In what is possibly the most annoying car ad practice, the seller of today's Nice Price or Crack Pipe uber modified Saab says he's entertaining offers. Well, la-de-freakin'-da, we're not here for his entertainment, we're here for his judgement.
Based on its laudable 61% Nice Price win, it looks like it could easily be someone's Elke Summer this year. That Hellcamino's individualistic, and somewhat inbred metamorphosis may have been off-set by its 500-cubic inches of Cadillac under-hood and its bargain bin pricing, but today's owner-modded car will have a hell of a lot more for which to answer.
Saab, in case you haven't heard, is now a Swedish-Chinese maker of electric cars. Well, that's the intent anyway, the ink having yet to dry on the purchase agreement. But long before the Norse-Nanking plug-in Saab was known for another kind of power play, that of turbocharging. The 99 and later 900 turbos were at the vanguard of the modern turbo era, and the turbo-iest of them all was the SPG.
Now first off, that's SPG as in Special Performance Group, or alternatively Special PackaGe if written by the artist formerly known as relevant. That is not to be confused with SBD which is the nirvana of junior high flatulence accomplishment. The 900 SPG went also by Aero in markets where GM didn't hold the copyright for that term, while here in the litigious states it dropped that for the solo SPG title.
This range topping performer was differentiated externally from the lessor 900s by its aero-smoothing plastic body cladding, three-spoke wheels and limited paint options. Inside it went the full Sven with leather swathed seats - heated in the front - A/C, and a power sunroof. Mechanically, they employed Saab's then new 16-valve edition of the 2-litre B-series motor - still facing the wrong way - along with a 5-speed manual gearbox and uprated suspension.
The Aero was at the time a slick and capable car able to go tire to tire with the likes of BMW's 3-series and Volvo's own turbo'd boxes. At no time did anyone - to the best of my knowledge - ever consider the SPG as perhaps a fitting ride for Mad Max, post apocalypse.
That is, until this happened.
Claimed in the ad to be a beloved member of the seller's family, this ‘88 SPG has seen some attention over the course of its 24 year life. I'm not going to go into the 56-item long litany of changes and upgrades the seller denotes in the ad, but will instead focus on the obvious which is that special editions usually claim their value from their exclusivity and their proprietary uniqueness, while this car has seen that cast to the wind like so many lingonberry stems. Taking that exclusivity away usually makes special eds less special The question here is whether the modifications made to enhance this SPG's aggressive appearance and performance outweigh its - how should I say it - douchifications.
The wing, the grille, the K and the N,with its fender cut-out all conspire to make what was once a desirable limited edition model just another personal expression of one Saab owner's singular vision of Swedish extremism. To be fair, there's a ton of mechanical upgrades claimed to have been made - including a rebuilt later gearbox, freer flowing 2.3 head, and Wilwood brakes, that are well considered and probably back up the seller's claim that the car can run with the big dogs.
And then there's his price. In the ad head he sets the bar at $28,000, but down in the weeds of the ad he says that he's entertaining offers over $25K. I don't know about you but whenever I'm in the market for a used car the last thing on my mind is charming the seller with a fiduciary three-act. Not only that, but I fully expect that the advertised price is starting place and the only direction this discussion is going is down.
But that's just me. And my vote doesn't count - something about journalistic integrity and all that - so it's up to you to determine if this SPG is OMG for that many dough-ray-mees. What do you think, is $28,000 for this super Saab a salutary situation? Or, does that price make this a limited edition with an even more limited chance of selling?
You decide!
Los Angeles Craigslist or go here if the ad disappears.
H/T to foreversincebreakfast, Sean Pomeroy, AND Saabeh for the hookup!
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