I had another pair of cars picked out for today, and I was all ready to go with them, until I remembered the date. The Chicago River is green, so my car choices should be as well, right? In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, we’re going to look at two cool green cars, both perfect for driving to the pub for a Guinness or two. (But not more than that – you gotta drive home, too.) I’ll save those other picks for tomorrow.
Yesterday our choices were tiny and 4WD, and I was surprised by the amount of love that Subaru Justy got. I expected its condition and the difficulty of finding parts to fix it to scare more of you off, but the little Subaru took home a comfortable win. It sounds like more of you had concerns about driving the right-hand-drive Daihatsu Terios Kid in the US than finding Justy parts.
I could be happy with either of these, with the acknowledgement that they’re both a substitute for what I really want: a Fiat Panda 4×4. But I think I’d rather take the Terios Kid, just because it’s ready to go. I think I have maybe a couple more fixer-uppers in me, and I’m not sure a Subaru Justy is special enough to be one of them.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Any car looks better in green. But when you find exactly the right green for a car’s shape – think British Racing Green for an MGB, or Metallic Mint Green for a Skylark convertible – it’s just magical. These two jumped out at me as being exactly the right shades of green as well. Let’s take a closer look.
1971 Volkswagen Type 3 Squareback – $5,000
Engine/drivetrain: 1.6-liter OHV flat 4, four-speed manual, RWD
Location: Santa Clarita, CA
Odometer reading: 50,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives, has been sitting
I’ve never been much of an air-cooled Volkswagen guy. I had one, briefly, an orange Super Beetle, and I have fond memories of my dad’s tan ’69 Beetle, but I never really got bitten by the bug, so to speak. If I ever were to get excited over an air-cooled VW, however, it would probably be a Type 3. I like the styling, and I like the fact that they’re just a little bigger and more substantial than a Beetle. Three bodystyles of Type 3 were offered, and they’re all pretty self-explanatory: the Fastback, the Notchback (which you never see anymore), and this one, which seems to be the most common: the Squareback.
The engine in the Type 3 is the same basic VW flat four as the Beetle, with a few changes to make it fit under the floor in the rear. US-market Type 3s had Bosch electronic fuel injection after 1968, but many of them – including this one – have been converted to carburetors. Whether this is an improvement or not I’ll leave up to you. It also has aftermarket electronic ignition, it looks like, which is definitely an upgrade. This car has been sitting for a long time, and the seller just recently revived it, so there’s probably some work to do. But it does fire right up and run well, which is encouraging.
It looks like the front seats have been recovered, and the door panels have been replaced, but the rest of the interior looks original, and a bit shabby. The steering wheel is aftermarket, of course, but it’s a nice addition. I bet it feels better in your hands than the thin-rimmed stock wheel.
The kelly-green paint isn’t original; this car was blue to begin with, as you can see in the door sills and engine bay. But I think the green suits it. The seller says it’s pretty much rust-free, and that the floors are solid. That’s good enough for a weekend driver.
2002 Saab 9-3 SE Convertible – $6,000
Engine/drivetrain: Turbocharged 2.0-liter DOHC inline 4, five-speed manual, FWD
Location: Burbank, CA
Odometer reading: 93,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives, but needs front end work
Say what you will about California and its troubled relationship to automobiles; there are some absolutely beautiful places there that are best seen from a convertible. This car is for sale in the middle of Burbank – which if you’ve never seen it is just one big continuous strip mall – but the photo site for this ad, wherever it is, is within an easy drive of there. And there are worse ways to get there than in a sage-green Saab convertible.
The 9-3 is powered by a turbocharged 2.0-liter four, and this one has a five-speed manual transmission like a good Saab should. It runs well, but the seller says it needs front end work. That could mean a lot of things, and I guess a test drive and an inspection is the only way to find out exactly what it needs. Front end work is labor-intensive but not particularly difficult if you have the right tools, and the parts are cheap.
Saab interiors from the late ’90s and early ’00s are really nice places to be. The seats are comfortable, and the controls are ergonomic, though a bit button-heavy as you can see. This one is in good condition, though the stereo “needs to be rewired,” whatever that means. The air conditioning and the convertible top both work just fine, though, so you can stay cool in a couple of different ways.
It’s clean as a whistle outside; the only issue I see is that one headlight wiper is parked in the wrong spot. It might be an easy fix, or it might not. But it won’t keep you from enjoying the car if you ignore it. The paint looks great, and this is just about the best color Saab ever put on a car.
This is another one of those matchups that nobody would ever actually cross-shop, but when has that ever stopped us? They’re both cool, they both need just a little bit of work, and they’re both green. That’s enough to tie them together. So what’ll it be: the vintage Volkswagen, or the modern classic Saab?
I’m not a fan of the Maaco special paintjob on the Squareback, but the interior looks good and these are getting harder to find in good condition, so this might be the ticket. I might be able to get the missing bits color-matched for the price difference with the Saab.
I don’t love convertibles, I don’t overrate Saabs and I don’t feel like I should pay extra to fix the front end. That interior is AMAZING, though.
I wanted to go VW, but that ad is pretty sketchy. and the finish is kind of tractor paint ish. I think I would have fewer headaches with the Saab, and I find it pretty cool for 6k
I was going to go with both until I saw the VW color change.
I really like both of them but the Squareback is pretty damn cool
That Saab is not green. They might call it green, but that’s a green-tinted grey at best.
my aunts always said my 1st car, a Sage Green Dodge, was golden.
The original blue color of that Squareback is actually pretty fitting for St Patrick’s Day: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/st-patricks-day-color-green-blue
I don’t think I’ll ever find another affordable squareback in that condition, so that’s my choice. Even $5k is getting pretty dear for a burbly toy car. At that price, there is enough rust present to warrant real concern and a closer inspection before turning over the cash.
You have at least another decade of shopping before a Saab gets that rare, but this might also be a very compelling car at that price. I could care less about the problems with the stereo. The unspecified front end work needed is enough to push me to choose the much simpler classic VW.
Being in the rust belt, these both appear to be absurdly good value for the money, and I would likely take either or both if they were local.
Orphan cars deteriorate faster than others, when the owner decides it’s not worth spending money on but is still drivable. If you want a Saab, sooner is better than later.
Also computer controlled cars will become unrepairable much sooner than anything with carbs. It’s pretty easy to make a car with carbs run least badly. EFI and OBD2 is sort of all or nothing in my experience.
I would be quite keen on both, but today I am feeling weird but classy, rather than weird but weird.
Even if I’d buy a VW, that’s not a wagon anymore, it’s a classic car, so being a wagon shape is more about looks than utility, plus it’s much older (simpler, but far more chance for issues from hack owners to age itself), has been sitting, and the tossed-on paint is suspect. Saab is actually desirable. Front end work? BFD, that’s the easiest, cheapest stuff to do with a huge reward in immediate improvement in driving and feel. I’d prefer a pre-GM 900 hatch, but these weren’t bad and it would make a nice summer cruiser.
That VW is already modified with new carbs and ignition, it’s old to be inspection exempt, and is undoubtedly easy to work on. Parts will be available forever.
I just don’t like this particular one as much as the Saab, and I’m old enough that the Saab would be a forever car.
That’s two (easy to deal with) things on something made of over 50 year old low end parts—rubber, connectors, wiring, plastics, deteriorated seat cushion, hidden corrosion (assuming there isn’t any presently, which I find hard to believe, but I’ll accept for sake of argument), and the ghosts of owners past who patched a repair for the decades where this was just a cheap, used junker. It still isn’t worth all that much, so there’s little incentive to improve its state that looks more like “lucky survivor in a gentle environment” than “labor of love”. Available drivetrain parts (What about the model specific parts for the body and interior? I’m not sure if I’ve seen one of these stinkers in over 30 years and I think most of them were already piles of rot on their driveways when I was a kid in the ’80s) are great, but that’s not as appealing as not needing them and it’s not just an odd part here or there, but potential need for restoration or the willingness to put up with constantly chasing annoying issues for a lackluster POS that’s only good for attracting old VW nerds at car shows, something I’d personally pay money to avoid. And it has been sitting, so fluids, brake system, clutch, etc., are all suspect, along with the likelihood of vermin nests that will undoubtably be in the worst places to access. For the Saab parts that aren’t GM, I live in New England and Saab specialists and weirdos are everywhere with lots and yards filled with GM-era models and it should be quite easy to keep it going for a few decent years of summer cruising before moving on. I can’t imagine either of these being someone’s forever car.
If the Saab had been a three-door hatch I’d have chosen that. Still, it’s sort of a ‘both’ thing today. 🙂
For once, I’d take either vehicle. An aircooled VW is the easiest thing in the world to work on, but that Saab is mint. I’d take the issues it has and work them out.
That’s a beautiful Saab in green, and once the front end work is done, it’ll be a great ride.
Bad resprays stop being acceptable to me over $400, so Saab it is.
I want that squareback. I tried to buy one a few years back in a very similar green, and lost out on it. Wonder how mad my wife would be if I bought this…
This was tough. I’m nearly always a kneejerk “gimme something modern and leave the deathtraps to others” person. But I suspect I’d be driving the VW right away and having fun while the Saab was in the shop racking up unexpected bills getting that front end and sound system sorted.
Yes, everything back of the front seats on that wagon are pretty crusty, but it wouldn’t be that much of a chore to address when I felt like it.
I might take up smoking again, just to see how many drags I could take before it got to 60.
Driving a convertible with the top down and the stereo loud enough to hear is a deplorable practice.
Driving a convertible with the top up is a deplorable practice.
Saab. It’s only an hour from the coast, two with traffic.
Tough call I would probably drive the saab some the square back maybe. That’s probably why it’s been sitting. It’s neat and relatively rare but do you really drive around in it other then weekends and maybe shows. So saab I guess
Voted Saab, because convertible, but damn if it isn’t a both day!
I love that VW but should I be concerned with the paint job and having to look at the blue door jams?
Nothing that a rattle can of “close enough” green, some steel wool, and an hour so of your time won’t fix!
VW is the answer as long as its actually “pretty much rust free”.
The Saab is a good deal even if needs the whole front suspension sorted, which I highly doubt. Probably just bushings. Apart from the cowl shake this is a really satisfying car to drive. B205R has serious grunt and can sound great. Low mileage convertibles tend to show up more often, but a quick search reveals this Sun Green Metallic car is one of just 96 made in 2002.
The pretty Type 3 seems well-priced… almost too well priced. Rust, ratty interior, been sitting “a while”. This is a project, whereas the Saab appears to be turnkey. Gotta vote Saab.
Squareback. I had designs on a forlorn ’69 Squareback my grandfather had for a long time, including repainting it from Savvannenbeige to Zambesi Green (the Porsche color from ’73 that you could also get on your Karmann Ghia).
Alas, the classic stuck valve from sitting (probably #3 or #4) made it hard to get running and stay running, along with D-Jetronic and my pre-high-school understanding of it (which wasn’t nothing, mind you).
And I think my parents strongly suggested he sell it before I get too involved, and I was always kinda miffed about that.
Don’t love the ’70-up Type 3 front end as much, but it did result in a larger trunk, so there’s that. This carb setup looks like it’s factory stuff; similar to what would be in late bay-window buses that weren’t injected (those eventually got L-Jet.)
Probably a pair of Solexes under there.
Still a bit scruffy but a good 20-footer.
And I really don’t like convertibles, so no Saab for me.
I like that VW. Should be easier to work on than the Saab.
I am glad that Saab is for sale far from me…..
Definitely a both day for me, the green for the VW is such an amazing color, though it irritates me so bad when people half ass it like that. The Saab is an amazing car is a less good color, but really can’t go wrong with either here. I went Saab, even though the additional work it needs isn’t ideal, but I would love the VW too.