I like the Alero. To me it looks like the new Dodge Avenger, which I also like. Try to find a four-cylinder, if you can. Not only will it get better gas mileage, but the four-cylinder in that car does not produce much less power than the V6, and it's a good engine. The V6 is not bad, but that series of GM engines has intermittent problems with intake gasket leaks, which is not an insanely expensive problem, but obviously you'd rather not have it. As for the other mechanical problems you have referred to, I am not sure what you mean. Most of the parts in the car went into a lot of other models; they are probably not the absolutely most reliable things you could get, but they're common. The car's powertrain is pretty solid, especially with the four-cylinder. The 4T40/45 series automatic transmission is one of the cheapest to replace, and it's one of the more reliable ones out there. I like Saabs, as well. They're different and just "quirky" enough that you're not driving something that's like everything else on the road. On the plus side, many have been owned by people who are relatively well off, including car enthusiasts who appreciate the car for what it is, and these types of people usually take good care of their cars. (This same factor, in reverse, probably accounts for a big percentage of the share of reported problems with less expensive cars, such as the Alero: People buy them as workhorses, treat them as such, and they have more problems.) One downside with the Saab is it has a turbo, which I am not fond of in older cars you want to keep a while, as it's an expensive thing to replace, tends to put the engine under more stress, and it makes oil changes crucial. (The heat of a turbocharger will turn oil into sludge very quickly if oil changes are let go.) So if you buy one, I'd want to see maintenance records showing frequent oil changes -- preferably more often than the minimum owner's manual requirement. One other thing about the Saab is make sure you have a dealer that's not too far away. Their dealer network is not that large, and some people who live in small towns might be 100 miles or more from a dealer. Everyone I've ever talked to who has owned a Saab says the dealers are great, they really know the cars, and that's ideally where you'd want to have it worked on. But if there's no dealer anywhere nearby, that could be a problem. In fact, if I were thinking of a used Saab, I'd probably take it to the dealer before buying it to have it inspected and use that as an opportunity to introduce myself to them and get a feel for whether you'd want to deal with them.

Hi Alexr, For the past 20 years, I've been cooking on a range that is now 80+ years old! I knew that a single family had lovingly used her before we bought our home and we considered that range to be a prize part of the whole transaction. While I now mourn the fact of her retirement,I'm also excited by the promise of a jazzy new, red Aga as her replacement! No question that when I first started looking at the Aga, I was hoping to blunt the pain of the cost by picking up a floor model. However, the vendor I am dealing with convinced me that it was not possible. Now, having committed to buying a "brand, spanking new, fresh from the factory appliance" (as my dear friend, Madcow, so eloquently has stated), the situation has completely reversed. Although a bungled order placement has resulted in an offer of the very same floor model I've been lusting after, I now come to learn she is actually 4 -years old. Honestly, that gives me pause. It's not "timidity", Alexr. This decision is, indeed, an "emotional" one. And, while a slightly tested or "certified pre-owned" lover is one thing, how many of us really wants to start off a relationship with one who, over a relatively long period of time, has been repeatedly handled(and likely mishandled,) by countless others? Thanks all for helping me to clarify the nature of my hesitation! :)

I don't know that I have much to add relative to the appliance forum, except to say that everything driving my interest in Bluestar had to do with cooking, and the way I cook, rather than any grand design plan (we don't have one and our kitchen, while pleasant looking and very functional, is nobody's idea of awesome, beautiful design). I like the more powerful burners both for fast searing and for, e.g., bringing a pot of pasta back to a rolling boil quickly, so that you are not poaching the life out of it. It's also very nice for wok cooking -- not my specialty, but something we really like here and there. The medium burners are versatile and the simmer burner rounds things out nicely. The large (gas) oven seems to be very stable once it's properly pre-heated; and the broiler is great, although not all that large. We had looked at the 30" before settling on the 36" model. Of the smaller ranges, it offered very nice spacing of the burners, which might be a plus for this range (and an issue with some alternatives) if you often work with 2 or 3 large pans at a time. Very good heavy continuous grates, which are nice for moving things around while you work. This is, of course, a large up-charge relative to many perfectly good ranges. For myself that was acceptable because (a) the range really mattered to me, (b) the cost, while substantial, was not great relative to many other things that might be done for a kitchen or home, and (c) the cost was manageable . . . for us -- we all operate under different budget constraints.

"Plugged in and working" may or may not mean that the cooling system was operating. Many fridges have a "demo" or "showroom" mode. The lights come on, the displays work, but the cooling and defrost systems do not operate. If it has been in demo mode for the past five years, I'd want the store switch it over to operating mode, let it run for a day with a glass of water on each shelf. Take the temps of the water and see how close to specs they are. You want to make sure that nothing has gone wonky while it sat without actually operating If it had been in full operating mode, I would follow dbabrams suggestion.