. Here's the catch. It must be cool and interesting.
Not that my VW is that cool or interesting but there's not much wagon
love around here so it stands out some. Also, it can't be more fun to
drive than my 911. Sure in the winter I'll drive it almost every day but
come summertime I don't want to be turning down a trip in the 911 over
my new daily driver. I really need an auto transmission b/c wife can't
drive a stick so if for some reason I have the Yukon she is stuck with
no car. I'd teach her to drive it but she's a horrible driver and we'd
prob get in a huge fight in the first 15 min of teaching her. Budget is probably $15,000
I suggest this
2008 Saab 9-7X Aero offered for $8,500 in Golden Valley, MN-- this was the Saab version of the Chevrolet Trailblazer SS -- so it has the 390 horsepower 6.0 liter LS2 V8 and hits 60mph in under 6 seconds.
The first generation Chevrolet TrailBlazer was launched in 2002 on the GMT360 platform that was shared with the GMC Envoy, Oldsmobile Bravada, Isuzu Ascender, Buick Rainer, and Saab 9-7X. However, only the TrailBlazer and the 9-7X got the 6.0 liter LS2 monster V8 from the Corvette and it was the first sport futility vehicle to receive Chevy's legendary SS designation. Find this 2006 Chevrolet TrailBlazer SS offered for $11,900 in Red Lion, PA via craigslist. Tip from Aaron.
In 2005 General Motors released a Saab badged version of the mid-sized GMT360 SUV platform that shares parts with the Buick Rainier, Chevrolet TrailBlazer & SSR, GMC Envoy, Oldsmobile Bravada, and Isuzu Ascender. The Saab 9-7x version featured some Saabish styling cues, but it was not that exciting until the 2008 model year when Saab released the LS2 powered Aero version (aka the Trollblazer), which was most powerful production "Saab" ever built. Find this 2009 Saab 9-7X Aero here on eBay bidding for $5,100 reserve-not-met with $18,995 buy-it-now located in Valencia, PA. Tip from BP.
Find this 2008 Saab 9-7X here on eBay bidding for $2,750 with one day to go, located in New Hope, PA.
In 2005 General Motors released a Saab branded version of the mid-sized GMT360 SUV platform that shares parts with the Buick Rainier, Chevrolet TrailBlazer & SSR, GMC Envoy, Oldsmobile Bravada, and Isuzu Ascender. The Saab 9-7x version was not that exciting until the 2008 model year when Saab released the LS2 powered Aero version (aka the Trollblazer), which was most powerful production "Saab" ever built. Find this 2008 Saab 9-7x Aero here on craigslist offered for $12,000 in Vermont.