1986 Saab 900 Turbo - White

[Spinakerr]

Paule2359 said:

The things that I remember most about the drive is that it had a 5 speed gearbox and the brakes were the best that I have ever used.
I had a mk3 cortina 2000E at the time which I thought was the bee's knees but after driving his brand new Saab it never seemed quite the same.

Saab to Cortina is a generation of motoring changes - and not the 'change' today of bluetooth connectivity and lane assist. Great stuff.

As the light faltered yesterday I finally took a look at my box SaaBits:

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Initial reports of six metres of 3mm silicone Samco being plenty have been unequivically quashed - I replaced 13 lengths yesterday and need quite a bit more, plus the APC lines which are 6.3mm. I'm drawing a diagram for the completed spiderweb, but some highlights crumbling rubber and shiny new lines below:

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Also added a PCV into the crankcase breather:

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Phew. Part deux to follow, but already the car sounds a tad better, and idles a bit higher so I have turned down the idle screw. A full timing and adjustment to follow once I'm sure everything is up to a respectable base.

I also removed an unsightly cable tie and gaffa tape cocktail on the APC:

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Hmm. It seems I need a two pin grey Saab plug. ANyone got one listlessly rolling about at the bottom of toolbox?

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Engine running, I just had enough time to replace the bulb in the headlight switch.

Grab and pull, gently:

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Offer a prayer to the fragile plastic demons, and pull out the bulb holder:

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This is unnecessarily over-engineered for bulb holder. It took me three attempts of carefully bending, tweaking and carefully reinserting the holder to get it right. I probably should have got an LED bulb, but at least it looks wonderful for the time being:

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With all the failed vacuum lines redone, the engine was a little quieter (on the treble end of the spectrum). There was something else though... I got out and put a rag over the end of the exhaust. High pitched whine, louder hiss and no stall. Exhaust leak. Gah, that wasn't there when we test drove it!

[Spinakerr]

gforceg said:

Thanks for keeping the updates coming.

It was nice of them to put a piece of lucky heather in the box with your fresh pipe.

I think that is lavender from a nearby bush my end, but I'll take all the luck I can get with the 900.

Pericoloso said:

I probably have one of those 2 pin plugs.
I picked up all sorts of stuff being binned,like warranty looms they had paid but didn't want returned.
I'll take a look next week.

Thanks - another Saab fanatic has already sorted me out, but if you have looms and anything for a turbo I might have to send you a short list!

As always, great to hear the Saab memories - I may have missed these first time round but we'll ensure this one continues for a good few years.

As I was turning over the parts cache for a plug I found a NOS expansion tank cap in fetching Sin City yellow. The original has a slightly different design and a few marks from lost water, so I've swapped it over. It looks like the coolant system has a bit of slidge an not enough antifreeze, so a flush is in order.

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[Spinakerr]

Another hour spare on a sunny Saturday allows time for Turbo fettling - the auxiliary air valve is another component in the complicated idle system, so I unbolted it and gave it a good dose of carb cleaner:

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Seems to be ok, and resistance measured at 50 Ohms when engine wasn't running should be about right:

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Next, the negative temperature coefficient sensor on top of the manifod, or NTC - on this Bosch system it should read around 350 Ohm warm and 3000 Ohm (ish) cold from the only two pins with a multimeter. It is and so is left in place.

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The ever-helpful Saab supplier Steve Lewis sent me a Saab electrical connect. I decided to retain the extra insulation and solidity of the wires within the plug, cut off the crumbly section I have and crimp on. Much neater:

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The crackcase breather rubber was rock hard and broke into a many-splintered thing upon prodding:

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Luckily in the spares pile that came with the car there was a flexible, intact replacement. Phew.

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Although there are a few vacuum lines yet to replace, they are the ones without obvious splits, so I took the idle down to 900 using the main control bolt and the throttle stop screw (just to the left of the socket in this picture:

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"Are we there yet?" Well, no. There are no stalls but the idle occasionally stumbles and misses, just like my Alfa 164 when it had vacuum leaks, it smells overfueleryish and isn't as responsive on the throttle as I would have expected.

Next up, temporary patch of the exhaust least with delicious gunk, final vacuum line replacement, adjustment of the throttle position sensor to ensure it can close completely and we have some rather tasty quad pintle EV6 injectors inbound from the US of A. The current injectors are little noisy and the original single pintles.

[Spinakerr]

The Saab is motoring along nicely, recent commitments have kept us away from maintenance and cleaning duties, but this weekend we ticked off a few more items.

In our sweltering summer the Saab occasionally overheated in the dire traffic - the electric fan wasn't cutting in, so evidently something was awry. To its credit, it didnt cut out even with the needle on claret, and with the heater on full blast it was strangely manageable.

Quick check of the basics - fuse looked good, wiring to the fan looked good and wires on the sensor in good condition. I bridged the contacts at the radiator sensor and the fan kicked in - culprit found.

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Coolant drain is required to get the sensor out, and I decided to get full flush done. The expansion tank looked averagely disastrous but a check of the service receipts noted blue and red coolant being added by different garages. Brilliant.

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As I was prodding hoses and thermostats at the front of the car, we took the bonnet off - wife armed with 12mm socket, me bracing for the weight. My goodness I was not prepared for it on my own but managed to regain my composure with only a dent to my pride. Much easier:

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There are many techniques of draining/flushing and cleaning a c900, but as I'm likely to replace the radiator, probably replace the slightly rattly fan and repaint the slam panel next year I just wanted to get the worst out and run it through the winter.

The drain plug is on the bottom of the offside, and as my battery had been relocated to the boot access here was much easier than the bottom radiator hose. Of course, this required a 24mm spanner. I do not have a 24mm spanner. I creased my brow and remembered exactly how heavy the bonnet was. I then gently drove to a nearby Toolfixbasestation and picked up a set of spanners. No one died.

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Forums advocate arranging a hose to direct the coolant spray away from paint and electronics. I had limited options, but found a small hose in the Saab spares box and a funnel to direct the flow correctly.

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I then unbolted the IAC that sits on top of the thermostat housing (two 10mm bolts) and gently loosened the 13mm housing bolts. One was fine, but the other came with silvery chunks and filings... it had been epoxy/liquid metalled into the block. Darn. AT the least the thermostat was good quality example with a jiggle pin and operated correctly on the hob during a teabreak.

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Luckily the old fan thermoswitch (29mm, for those of you playing metric bingo in this post) came out easily, and the new item from SaabBits went back in neatly, with a whisker of electrical compound on newly bent connectors to keep it tight.

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Still, I removed the thermostat and replaced the housing carefully, and switched the heater to 'full hot', then flushed as much as I could with the hose from a completely random set of hose points. Then, all sealed up and a Holts Speedflush with water, run up to temperature.

The fan kicked in correctly and brought the temperature down. Excellent.

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While the car cooled down enough for more flushing and cleaning, I replaced the final rubber vacuum hoses that I started in July. Much easier without the bonnet on! I didn't take any more photos but here's an artist's impression of the complete entanglement:

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One of the vacuum Ts was actually blocked completely, so that was expunged and cleaned with carb cleaner. If this is cause of the erratic idle...

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With the top hose off the thermostat I noticed a coolant elbow below it had a jubilee clip at a bad angle, and was generally substandard:



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I decided to pry it out - it had evidently been leaking, and the jubilee disintegrated.

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The elbow looked manky, with split ends, but I had no replacement so had a quick look at delivery times with a cup of tea. Hold on, what was that hose I fished out earlier for draining the coolant into the funnel? Aha! Looks like the previous owner had put in the spares pile; another job he was planning!

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Some fresh clips and it went back together neatly.

The thermostat housing I pondered - time was little and I didn't have the correct tap set for making a new thread for a new bolt. So, I slightly bodged it with a longer bolt and some Hylomar blue after putting the thermostat back in.

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I used Comma G48 coolant after a final flush. The tank is clear but already some deposits missed are visible. Darn it. To be addressed properly next spring.

Of course, the car also got a good bath and it looking fresh. Next up - some winter protection underneath, and injector experiments...

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[Spinakerr]

Thank you all for the comments, glad some of this tinkering is of interest!

Scooobydont said:

Brilliant write up, not often I read a thread from start to finish but this was one of them. Love it. Thanks for taking the time to document your journey with it.

I aspire to the level of mechnical wizardry on some threads here, but until the workshop is built it's likely to be much more about keeping everything running. It's good to document it here - I've already had several people say it's a modern 'service history' for the home mechanic!

Cambs_Stuart said:

Really good to see the updates to one of my favorite threads. So will you be using this beauty all through the winter?

Oh yes, my wife uses it a lot and will not be deterred by salt and cold - she says surely winter is what they were designed for! The heater was already the best of the fleet, with the recent sludgepurge it's even quicker to get up to temperature. Will have to fix those heated seat elements one day, but first it's time to get underneath it and coat everything in derustsealantpoxyevilgunkstuffprotector.

danllama said:

Also enjoyed that last update. Playing with the coolant/radiator is one of my favourite jobs on cars, nice and simple.

It was on this, yes, though I didn't tempt fate by pulling the engine block drain. Maybe another time, when I have a spare one in case of breakage.

shalmaneser said:

I updated my e36 M3 with EV6 injectors from the old EV1's and it made quite a difference to both driveability and mpg and power. Much smoother idle when cold, too.

anywho, this is a great thread, enjoying the journey!

Good stuff! I did the EV1 to EV6 swap for my Alfa Romeo 164 and it really helped smooth power delivery and fuel efficiency, hence my interest for the Saab. Reading up, they seem to be a bit more sensitive and the pump is at 2.5Bar, but I believe I have sourced the correct quad-pintle replacement that will say 'These are not the droids you're looking for, move along' to the system.

JimmyJam said:

I spotted your Saab I think a few weeks ago parked outside Kew Gardens, looks brilliant. Be good to catch it at Classics and Cake one morning and hopefully I'll have my black 900 to make a nice pair!

Yes she's often there for work, though it gets around a bit! One of us always tries to get to Classics and Cake, it really is the best kind of car meet. Plus cake.

One final easy fix - door handle backing plate swapped. Much better.

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[Spinakerr]

Sending out and SOS to Saab-minded PHers:

Bit of a problem in Saabland - on the way to the Ace Cafe Norse meet the car started cutting out, strangely the engine was still running and could be caught with a 'rolling bump', but it was as if the key had been turned off. This happened regardless of speed, gear or whether the car was changing gear/braking etc.

My wife limped it home but I hopped in for a bit of the return leg - there is no boost! No turbo or revs past 2500rpm and the boost needle stays in the white zone. To be clear - there was/is no smoke, noises or otherwise that would resemble turbo failure, it's just not even attempting to spool.

The car has been functioning well for a week since the coolant and sensor work, and nothing else had been worked on.

Prior symptoms include APC solenoid chattering away to itself (stopped if unplugged, naturally), some uneven idling and occasional hiccuping (whether hot or cold).

I've checked all the new vacuum hoses are on securely and that the APC wiring is actually attached - from a quick scour of the internet this could be a wealth of items:

Knock sensor
APC unit
APC solenoid
Grounds/earths
Distributor/rotor leads (all checked previously)
Plugs (Replaced recently, will check the correct NGK plugs)
Fuel issue
Airflow sensors

Any pointers gratefully received!

[Spinakerr]

The Saab is testing me. I'm appealing to the Saab experts on here for some further help at the bottom...

I thought I had identified the cause of the stalling as a short on the distributor Hall sensor wiring. If it was moved at all, the car died:

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I ordered a new three pin Bosch connector, prepped the wires and luckily it all went together nicely. I put some heatshrink on the ground connector to give it a bit more durability and less exposed wire.

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I don't have the official Bosch crimping tool, so had a little jog with the extension lead and soldered them on for good measure.

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That all went back together with salvaged shielding. Nice secure fit:

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With this securely back on the side of the distributor I checked the plugs again (fine, right plug and right mixture colour), checked all the vacuum lines and scraped off the verdigris under the distributor cap and rotor. The car started and ran, but with it's customary idle hiccuping. In neutral it ran through the rev range, but not matter which way I prodded the wiring on the distributor it didn't falter or stumble.

I decided to check the timing, and followed the guide on Saab forums in combination with the Haynes book of lies. I tried to turn the engine from the crack 30mm nut but there is not a socket this side of Trollhatten that would fit there!

Tried a spanner:

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No luck. So I stuck it in 5th and yanked it like a recalcitrant white hippo down the driveway, muttering. My neighbours said hello. I scowled and slipped, falling face down onto my tool box, scattering sockets. My neighbours wisely shuffled off quickly.

Turned engine until I felt the compression stroke felt on cylinder 1, rotor in the correct position pointing to 1, also an old tippex mark on the flywheel was on the correct number per the manual (around 17 degrees BTDC).

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So, I disconnected the vacuum hose, put it all back together and started it up. Markings were off under the timing light, so I loosened the distributor nut and rotated a bit - car idled better and the tippex mark lined up with the casing mark correctly. IT's a 13mm holding nut and only the slimmest of vintage spanners managed to loosen and tighten it!

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Revved it manually and no issues, slight dip in rev on deceleration. Reconnected vacuum hose, decided to go for a drive to see how it felt.

Unfortunately back to the original habits: It idles fine and revs in neutral, but problems arise in motion.

The car can't rev above 2000rpm in all gears, and the boost doesn't kick in at all. I can hear a wastegate or similar allowing air to exit. The car attempts to stall between changing gears. If driven gently this is lessened, the harder the accelerator is pushed the more likely it is to stall.

The APC solenoid is not clicking at all now. I unplugged the APC two pin plug on top of the radiator and the car behaves exactly the same - liable to stall.

I checked the bypass valve by disconnecting its hose from the APC and it has resistance when sucked.

The APC is a 7524127 unit, and this is a Bosch B202 car.

I wondered after the Hall sensor wiring what else I could have disturbed, so checked all the vacuum hoses on the car (again), checked every hose clip and prodded the AAC on top of the thermostat. No change, or stall.

Could the APC solenoid finally have given up having chattered away for a few months? Shall I take off all the valves again and recheck resistances?

It feels like the car is in a primitive limp mode, has anyone experience this before or have any pointers? Many thanks in advance.

[Spinakerr]

Crisis somewhat averted - I was convinced the issue was something simple, an item disturbed or wire knocked out of alignment.

Checking some of the hoses, the main air inlet jubilee clip offered no resistant, and closer inspection with a hesitant finger revealed it was not sealed at all.

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There are also many perforations on the underside, but when reattached with a cable tie the engine ran much better, and a short drive confirmed it was boosting into the yellow zone as it had done before these shenanigans.

I've ordered a significant silicone replacement set, as if this one is bad the others won't be far behind, and we can then continue the quest for full boost into... The Red Zone.

[Spinakerr]

MJK 24 said:

Is the ignition coil failing under load?

No the coil is all within spec, nothing amiss there though some of the HT leads have gouges and splits, so they are being replaced.

Veeayt said:

Great car! Is it still with an overpainted badge though?

Yes the whole bonnet needs redoing really, as do two suspect wheel arches but perhaps it's wortht he intermediate therapy of a proper badge in the interim!

[Spinakerr]

Christmas has come early for the Saab - silicone Do88 hoses, jubilee clips aplenty, new Bougicord HT leads and a good quality boot handle.

I'm inordinately excited, but that may be down to a breakfast of Strepsils.

Hopefully the used EV6 injectors from the US (yes, really) will arrive just in time for the weekend's operations too...

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[Spinakerr]

Saturday heralded the first few hours of peace in the holiday period. That meant one thing - time to Saab.

There are two running problems at present - a slightly rough idle and a turbo that only goes midway, which is a failsafe on the system when something is awry.

First off, replacing the HT leads with all new Bougicord items. There were a number of splits in the old leads, and one was not a Bougicord, so they were changed.

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No real change, but that made me feel better. Old leads retained just in case.

Next up, silicone replacements for all the intake and turbo hoses. I went with standard black from do88, and I was impressed with the quality - a many-layered material with some give that looks like they will outlive the car.

I carefully photographed each original hose and position, and ensured I had matching replacements, plus I took the opportunity to replace the rabidly clattering APC items with silicone. I know how you all like photos of this kind of stuff: behold;

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I think all the items that came off were original, and many had cracked, split, deformed or otherwise were in a lifecycle tailspin covered in dregs of oil, filth and nonsense.

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Darkness fell. I decided reassembling by torchlight wouldn't do, so I pushed the car out of the way and took all the components inside for the night. As the hoseclips were all high quality items, I drenched them in Gunk and gave them a good scrub. Fortunately they all responded positively and were in good working order.

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In the morning I inspected the Bosch MAF, a prime suspect for idling/stuttering and hesitation issues, and of course it was caked in nastiness. There are protective grilles either end, the retaining clips for these carefully pried out to reveal:

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MAF cleaner sparingly applied, et voila:

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Daylight revealed a number of clips, connectors and hoses elsewhere that needed replacement or tidying, and with the air system removed access was never better. Simple things, but it keeps me happy. Some were about to give:

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Turbo was also in good order with no play, looks like it had been replaced at some point:

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A fair can of UBIK carb cleaner (note: this does not actually exist) to other pipes and parts later, I started to reassemble. I only had to trim the three-holed turbo elbow to fit, all the other went in with a bit of effort.

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Phew. Did this make a difference? Well...

Not really for the idle, but turbo boost is no longer stuttering when midway into the yellow zone on the gauge, with a definite improvement in delivery.

I expected the turbo to still not be boosting correctly, as there a number of split vacuum lines under the dash for the pressure regulator (and perhaps blow- by solenoid?), so I have new hoses for that when I get a day to spend upside down in the passenger seat.

I also think the injectors might be the last remaining culprit of the idle, one ticks louder than others and they are all original. I have some EV6 quad pintles that can go in to hopefully find some improvement, and at the least eliminate that item.

Any other tips from Saab officianados?

[Spinakerr]

Yes it's tricky - it's an occasional misfire, and the idle doesn't waver too much, which convinced me it it was something to do with a single cylinder, but looking at what is left to replace, it may need more diagnosis of MAF/AMM/ECU rather than the hard components, which have largely checked out fine so far (excluding the Turbo system).

New year's day brought the traditional dilemma - shall we actually get up, stagger through any residual head fug and get to Brooklands? Well, this year I was gently encouraged, and we managed to get there. A fantastic day - highly recommended - we even got a discount due to the usual traffic at entry. I would liken it to Pistonheads itself as the variety is incredible - Astons rub shoulders with tatty Pandas, 80s saloons next to American muscle, and plenty in the museums and exhibits to poke around.

Some highlights:

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The car behaved well, fan kicking in correctly in the heavy traffic and no other tribulations other than the bedamned idle. So upon return home, and as darkness fell, I 'just popped outside for a moment to check something'... more to follow.

[Spinakerr]

Fresh from Brooklands, at 3pm on New Year's Day I decided to replace some final ignition components as the occasional miss at idle had entirely eaten my soul.

First up, the original rotor arm looked healthy and Boschish but was an unknown, and happily the correct NOS item showed up for 4.99, so on it went.

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Luckily it came off with a few gently taps. These are prone to getting stuck on.

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I also decided the Bosch distributor cap, which I had swapped over 6 month ago, needed a verdigris removal with a dremel. Fortunately a few seconds on each contacts brought them up to scratch.

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The started up fine... but still had the blasted hiccup. As they say in Trollhaten, skit.

By now it was 4pm on new year's day. My wife had the fire lit and was putting the kettle on. It was the final day before I went back to work, and it was getting dark and cold.

I decided to change the fuel injectors.

Having had great results swapping out old EV1 Bosch injectors on my Alfa Romeo 164, I was disappointed to learn there was not extensive interest in trying EV6 (quad-jet) injectors on the Saab 900. Lots of threads and experiments with bigger injectors for higher BHP, part of the turbo upgrades, tuning etc. but nothing for improving general mpg and throttle response on a standard engine.

In November I consulted one of the online databases of Bosch injectors (Stan Weiss) to find something more modern with the same flow rates as the originals, 0280150706s, which looked decidedly crusty in their original harnesses, at 234cc/hour at 3 bar. Notably, I think the Saab pumps of this era work at 2.5bar, so a lot of double checking ensued. While EV6 injectors from later Saabs probably worked (some suggested the NA 2nd gen 900s), I decided on a slightly closer, and much cheaper, set of 0280155715 (235 cc/hr). From a 5.7L V8 in America. Even with shipping charges and a tax they the price of two burgers and came from a reputable source as fully working. These also came with the same wiring connectors, thank goodness.

Magnetic lights hastily arranged on the bonnet like a closing scene of Batteries Not Included, I got to work.

Two 12mm bolts held the rail in, and all the clips and injectors wiggled free once a few vacuum lines and wires had been carefully moved out of the way.

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A little bit of fuel was captured by rags correctly positioned (thank you, Alfa memory) and the original injectors all came out without a fuss. Some of the O rings were well past their sell-by date, but luckily my new set came with new replacements.

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Old and new:

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Single vs quad jets. Saab always said 'Born From Jets', and this was probably more relevant:

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All in gently, clips checked and double checked, bolts tightened, pump primed a few cycles to ensure no leakage...

It runs. It runs well. It still misses, but somehow the engine is calmer. No vibrations. Hmm, further investigation is underway.

My wife has been running it for a week now and has said it no longer stumbles when the clutch is depressed, and doesn't have an fuel smell in the cabin (the return line runs through the headlining, which we don't have). It does still miss and occasionally hiccup, but so far the replacement has been a good one - no leaks and some improvements.

Next up...

Actually I don't know. When I unplugged the NTC sensor when the car was warm it ran better for 30 seconds, and previously I had only tested it when cold. I think I'll test it for a whole temperature cycle, as it looks original and older sensors can start to be shouty, cranky and opinionated.

[Spinakerr]

Thanks for the kind words everyone - the car continues to be in daily use by my wife, and the jobs continue to ensure it is healthy.

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We need to derust and restitch wheel arches and the underneath, unfortunately funds and time got away from us this year but ideally I'd like to get it sealed up by someone trustworthy in SW London. Recommendation welcome!

I also swapped out the dreadful oversprayed badge for one that had lost all its enamel and colour. It's a change.





I have a new boot latch, handle and light assembly but I want to get the engine running a bit better. Having timed it previously with some bits out of kilter I'm aiming to do that again and see where some of the distributor bits and sensors are. After these, the only thing left is a faulty valve somewhere or even the guts of the distributor needing a rebuild, both of which I don't think I can manage on my lonesome. We'll see.

[Spinakerr]

The idle and performance issues have been solved! Spoiler - it was the timing and idle setup.

Running out of mental capacity for this issue and suspecting the timing as noted, I took the opportunity of a visit to my parents in Somerset to see Tony at A&D Motors, Yeovil, on the advice of a friend.



Given his 30 years of experience, he read through this thread and said to drop in - fortunately all my parts work and line replacement was ok, but upon checking the timing it was pronounced as 17 degrees.... AFTER top dead centre. Ah. It should be BEFORE. Gosh.

Scraped off the old dollops of tippex and we started from scratch - pushing the car in third, ensuring the vac line from the distributor was off and loosening the distributor nut.



A few movement clockwise on the dizzy with the timing light setup and all was well - everything settled into a much smoother idle, and the rpm rose to 1200.



Idle adjustment screws then reset in the right order - which I hadn't done previously - vertical stop screw is just for the inlet flat (previously cleaned), horizontal screw for the idle mixture.

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Once calmed down to the factory 850rpm, stillness was abound. No stuttering, no hiccuping and the APC woodpecker valve even shut up for a few minutes. A revelation, and no new parts required!.

We took it out for a spin - what a difference! Full pressure turbo now at full chat, wheelspin in second in the damp conditions, and a very happy idle - yay! I was, and still am, grinning from ear to ear.



Sadly, Tony is packing up and selling after three decades of keeping Saabs on the road - he kindly showed us around the garages full of parts and pieces, with the highlight of course being his 96 cabriolet in tangerine.

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Check out his previous green Sonnett!

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A absolute treasure trove but all good things must come to an end - and I'm sure the right homes will be found for all these goodies. As my mum (who had accompanied me for this little adventure, including pushing the car in third gear) said - "Never throw anything away. It'll be useful someday, for somebody."

[Spinakerr]

MJK 24 said:

Thanks for any other update! Is there’s any 164 news to declare?!

Surely the fuel return line doesn’t run through the headlining?!

You're right it's the evaporation line that runs (and circumnavigates) the roof of the cabin. One of the old injectors looked blocked so hopefully any fuelling issues are now sorted.

The 164 confronts me each morning with a fierce expression, but as it had a intermittent complete battery drain issue it has not moved for 2 months. I needs an MOT end of Feb, and with the Saab and Rover now on the road, hale and hearty, it's time to dust off the black leather heated seats and fire up the cast iron twinspark. More to follow.

[Spinakerr]

3k miles down since purchase, time for an oil change on the Saab, plus other bits and bobs.

Possibly one of the easiest cars to operate on, ever - no jacks, no stands, I didn't even have to get on my back as the drain plug is signposted from just nearside the nearside wheel. Quick run to the shops and back to get it warmed up, dipstick out, 13mm socket on the plug:



Four litres out, black but no sludge, proving its long record of regular changes to be truthful.

Filter it under the bonnet, this was on tighter than expected so I put a bag underneath and used my oil filter unscrewifier:



Standard part back on after a sealsmear of oil:



Job done. Few minutes in total. Phew!



Two things that fill me with dread under any bonnet - cable ties and gooey electrical tape. Part of the injector/sensor loom that runs over the engine was a particular eyesore, and could flap about unchecked.



So I ordered some 30mm rubber P clips, used some existing bolt holes and injector-securing bolts to lift it sensibly out of the way and much tidier.



Still plenty of gooey black tape to remove, but it's a start.

Next up, the grill is well past it's best, with gaffa tape and all sorts of repairs:



While I search for a 'god grill' for a flat front, which seems to be an impossibility, eBay threw up (I think literally) a mouldy example for a fiver.




With some jif and elbow grease it looked a tad better than our existing one, so off it came.



Looks like we need a new slam panel too...



That'll do for the moment - at least it had more retaining clips and fixings intact. Will transfer over the turbo badge and suchlike if a better one doesn't come up.

The miles keep ticking by, and with the full turbo working this car is a joy at present.



Next up...some rust repair...

[Spinakerr]

shalmaneser said:

Ooh look what I found:

http://sasautocustoms.co.uk/saab/214-saab-classic-...

Hmmm...

I know, I know - but unless a used one pops up for a tenth of this money I doubt I'll be getting it - there is a long list of items above manifolds at the present. Until it cracks, of course.

Frybywire said:

I can highly recommend County Coachworks in Kingston. Used them many times and they are superb.
https://www.countycoachworks.co.uk/

Thanks - I gave them a call and they were not interested at all. Couldn't wait to get me off the line, so I'll continue searching - seems like a well trodden job for a Saab specialist given the number of repair panels available.


The MOT looms ominously on the horizon, so I have booked the 900 this week into an established specialist (NDS West London) to conduct a thorough pre-MOT and see what I've neglected this year the most.

In the mean time, some little jobs to ensure no truly silly failures, and some satisfying aesthetics.

Exhaust blows were identified, wire brushed and pasted shut. Significantly adjusted the note of the car, sadly, so that rear Carlsson stainless box needs to turn up!





Centre silencer and downpipe section needs to be replaced sharpish, but hopefully this will get it through the MOT.



Nothing elicits positive sentiment from an MOT tester like shiny trim, so I finally fitted the fantastic 3M stuff from Steve Lewis. Rear was missing, front original stuff has dissolved.



The new stuff is self adhesive and just required a gentle scrub of the valley with white spirit before application.





Ping! Glinty. I particularly like the two parallel chrome pieces on the bootlid and bumper now.

Front was original, with standard unexpectedly over-engineered spring hooks to secure it. Amazing.





Next up - new wiper blades. However the arms themselves were in disgraceful condition, so I selected a 13mm socket and took them off for a spruce up.



Rust, chips, rusty chips and chip rust:



I also dug the front headlight wiper arms out of the spares mountain and got down to some serious sanding.



Some tactical Bilt Hamber to treat the rust, then a good few layers of spraypaint. I used a stonechip as, well, they obviously take a beating for some reason, and also because the rest of the trim on the car is grey/matt and somewhat faded, so it matches a lot better than a glossy black.



That's better, with new Hella wipers to replace the dilapidated previous encumbents.



New blades for the headlights on order, though they're not wired up as far as I can tell.



I also picked up another flat front grill on that auction site for £3 and swapped it in, as it was less diseased and had most of its tabs and screw holes, unlike the last two. The main downside is zero chrome, but I would exercise my newfound highly technical spraying skills in future.



All other fluids and bulbs look good, though the rear offside brake pad retainer disintegrated upon prodding so I've ordered new pads and fitting kits all round for NDS to fit. Finger crossed.

[Spinakerr]

Thanks for the replies, and I realise I left it one slightly underwhelming cliffhanger - MOT achievement unlocked!

Rear brake pads were in a truly miserable state from my inspection, so I had Nelson at NDS Saabs replace the whole lot with those I had in storage.







I didn't take any photos of the workshop as I was too busy talking his ear off and excitedly yabbering about the 900, but he and his family-run workshop are a true gem. I have booked him for more jobs I can't undertake at present with a skip in the driveway. Great to find such experience close by!

I think a huge part of the MOT pass was down to my work replacing the headlight wiper blades, so I'll just post that photo and nod sagely at my own achievement.



I look at that photo now and only see rust screws. Curses.

In better news, Nelson diagnosed what we had thought of as a loose gearbox mount and shifter as a front engine mount, and he casually mentioned he had one to hand. Booked in for next week.

While my exhaust repair held for the MOT the proper replacement is at hand - Saab NOS downpipe and front silencer sourced, stainless rear box to be picked up this weekend from Newbury and we should be free of leaks, for the moment. I'm still on the lookout for stainless rear section with twin tailpipes, but alas Steve Lewis doesn't have any in stock and they seem to evade capture for the time being.

More to follow shortly, on the hunt for headlining...

Edited by Spinakerr on Thursday 13th June 22:33

[Spinakerr]

Ha! Yes you're right, it has magical properties. There was an Outside podcast recently on what it would take to make a rope out of the stuff to support humans.

Following the brakes and MOT experience I booked the 900 in for more work at NDS Saab in west London for two jobs that would be difficult on the driveway - front engine mount and downpipe & silencer replacement.



Good company:



Nelson and his family are old school experts, a truly daunting level of experience and knowledge comes to bear, and I have to stop myself from rattling of dozens of questions each time I see him now.



Amazingly, he managed to get hold of an original Saab downpipe section, NOS. According to him there are a few of these about as the non-cat models have a lower survival rate.



I had a cunning plan to replace the mid sections with a stainless Scorpion piece I picked up on eBay...



...but despite the seller's claims of it being a 'straight swap', we found the rear connector to the tailpipe section to be 4mm different from factory (front ok), so I'd either need a new custom rear section or some clever sleevage given the space. I opted to fit the new Saab section, store the mid box and refit everything else as it was sound. The rear can wait until I have a Carlsson twin-tailpipe stainless section, with the right diameter joiner, made for it down the line.

Fortunately all the fittings and studs were compliant with the change. The Saab has lost what we had come to know as its distinctive roar, so the further Carlsson addition will need to add a bit of noise back in.



The new engine mount was a revelation - so much easier to drive in traffic, a marked difference.





Other mounts were given a clean bill of health and Nelson adjusted the idle (again) and even found some original Saab steering liquid to top up the reservoir. The system leaks at a particular join so I think I'll have to drain it and flush it when that takes place in any case.

Nelson thinks the wastegate actuator needs adjustment or replacement, as now on full acceleration in 2nd there is fuel cut out operating, a safety feature for 'too much boost', and often a result of people messing with the wastegate.



One option is to bridge the cutout, but I think we want it back to factory, or just 'no cut out' spec, and perhaps a new item from Kinugawa would be worth trying out. Suggestions and experiences welcome!

The turbo had blown off one of the APC hoses to, so I refitted with a hose clip and will monitor carefully.





Next up, rust hunting and headlines. Yay.

Edited by Spinakerr on Saturday 22 June 16:12