[saab] Pastry's 3rd suspiciously cheap Swedish Hauler

pastry · 2017-05-05T06:15:10+00:00

Hopefully this one treats you better than the xc...

pastry

yes, it was the night after taking that picture, so I had one day of joy followed by a night of despair.

pastry

The Aero lives once more!

Got her going on Saturday morning. First startup was as nerve-wracking as ever, there was a sound like piston slap but it was probably just the lifters– it's so hard to locate sounds in a motor.. Suffice to say that sound has not returned.

So, finally – I hope this is it.

I replaced the whole balance shaft assembly including the housings, and I replaced rod and main bearings. Thanks once again to @jamesinc for the tool, which performed flawlessly!

I'll drive it 500km or more before I decide all is well, but so far so good. The power is addictive after driving the XC90, especially from 60kpm to 110(-ish) kph..!

- - -

Next plans...

I've been waiting to move on to these for sooooo long now!

- Repair minor rear arch damage (quote for paint was $700... ouch!)
- Add the rear spoiler
- Replace tyres on stock Aero wheels with ones i have in the shed
- Change rose bushings in rear suspension, considering buying the eccentric set for proper alignment
- Tint on all the electric windows is knackered, might remove / replace, leaving the quarters and hatch
- Paint correction / dent removal - needs a very good polish!
- Save for downpipe and exhaust upgrade (keeping it fairly quiet with 3" to 2.5")
- Save for injectors & FP
- Save for a tune...

I'll probably go with an off-the-shelf downpipe, but get a custom exhaust made from that back so I can have a bit more control over the sound and tip. This will be a fair way in the future..

- - -

By the way, none of the shops that I sent that tool plan to ever responded. Amazing.

SA940

I was so going to ask how this was going tonight. I've loved this thread. Great work. Its a beautiful looking car. Take a bow good man.

pastry

Love the simple lines of these cars.

Just passed 140,000km, about 300km into the re-rebuild.

I want to do a compression test after another few hundred km to get some idea of how the rings / bores are bedding in. Feels pretty good, be nice to see some high numbers though.

I've not tackled any of my jobs yet, really keen to get a polisher on it.. just got to buy one..

Ex850R

Very nice bloke!

bigal

Just sat with a coffee and read this thread.. very inspiring. Well done.

What project will be next?

pastry

Cheers Al, yep one to emulate a bit with your new XC70!

I genuinely could not have done it without the amazing support of places like this, and the various Saab forums – I'm constantly amazed how much help is out there. And of course, I'd have been stuck without the help of James bashing out that tool for me. So, hoo-bloody-rah for community!

In terms of next vehicle, I don't know. Everything has gone up so much in the last 3-5 years, that I'm stuck. I can no longer afford a 3 door 900 Aero, or a 944 S2, or a Fulvia, or even a Beta Montecarlo (the closest I'm likely to get to a 037!).

I'd like to save my efforts for something worthy. I'd consider buying a shell for electrification, but I'd also need the price of electric gear to come down a hell of a lot.

So, I might have to just drive for a bit until I get stinking rich.

Other than that, the XC is getting a new radiator, AC compressor changed out, and a few other jobs, and I have enough of a list on this one to keep me more than busy.

bigal

How about an old volvo to keep you busy? Still affordable.

pastry

I bought a cheap polisher, so I was excited to make a start on the roof - it is pretty bad...

(roof shark aerial thing goes here)

I reckon it will come up, even if not perfect it'll be a huge improvement. This is after one half-decent pass on the back corner.

pastry

Well many months later and the car is only at 142,XXX km.

It runs bloody well, big fat oomph of power when the boost comes on, and it goes pretty hard to 6000+ rpm.

I didn't really win the battle with the roof - the clear is failing. A couple of tiny spots have blistered, which is hugely disappointing. It still looks a million miles from how it did when I bought it, but in the end I couldn't rescue it. A respray will be required in its distant future.

I've continued to tidy her up.

Fixed the rear subwoofer by re-foaming it.
Wet sanded out some of the bigger scratches, including a line that ran along the whole rear drivers side.
Fixed up a few blown bulbs in the centre console and info display.
Removed the old crappy tint.
Put the stock wheels back on with decent set of rubber.
Replaced the shark fin aerial with a new OEM dummy unit (eBay ones were just shite IMO).
Added camber bolts to the front struts - still saving for the KMAC rear ones
Did a basic repair of the lightly damaged rear arch to get some paint on it. Fine from distance!
Thought i'd fixed a squeak in the back seat area, but it came back. Got to track this bugger down!

Mechanically I've had a few snags:

Wheel bearing
Pass. front wheel bearing AND hub failed - had a new bearing pressed into a new hub and then refitted, but it still chirps now and then because I bought a "kit" not realising the parts are from bloody ProParts Sweden, who are.. mediocre. So will probably do this again with a top quality bearing.

ABS Sensor failed
Likely wiring failed due to being brittle, and manipulated whilst changing the hub. I will try to repair it first.

Handbrake
I think the handbrake position it has previously been incorrectly adjusted in the cabin, and now I can't seem to perform the proper adjustment on the shoe position. Annoying, will probably get a Saab shop on this one.

Input Shaft Bearing
Biggest of all.. the input shaft bearing is making noise in neutral with clutch up. So I guess I have to pull the gearbox at some point. I might save that job for a time when I can chuck a Quaife LSD in there.. but that time is probably "never" due to the cost... New boxes still available if it ever comes to it.

FWIW I had another Saab fan genuinely interested in buying it, but I wasn't ready and didn't feel i could sell it for what i'd like with the current issues - mainly the ISB. The offer was pretty good though!

ALVO360

'Brew city boost' does Amazing tunes and supplies a lot of performance parts for these Saabs. I must say, I have searched far and wide for a manual 9-5 aero wagon and have only seen one other getting around. Ive installed a quaife LSD in one of these 9-5's and it is fantastic. There's a gearbox "tab bolt" mod that you should apparantely do to strengthen the box when its open. I can find the article explaining everything that needs to be done if you are interested? Also, I have a manual trans update kit around the house if you want that? I also have a bunch of spare parts if you were interested....Very nice score and I'm glad to see she is in good hands!

pastry

Hey @ALVO360 - cheers!

What have you got? I do have tons of the usual spares having owned a few Saab's, but often not the one thing I do need :) What's in the trans update kit? And yep, def interested in the 'box mod.

Yes I am keen to get an LSD in it one day, but they are damned pricey. In the current state where ABS and therefore TCS is not working, one bad wheel hop could be messy. I need to get the sensor sorted ASAP.

Yep I know of BCB, but would you believe we have one of the best tuners here in Aus? James, an ex Saab Master tech in Melbourne, has built some serious cars. I also need to get set up with flash tuning via the OBDII so I can just get tunes e-mailed to me when the time ($$$) comes.

My long-term plan is a custom setup of TD05 16G, 3" downpipe, and I'm going to see how that goes with the rest of the Aero exhaust after the cat retained - I believe it's close to 2.5" anyway. + the necessary supporting bits like injectors/FPR.

As you say they are extremely rare over here in manual config, and to be treasured just like 850R's. In fact there's something to be said for keeping it close to stock.. but I am sorely tempted by the potential of the motor :)

pastry

Also don't think I ever mentioned in this thread, but I finally had a really good look at the books for this car and discovered something brilliant.

It originally wore the NSW plate "CRU15E"

How I wish it still did. Hilarious!

ALVO360

This is the link to the gearbox tab bolt mod:

https://www.genuinesaab.com/psi/gearbox.htm

I know I have a starter motor and a coil pack. I'll have a look later and get back to you with a proper list.

The 9-5 has a factory 400 cell catalytic converter. Before getting the Krona exhaust system, I removed the rear muffler and put in a hotdog, plus put in a high flow cat (second cat) and it made a huge difference to spool up time. Nice subtle tone as the centre resonator does a great job at muffling by itself.

We built a forged motor for our 9-5 (valve cutouts and thermal coating on pistons) and removed the balance shafts (had rotating assembly balanced) with an addition of a lightened flywheel, the 19t turbo and a nice custom tune, it hauls cake. The 19t is a great bolt on upgrade if you have the supporting mods.

pastry

Sounds like you know your way around a 9-5! I've never heard of anyone doing valve cutouts before. It must've been a beast. Where is it now?

Cheers for the link - have browsed that page before but it's a bit beyond me. I've never even cracked a gearbox open.

I def have a starter motor or two, but like all Saab guys am tempted by another DIC.

The 19T is the tried and tested route, but def interested in exploring alternates that will come on boost earlier. I've heard very good things about the TD05, though it's certainly quite a bit more work. I know of one guy down under running one.

I was keen to lighten the flywheel but forgot to load it in the car for the 2hr trip to the shop! I'll bet that is a huge difference and I do kick myself about that. Maybe one day when the gearbox is off.

Also toyed with the balance shaft delete as you'll see in this thread, but in the end decided to retain them – I doubt I will ever build this thing to a level where I will truly notice the difference, though bum-dyno suggest that even the lighter forged pistons I put in make a considerable difference.

ALVO360

We got a lightened flywheel from Abbott's racing. It was my 9-5 which was acquired by a friend of mine. We have since had a falling out.
From my experience, without spending a small fortune, the exhaust, fuel pressure regulator and a stage 3 tune is the beat way to go with keeping the 15t turbo. Although It's definitely pushing the limits of that plastic factory intercooler.
Chasing power, even with the LSD and good tyres, makes the car have less drivability. If these Saabs were rwd and had Volvo seats, that would tick all the box's for me. Still, one of the greatest car's Saab has produced which is reflected in its $84,000 price tag.

pastry

Yeah I have a suspicion the ~315BHP max i might squeeze from the 15T will make me happy enough at least for a while - I could always adapt the downpipe later if needed I suppose to fit the TD05 - like this one

Yep agree there is a limit to how much FWD power you really need. These put it down well stock, and I think the lack of torque steer is pretty admirable give what Saab had to work with. A bit more go would be nice though :)

Here's a video of how it goes now - not hugely fast, but there's some potential in there.

ALVO360

I bought our 19t from Mambatek and I was surprised with the excellent quality of both the machining and parts. I was sceptical to buy from them initially, but they are incredible.

With the mods I mentioned before, the 19t would come onto full boost at around 2600-2800rpm. I put in 32kg uprated valve springs so we could happily rev up to 7000rpm.

I'm green with envy, I've always wanted an aero wagon in manual.
Have you seen how massive the subframe is? I've never seen one like it before, it pretty much covers the entire engine bay and is an ordeal to replace those 6 bushes.
Edit: Just read your last posts mentioning subframe.

ALVO360

P.S - I'll buy it when you're done ??

pastry

Haha appreciate that. To be perfectly honest, the amount I use it I sometimes feel I might as well sell it.

« Previous Page Next Page »