Saab 9-3 Aero convertible
Discussion
Job this weekend was to tackle the leather - not the worst I had seen but after 120k it needed some TLC
Bought the leather colourant kit from Furniture Clinic - used these before but the quality of the spray gun supplied this time is much better at delivering good results, either that or I'm just getting better at it
Step 1 is to remove the top layer by soaking cotton wool balls in the leather prep, wrapping a scouring pad and rubbing away at the leather until the colour starts to dhow on the pad - daunting at first but for a decent end result its essential you do not skimp on this stage
Step 2 is a full wipe down with alcohol cleaner and leave to dry out thoroughly
Step 3 sponge in a base layer of colourant and allow to dry - usually 15 mins is enough
Step 4 is applying the colourant via the spray gun - many thin layers (I use 3 or 4) is the secret here, also to swap propellant cans as soon as they start to get cold, I keep mine in a bowl of warm water and rotzte them every 2-3 minutes. Also beneficial is using paint filters (available from Furniture Clinic and watering down the colourant by approx 15-20% - massively reduces the chances of splatter and nozzle clogging
Step 5 - after getting a decent "tacky" finish you then apply the top coat, effectively sealing in the colour
Step 6 is the final top coat giving the end finish - I went for semi-matt based purely on personal preference
Leave for at least 24 hours before using the leather and restoration is complete
Very good value for money at just over £60 for the full kit which is ample to do front and rear seats of a normal car - bit of time and patience is all that is required
Some before and afters for you
Before
After
Bought the leather colourant kit from Furniture Clinic - used these before but the quality of the spray gun supplied this time is much better at delivering good results, either that or I'm just getting better at it
Step 1 is to remove the top layer by soaking cotton wool balls in the leather prep, wrapping a scouring pad and rubbing away at the leather until the colour starts to dhow on the pad - daunting at first but for a decent end result its essential you do not skimp on this stage
Step 2 is a full wipe down with alcohol cleaner and leave to dry out thoroughly
Step 3 sponge in a base layer of colourant and allow to dry - usually 15 mins is enough
Step 4 is applying the colourant via the spray gun - many thin layers (I use 3 or 4) is the secret here, also to swap propellant cans as soon as they start to get cold, I keep mine in a bowl of warm water and rotzte them every 2-3 minutes. Also beneficial is using paint filters (available from Furniture Clinic and watering down the colourant by approx 15-20% - massively reduces the chances of splatter and nozzle clogging
Step 5 - after getting a decent "tacky" finish you then apply the top coat, effectively sealing in the colour
Step 6 is the final top coat giving the end finish - I went for semi-matt based purely on personal preference
Leave for at least 24 hours before using the leather and restoration is complete
Very good value for money at just over £60 for the full kit which is ample to do front and rear seats of a normal car - bit of time and patience is all that is required
Some before and afters for you
Before
After
Edited by Andy665 on Sunday 7th February 12:16
Suspension refresh project is go, ordered this morning
Front strut mounts and bearings
Front wishbone - complete with bushes and new ballpoint actually work out cheaper than just new bushes
Updated front droplinks
Front antiroll bar bushes
Rear antiroll bar bushes
Rear strut mounts
Just need springs and the Bilsteins and should drive pretty tightly again
Front strut mounts and bearings
Front wishbone - complete with bushes and new ballpoint actually work out cheaper than just new bushes
Updated front droplinks
Front antiroll bar bushes
Rear antiroll bar bushes
Rear strut mounts
Just need springs and the Bilsteins and should drive pretty tightly again
Andy665 said:
Thanks for the tip - any suggestions as to whether I should replace anything else whilst I'm at it or should it be one thing at a time - I suspect a lot of the clonks are coming from the drop links
Sorry budd missed your post.I'd just replace/upgrade to Polly as and when, it's pretty expensive to do the lot in one go (unless you can DIY....I can't)
My labour costs were huge for the suspension work alone....big job!!!
I've gone for mainly powerflex black bar a couple in purple which went available in black at the time but these will be swapped out again when it goes back in to finish the rear off, engine mounts are in yellow powerflex but red are meant to be a little softer so seem better on the 4 pot. Also have the Maptun strut brace, 3 point subframe brace & Quaife fitted. Can't really say if the braces did much on their own but everything's tied in together nicely now, 100% recommend a wheel alignment after everything's done though, best £60 I've spent.
http://www.powerflex.co.uk/black-series/products/9...
Also swapped these while the car was in bits:
Top Mounts and Bearings for the Front & Rear Legs/Dampers
Left and Right Lower Control Arm & Ball Joint
Rear Track Rod Arm/Toe In Cross Stay
Droplinks I had here but they're probably a bit overkill
http://rndmotorsport.co.uk/epages/950003929.sf/en_...
Looks to be in good condition for the year and it's good that you managed to find one with heated seats. Not all Aeros have them. That exhaust looks to be aftermarket. Any clues in the history file?
I'm on my second Saab (9-5 Aero Estate). A few years ago I had an 05 9-3 1.9TID Vector. Clocked just over 40k in two years. It was incredibly comfortable and and motored quite well. I had nav, but the stereo was also generally a bit sketchy. You can only replace them with Saab stereos too due to their connectivity.
Alternators, drop links and track rod ends and wiper linkages are common fairly points. I spent a lot on maintenance on mine in the two years that I had it. Think it was actually in quite a good state when I sold the damn thing!
I'm on my second Saab (9-5 Aero Estate). A few years ago I had an 05 9-3 1.9TID Vector. Clocked just over 40k in two years. It was incredibly comfortable and and motored quite well. I had nav, but the stereo was also generally a bit sketchy. You can only replace them with Saab stereos too due to their connectivity.
Alternators, drop links and track rod ends and wiper linkages are common fairly points. I spent a lot on maintenance on mine in the two years that I had it. Think it was actually in quite a good state when I sold the damn thing!
griffin dai said:
Sorry budd missed your post.
I'd just replace/upgrade to Polly as and when, it's pretty expensive to do the lot in one go (unless you can DIY....I can't)
My labour costs were huge for the suspension work alone....big job!!!
I've gone for mainly powerflex black bar a couple in purple which went available in black at the time but these will be swapped out again when it goes back in to finish the rear off, engine mounts are in yellow powerflex but red are meant to be a little softer so seem better on the 4 pot. Also have the Maptun strut brace, 3 point subframe brace & Quaife fitted. Can't really say if the braces did much on their own but everything's tied in together nicely now, 100% recommend a wheel alignment after everything's done though, best £60 I've spent.
http://www.powerflex.co.uk/black-series/products/9...
Also swapped these while the car was in bits:
Top Mounts and Bearings for the Front & Rear Legs/Dampers
Left and Right Lower Control Arm & Ball Joint
Rear Track Rod Arm/Toe In Cross Stay
Droplinks I had here but they're probably a bit overkill
http://rndmotorsport.co.uk/epages/950003929.sf/en_...
Cheers, going for everything you have mentioned but sticking with standard bushes, as the car is not going to be a long term keeper can't justify Powerflex, hoping the Eibachs and Bilsteins will bring about a decent improvement over stock, as its a convertible I don't want to introduce too much rigidityI'd just replace/upgrade to Polly as and when, it's pretty expensive to do the lot in one go (unless you can DIY....I can't)
My labour costs were huge for the suspension work alone....big job!!!
I've gone for mainly powerflex black bar a couple in purple which went available in black at the time but these will be swapped out again when it goes back in to finish the rear off, engine mounts are in yellow powerflex but red are meant to be a little softer so seem better on the 4 pot. Also have the Maptun strut brace, 3 point subframe brace & Quaife fitted. Can't really say if the braces did much on their own but everything's tied in together nicely now, 100% recommend a wheel alignment after everything's done though, best £60 I've spent.
http://www.powerflex.co.uk/black-series/products/9...
Also swapped these while the car was in bits:
Top Mounts and Bearings for the Front & Rear Legs/Dampers
Left and Right Lower Control Arm & Ball Joint
Rear Track Rod Arm/Toe In Cross Stay
Droplinks I had here but they're probably a bit overkill
http://rndmotorsport.co.uk/epages/950003929.sf/en_...
A productive afternoon with the Flex saw the rear wings, bootlid and rear bumper fully corrected
Very badly swirled but came up good with Scholl Concepts S20 followed by Poorboys Black Hole
Will complete front end next weekend (hopefully) and get some nice layers of wax on it
Did the job properly so rear lights and trim strips were removed and the space behind fully cleaned out
For a car bought as a cheap runaround its getting under my skin, coming up very nicely and I may well end up keeping it for a year or so
Very badly swirled but came up good with Scholl Concepts S20 followed by Poorboys Black Hole
Will complete front end next weekend (hopefully) and get some nice layers of wax on it
Did the job properly so rear lights and trim strips were removed and the space behind fully cleaned out
For a car bought as a cheap runaround its getting under my skin, coming up very nicely and I may well end up keeping it for a year or so
Andy665 said:
A productive afternoon with the Flex saw the rear wings, bootlid and rear bumper fully corrected
Very badly swirled but came up good with Scholl Concepts S20 followed by Poorboys Black Hole
Will complete front end next weekend (hopefully) and get some nice layers of wax on it
Did the job properly so rear lights and trim strips were removed and the space behind fully cleaned out
For a car bought as a cheap runaround its getting under my skin, coming up very nicely and I may well end up keeping it for a year or so
Lots of hard work there matey!Very badly swirled but came up good with Scholl Concepts S20 followed by Poorboys Black Hole
Will complete front end next weekend (hopefully) and get some nice layers of wax on it
Did the job properly so rear lights and trim strips were removed and the space behind fully cleaned out
For a car bought as a cheap runaround its getting under my skin, coming up very nicely and I may well end up keeping it for a year or so
When are you selling it ?
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