1999 Saab 9-3 Viggen Turbo Convertible
Discussion
Went to the workshop today as I thought the Saab would be on a ramp and I wanted to have a look underneath. There are no horror stories, it has had a little bit of welding in the past but all the floorplan and chassis rails are solid and it just needs some rubbing down and paint to keep the rust at bay.
Anyone from my Shogun thread will know just how much I enjoy dealing with rust so I will be returning to the workshop, wire brush & Hydrate 80 in hand. The rear axle was dropped while I was there to remove the old yellow Apex springs and the offside rear top spring mount had started to rust and expand so that was cut off; it will be repaired and welded back to the rail to sit flush.
The Viggen has been quite bouncy and crashing over broken up roads and you can see from the photo the old Apex and new green Abbott springs, although the height was little different it was the compression that was most marked; you could hardly move the green spring but the yellow could be pushed down a little way by hand quite easily. This lack of compression is what will raise the Viggen back up and it will be very interesting to see how these springs and the new Koni dampers work once it is all back together.
Anyone from my Shogun thread will know just how much I enjoy dealing with rust so I will be returning to the workshop, wire brush & Hydrate 80 in hand. The rear axle was dropped while I was there to remove the old yellow Apex springs and the offside rear top spring mount had started to rust and expand so that was cut off; it will be repaired and welded back to the rail to sit flush.
The Viggen has been quite bouncy and crashing over broken up roads and you can see from the photo the old Apex and new green Abbott springs, although the height was little different it was the compression that was most marked; you could hardly move the green spring but the yellow could be pushed down a little way by hand quite easily. This lack of compression is what will raise the Viggen back up and it will be very interesting to see how these springs and the new Koni dampers work once it is all back together.
The sub-frame bushes have all been replaced, they were really difficult to get out as they have a stainless steel band around them and the front struts have been painted with Hydrate 80 and the new springs fitted.
New brakes lines have had to go in as the old ones were corroded and the braided hoses have been fitted; new discs have been sourced and they are going to be grooved as this was OE specification.
New brakes lines have had to go in as the old ones were corroded and the braided hoses have been fitted; new discs have been sourced and they are going to be grooved as this was OE specification.
Lovely Viggen there!! You'll notice a hell of a difference with the suspension mods, not a Viggen but I had a LPT vert a couple years ago and did a fair bit to the handling side....made a BIG improvement and it needed it even with just a stage 1 map! Really wanted to take things further like my 9000 but swapped it for the v6 instead.
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
griffin dai said:
Lovely Viggen there!! You'll notice a hell of a difference with the suspension mods, not a Viggen but I had a LPT vert a couple years ago and did a fair bit to the handling side....made a BIG improvement and it needed it even with just a stage 1 map! Really wanted to take things further like my 9000 but swapped it for the v6 instead.
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
Good read. Interesting that even after performing all the chassis mods you still weren't that impressed with the handling.http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
I think those that have an interest in cars tend to have a soft spot for saabs - My brother had a viggen in monte carlo yellow got it new from the saab dealer in Ayr and had it for a while. It was a great car indeed - one of those that sticks in the mind. And it was fast. Very fast indeed. He had it a few years back in 2000 and then it was sold on. Never got a shot in it but managed to bag a drive in another one and that was superb. Would have loved that car indeed.
He had the rescue kit installed. Had to as the bulkhead would split otherwise.
St John Smythe said:
Good read. Interesting that even after performing all the chassis mods you still weren't that impressed with the handling.
No it was pretty good after a few weeks and a few hundreds miles later once it all settled down. Still not a patch on the 9-3ss through even in standard form, jump from one straight into the other and the difference in handling is massive, but the handling mods definitely made a nice difference and imo these really need a few quid thrown at them here.Not sure if yove got a thicker rear Arb fitted but a cheap/effective mod is just double up with another standard bar, the 22mm bars are hard to source so if one does pop up on ebay/forums I'd snap it up!!
ruggedscotty said:
Viggen in monte carlo yellow
ruggedscotty said:
He had the rescue kit installed. Had to as the bulkhead would split otherwise.
One of the few things I did right when buying the Viggen was to run the steering from lock to lock to check whether the bulkhead was cracked.griffin dai said:
The handling mods definitely made a nice difference and IMO these really need a few quid thrown at them here.
Not sure if yove got a thicker rear Arb fitted but a cheap/effective mod is just double up with another standard bar, the 22mm bars are hard to source so if one does pop up on ebay/forums I'd snap it up!!
I sourced all of the chassis mods from Abbott which included their rear ARB as I wanted to get everything delivered together and was quite keen to get the Viggen on a ramp just the once and back on the road!Not sure if yove got a thicker rear Arb fitted but a cheap/effective mod is just double up with another standard bar, the 22mm bars are hard to source so if one does pop up on ebay/forums I'd snap it up!!
I enjoyed your thread on your 9-3 'vert and all the work you put into it yourself; like you & many others I seem to have got the Saab 'bug'.
The Viggen is booked in for MOT on Wednesday so fingers crossed it will all be done. Will have to give it a polish (don't laugh Scott!) and take some decent photo's.
TurboBlue said:
I enjoyed your thread on your 9-3 'vert and all the work you put into it yourself; like you & many others I seem to have got the Saab 'bug'.
It gets bad trust me!! I'm on my 6th now and probably go for a 9-3 v6 wagon next (auto...torque MONSTER!!) 
Wait till you start upping the power! You should be able to get around 320hp out of yours with just a 3"DP, 3.5bar FPR and remap.....I'd add an IC aswel though. Chinese ones off ebay work a treat and I think £65/70 should get you one. Or I think PFS do a drop in IC pretty cheap
griffin dai said:
St John Smythe said:
Good read. Interesting that even after performing all the chassis mods you still weren't that impressed with the handling.
No it was pretty good after a few weeks and a few hundreds miles later once it all settled down. Still not a patch on the 9-3ss through even in standard form, jump from one straight into the other and the difference in handling is massive, but the handling mods definitely made a nice difference and imo these really need a few quid thrown at them here.Not sure if yove got a thicker rear Arb fitted but a cheap/effective mod is just double up with another standard bar, the 22mm bars are hard to source so if one does pop up on ebay/forums I'd snap it up!!
Got my Aero back yesterday and very happy indeed. New suspension has made a world of difference and the steering rack brace has made the front of the car feel noticeably tighter.
Garage had problems fitting the Hirsch exhaust as the bore on the pipe was too large to connect. Sending back for a refund as advertised for Aero and Viggen models.
Went for an Abbott Racing exhaust instead. Sounds very nice. Nice burble at idle and opens up nicely higher up the rev range. But importantly isn't that loud around town so doesn't sound like a barried up Corsa!
TDC Saab in St Albans did the work so would recommend.
Garage had problems fitting the Hirsch exhaust as the bore on the pipe was too large to connect. Sending back for a refund as advertised for Aero and Viggen models.
Went for an Abbott Racing exhaust instead. Sounds very nice. Nice burble at idle and opens up nicely higher up the rev range. But importantly isn't that loud around town so doesn't sound like a barried up Corsa!
TDC Saab in St Albans did the work so would recommend.
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