1986 Saab 900 Turbo - White
Discussion
Bobberoo said:
Mk2 Focus suffers the same issue, unless the calipers are kept clean and well lubricated.
I find a lot of cars end up like this now, road crap gets in and the caliper starts to bind a little. I've just ordered 4 rebuild kits for the brakes on my Passat - when that's done I'll do the same for the Mondeo - both 54mm piston calipers, almost identical and a bad design.Cambs_Stuart said:
Good to see it out and about. So what causes that strange wear pattern on the brake?
Are there calipers from a more modern saab that can be used?
Would be a lot of work because......Are there calipers from a more modern saab that can be used?
OP's car is a 1986 model , either the 1987 or the 1988 model had 9000 type brakes fitted ,meaning the handbrake also moved to the rear wheels.
Later brakes will fit but I have no idea what other parts would be required too ,apart from 2 new rear calipers and a completely different handbrake fitment .
Thanks for all the comments - yes they need regular fettling and lubrication. Seems to be a realtively troublesome design and hence the move to traditional rear handbrake in later years.
Nelson at NDS fiddlea with these every time it gors in, but I think finding sime replacements, fully refurbing them and then reading all the Saabnerd forum guides on getting factory setup would be a good exercise.
All bodyshop recommendations welvome...I kkow 2stroke2turbo would do a great job but its a fair distance and they are premium pricing....
Nelson at NDS fiddlea with these every time it gors in, but I think finding sime replacements, fully refurbing them and then reading all the Saabnerd forum guides on getting factory setup would be a good exercise.
All bodyshop recommendations welvome...I kkow 2stroke2turbo would do a great job but its a fair distance and they are premium pricing....
Thanks for all the comments - yes they need regular fettling and lubrication. Seems to be a realtively troublesome design and hence the move to traditional rear handbrake in later years.
Nelson at NDS fiddlea with these every time it gors in, but I think finding sime replacements, fully refurbing them and then reading all the Saabnerd forum guides on getting factory setup would be a good exercise.
All bodyshop recommendations welvome...I kkow 2stroke2turbo would do a great job but its a fair distance and they are premium pricing....
Nelson at NDS fiddlea with these every time it gors in, but I think finding sime replacements, fully refurbing them and then reading all the Saabnerd forum guides on getting factory setup would be a good exercise.
All bodyshop recommendations welvome...I kkow 2stroke2turbo would do a great job but its a fair distance and they are premium pricing....
Spinakerr said:
Thanks for all the comments - yes they need regular fettling and lubrication. Seems to be a realtively troublesome design and hence the move to traditional rear handbrake in later years.
Nelson at NDS fiddlea with these every time it gors in, but I think finding sime replacements, fully refurbing them and then reading all the Saabnerd forum guides on getting factory setup would be a good exercise.
All bodyshop recommendations welvome...
Where are you based/how far are you willing to travel?Nelson at NDS fiddlea with these every time it gors in, but I think finding sime replacements, fully refurbing them and then reading all the Saabnerd forum guides on getting factory setup would be a good exercise.
All bodyshop recommendations welvome...
We're in SW London, but willing to travel for someone with Saab experience and able to keep it realistically priced. We have other cars so no rush on timing, just want it to be underway as its just at a crucial rot turning point, and want ut undersealed and solid before the end of the year.
Spinakerr said:
We're in SW London, but willing to travel for someone with Saab experience and able to keep it realistically priced.
I was going to recommend County Coachworks in Kingston-upon-Thames (SW London 
): https://www.countycoachworks.com/I don't know if they have Saab experience, but they certainly have experience of repairing and painting classics. I have had good experiences of repairs from them.
The other would be Bodycraft in West Horsley (http://www.bodycraft.uk.com/). I've not used them since they moved to their new site, but they were very good when in Surbiton. They have plenty of classics experience, but again I don't know if they have specific Saab knowledge.
Hope everyone is enjoying an Easter drive or tinker - the Saab ticks over 202k and I had a few hours spare so decided to fit some new alternator bushes.
A common issue with the 900 is an excitable little jumping alternator, gleefully kicking like a spring lamb in the engine bay. I had ignored it long enough!
The alternator sits against the firewall, as the 900 engine is 180 degrees from where you would expect it to be mounted, so I had been warned that the relatively routine jobs attending to ancilliaries and belts can be a little fiddly.
This was not a bad job, but over 3 hours, including tea breaks and a few pauses to clean up areas that had been neglected in years past. The most strenous part is taking the alternator out of the car once fully loosened - you can start wiht moving the expansion tank, but I decided not to. I probably would in future.
Our little voltage generator was bouncing a fair amount at idle, and this is often due to cracked or solidified rubber bushes on the main mounting 'hinge' and also on a support arm for the tensioner. Skandix sell a cheap kit, and I also ordered a voltage regulator as I thought while the item is off the engine, best to replace what I can.
As there is not enough room to remove the giant hinge bolt setup and bushes with it on the car, the Saab collective knowledge ether suggests removing the entire hinge, which is three M8 bolts with hex heads, plus the tensioner arm.
Tensioner off first - one 17mm bolt at the top and a 13mm on the engine attachment, with its own two bushes to be replaced. The two belts can then be nudged gently off the pulley.
On the back of the unit the starter exciter wire, ground leads and a plug all needed to be carefully detached... tiny nuts and washers must not be dropped into the engine bowels...
The M8 bolts were doused in PlusGas and I assembled a daisy chain of TengTool 1/4 drive attachments & allen keys to best attack the bolts.
This was the hardest bit of the job, as there were exceptionally tight and access miserable.
After the top two were out, I tied the alternator up on the hinge to access the lower one... and success, it was off.
Lifting the alternator out required careful manipulation of the coolant hoses (scuse me), the brake booster hose (removed at one end), vacuum lines (I'll just push you over here), and the throttle cable (please, please don't bend...). Everything has to be rotated '90 degrees or somersaulted out gracefully.
Off. And out. Once on the floor, 17mm sockets took care of the hinge bolt, and the old bushes removed. Terminal bushes on the support arm too, rock solid and crumbly.
I changed the regulator over - some life left in the old one so added it to my parts draw, but happy this was swapped out give the age related degradation.
The new bushes went into the arm with some silicone spray and poetry, the alternator ones though.... goodness. Very tight fight, and as they have metal inserts some slipperiness, power ballads and actual hammering were required. Very tight but once in, its not going anywhere!
Quite a fiddle to get it all back in, many hands requried to get the bolts in without crossthreding and support arm/belts on in the correct order. Fortunately no casualties, and now it is steady as a rock. Success!
Here's the Saab in a rainbow for getting this far:
A common issue with the 900 is an excitable little jumping alternator, gleefully kicking like a spring lamb in the engine bay. I had ignored it long enough!
The alternator sits against the firewall, as the 900 engine is 180 degrees from where you would expect it to be mounted, so I had been warned that the relatively routine jobs attending to ancilliaries and belts can be a little fiddly.
This was not a bad job, but over 3 hours, including tea breaks and a few pauses to clean up areas that had been neglected in years past. The most strenous part is taking the alternator out of the car once fully loosened - you can start wiht moving the expansion tank, but I decided not to. I probably would in future.
Our little voltage generator was bouncing a fair amount at idle, and this is often due to cracked or solidified rubber bushes on the main mounting 'hinge' and also on a support arm for the tensioner. Skandix sell a cheap kit, and I also ordered a voltage regulator as I thought while the item is off the engine, best to replace what I can.
As there is not enough room to remove the giant hinge bolt setup and bushes with it on the car, the Saab collective knowledge ether suggests removing the entire hinge, which is three M8 bolts with hex heads, plus the tensioner arm.
Tensioner off first - one 17mm bolt at the top and a 13mm on the engine attachment, with its own two bushes to be replaced. The two belts can then be nudged gently off the pulley.
On the back of the unit the starter exciter wire, ground leads and a plug all needed to be carefully detached... tiny nuts and washers must not be dropped into the engine bowels...
The M8 bolts were doused in PlusGas and I assembled a daisy chain of TengTool 1/4 drive attachments & allen keys to best attack the bolts.
This was the hardest bit of the job, as there were exceptionally tight and access miserable.
After the top two were out, I tied the alternator up on the hinge to access the lower one... and success, it was off.
Lifting the alternator out required careful manipulation of the coolant hoses (scuse me), the brake booster hose (removed at one end), vacuum lines (I'll just push you over here), and the throttle cable (please, please don't bend...). Everything has to be rotated '90 degrees or somersaulted out gracefully.
Off. And out. Once on the floor, 17mm sockets took care of the hinge bolt, and the old bushes removed. Terminal bushes on the support arm too, rock solid and crumbly.
I changed the regulator over - some life left in the old one so added it to my parts draw, but happy this was swapped out give the age related degradation.
The new bushes went into the arm with some silicone spray and poetry, the alternator ones though.... goodness. Very tight fight, and as they have metal inserts some slipperiness, power ballads and actual hammering were required. Very tight but once in, its not going anywhere!
Quite a fiddle to get it all back in, many hands requried to get the bolts in without crossthreding and support arm/belts on in the correct order. Fortunately no casualties, and now it is steady as a rock. Success!
Here's the Saab in a rainbow for getting this far:
Cambs_Stuart said:
Always good to see an update. What's spares support like for the Saab vs the Alfa? Just wondering as there are quite a few parts for my clio the Renault no longer support.
Thanks - more specialists in the UK, plus healthy club support. The problem is Saab changed bits every year. Between engines, trim levels, body styles and other nonsensical changes to wiring layouts and sensors it can make hunting down correct T16 bits a chore. But way better than the Alfa 164! I seem to have the last bits of the 164.I'm sure the Clio is relatively well served by the enthusiasts - once you find that bloke that stored a few away its all a bit easier to sort out.
The 900 continues to be our secondary car as the Alfa is awaiting calipers. In sympathy for its stablemate, the Saab has deciding to renew its brake squeaking. These front handbrake calipers are a real pain - I need to source another par and refurbish them & set them up correctly. Tweaking these old ones is not working!
Recent jaunt to help a friend have his exhaust fitted on the only Toyta Crown wagon in the country:
The turbo/apc gauge just stopped working - suspected loose hose; the temperature sensor finally gave up - new one ordered and the front right speaker is dead. So that's a little list for the summer. We also visited a friend who is aiming to take on the sill repair and sunroof/roof repair in July/August. Phew.
I think the sill/sunroof repair the is the most worrying one. Not tempted to learn some welding? I did a 2 week course 24 years ago as part of a workshop skills module when I was at university. I've not done any since. From distant memory MIG and TIG were tricky, but oxyacetylene was quite relaxing.
Always tempted but never the time or space. I need a sabbatical to tackle things like that!
A couple of satisfying Saab fixes this weekend - the dash speaker, temperature sensor and boost gauge.
Both required removal of the dash speakers, so out they came. A previous owner had nicely upgraded the original paper cones Saab items with some Sony units. However loose wiring and poor fitting resulted in a terrible sound.
Yes, they really were just 'lounging about under the cover, as the plastic fitting threads appear to have broken off with age.
In my spares pile there lurked and original pair of speakers and their covers, so I repurposed the original spare 'gaskets' and the four metal clips for each corner. Result! Correctly located speakers using the OEM fittings. A clean of the wires and everything was working nicely.
The boost gauge I suspected a vacuum line cracking or popping off - it transpired both had occured, not at the cluster but at some shorter lengths in the spaghetti of vacuum hoses under the passenger dash.
Bottom black hose here:
Some of these I had mistakenly left as they 'looked ok'. Mistake. All were cracked or split, and I spent a good hour upside down with my feet out the sunroof, cutting silicone hoses to fit.
These excellent photos I took with my nose, so feel free to cackle.
The long hose from the overboost switch to the gauge I fed through after joining old to new...
Success.
And just like that, normal operation resumed. I also untagled and repositioned a few lines with kinks in them - the car seems to be much happier - even at idle! Very strange, but I'll take it as placating the Swedish Trollhatten deities.
The temperature sensor was also not workign so I replaced the engine block sensor.
It moves the needle, but doesn't work correctly. I'm now doubtful whether I bought the right sensor, but as the fan correctly kicks in when hot (see previous pages for all that work), I'll leave it for the time being.
202k and going strong.
Rust removal dates going in!
A couple of satisfying Saab fixes this weekend - the dash speaker, temperature sensor and boost gauge.
Both required removal of the dash speakers, so out they came. A previous owner had nicely upgraded the original paper cones Saab items with some Sony units. However loose wiring and poor fitting resulted in a terrible sound.
Yes, they really were just 'lounging about under the cover, as the plastic fitting threads appear to have broken off with age.
In my spares pile there lurked and original pair of speakers and their covers, so I repurposed the original spare 'gaskets' and the four metal clips for each corner. Result! Correctly located speakers using the OEM fittings. A clean of the wires and everything was working nicely.
The boost gauge I suspected a vacuum line cracking or popping off - it transpired both had occured, not at the cluster but at some shorter lengths in the spaghetti of vacuum hoses under the passenger dash.
Bottom black hose here:
Some of these I had mistakenly left as they 'looked ok'. Mistake. All were cracked or split, and I spent a good hour upside down with my feet out the sunroof, cutting silicone hoses to fit.
These excellent photos I took with my nose, so feel free to cackle.
The long hose from the overboost switch to the gauge I fed through after joining old to new...
Success.
And just like that, normal operation resumed. I also untagled and repositioned a few lines with kinks in them - the car seems to be much happier - even at idle! Very strange, but I'll take it as placating the Swedish Trollhatten deities.
The temperature sensor was also not workign so I replaced the engine block sensor.
It moves the needle, but doesn't work correctly. I'm now doubtful whether I bought the right sensor, but as the fan correctly kicks in when hot (see previous pages for all that work), I'll leave it for the time being.
202k and going strong.
Rust removal dates going in!
Good to see an update, I really don't envy you tracking down more leaks and perished pipes in seemingly miles of hose!
Great that it now idles and goes better though!
On the MIG welding, basic patches for structural stuff like sills aren't too bad to pick up. Neat, tidy and complicated stuff however is another level....
Good luck with the rust treatment!
Great that it now idles and goes better though!
On the MIG welding, basic patches for structural stuff like sills aren't too bad to pick up. Neat, tidy and complicated stuff however is another level....
Good luck with the rust treatment!
harrykul said:
Loving your work, thanks for documenting!
Here's a gratuitous of BOJ, our 92 Carlsson. About to hit 230k, but the PO had it rebuilt about 15k ago.
Wow and wow again - that is our goal! If we can get it to 230k and being the yin to that yang colour wise I will be happy.Here's a gratuitous of BOJ, our 92 Carlsson. About to hit 230k, but the PO had it rebuilt about 15k ago.
Thansk for the note and happy turboing.
darkyoung1000 said:
Good to see an update, I really don't envy you tracking down more leaks and perished pipes in seemingly miles of hose!
Great that it now idles and goes better though!
On the MIG welding, basic patches for structural stuff like sills aren't too bad to pick up. Neat, tidy and complicated stuff however is another level....
Good luck with the rust treatment!
Thanks, yes I really want to - its just time, cost and all the normal 'excuses'. I just need a week or two to have it as a specific goal... more ot follow.Great that it now idles and goes better though!
On the MIG welding, basic patches for structural stuff like sills aren't too bad to pick up. Neat, tidy and complicated stuff however is another level....
Good luck with the rust treatment!
Safe journey back from LeMans!
I'm still up for a group booking at somewhere that welds patches!
Always good to see an update and a reminder of what it takes to keep a modern classic usable every day.
I wonder if in 30 years time there will be a thread of someone doing the same to a fiesta ST (or pick any other current hot hatch)?
I hope so....
Always good to see an update and a reminder of what it takes to keep a modern classic usable every day.
I wonder if in 30 years time there will be a thread of someone doing the same to a fiesta ST (or pick any other current hot hatch)?
I hope so....
Cambs_Stuart said:
I'm still up for a group booking at somewhere that welds patches!
Always good to see an update and a reminder of what it takes to keep a modern classic usable every day.
I wonder if in 30 years time there will be a thread of someone doing the same to a fiesta ST (or pick any other current hot hatch)?
I hope so....
If I ever get a ridiculous amount of cash I'm committed to setting up a car repair shop and getting some apprentice schemes going - though in the meantime perhaps a few days with a master fabricator? We need to ensure those STs are preserved in the future!Always good to see an update and a reminder of what it takes to keep a modern classic usable every day.
I wonder if in 30 years time there will be a thread of someone doing the same to a fiesta ST (or pick any other current hot hatch)?
I hope so....
The working music system is providing a significant increase to driving enjoyment. The car definitely needs improved insulation and a headlining, but we'll get there once some of this pesky rust is sorted out.
Recent run to the New Forest...
One item that had bothered me was the tatty turbo heatshield for the distributor. After prodding various sources Abbott racing provided a solid stainless replacement for £19. Two 13mm turns later, it was on and improves the underbonnet look a nice amount.
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