Yet another newbee
 

Hey folks,
Just dropping a note to introduce myself to your fine site.
Although I've never been much of a Saab guy, (my main ride is a '98 ram diesel, just a bit souped up with 5" stainless exhaust,a superchips comp & some intake tweaks; Nothing better then 680ft lbs of tourque hitting pavement!!) I think I made a good choice.
I've recently aquired a '95 900 SE convertable as a commuter. It has low miles (80k) & I picked it up cheap (I hope?) for about $3500.
Again, not being a Saab guy, (always equated "Saab"to "Yuppie car", what the hell do I know, I like to kill fish & eat them in my spare time!)
I wasn't exactly thrilled about getting one (the car was bought at an auction, I was hoping for a honda), figureing that I've heard the terms "Every Saab owner has a saab story".

I test drove the Honda in question (01 accord w 120k mi)......beh.....couldn't see driving this underpowered bucket of bolts every day, not to mention all of the added "feature noises" coming from the front end.
Then I drove the 900.
Engine idle is smooth, put it in gear (it's an auto) took it for a spin.
I thought "hey, this thing has some spunk". On the highway, I figured out what the "S" button does on the shifter.(Weeeee!!)
The front end was solid (this car has been well cared for, I'm guessing adult owned & garaged) all of the electronics work.
I've had the car for a week now, it's really starting to grow on me.
It does have a slight oil leak (I think it's the oil pan, new gaskets goin in tuesday) other then that it runs out great!
I'm already having to wrestle the woman for the keys in the morning (got them today! HAH! Said I was going to wax it!) & we are bothquickly slipping into becoming fans of this little car.

In closing, I'm hoping the folks here can point me in the right direction as too care for the car, possible improvements & suggestions would be more then welcome.
Thanks for letting me join!


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[IMG]local://upfiles/840/1B3BC6CD87024CA4858D8EB990C0BA21.jpg[/IMG]

RE: Yet another newbee
 

Welcome and good luck with your new ride. Your friend, Jay

RE: Yet another newbee
 

Nice. I wanted a convertible but they don't hold 5. :)

RE: Yet another newbee
 

Nice welcome aboard

RE: Yet another newbee
 

Welcome to the forum. What would you like to do with the car?As a used-to-be honda owner I can tell you that you made a good choice when you got that saab. It has a big aftermarket (not as big as honda though) and parts can be had actually at comparable to honda prices.

RE: Yet another newbee
 

Thanks fellas. Roto,I'm glad to hear that from a former honda owner!
"What would you like to do with the car?"
Nothing to drastic, just help it breath a little easier. I can't go nuts with the exhaust because of my trade (computer consultant, wouldn't want to show up at a clients site making a racket) but anything that will help airflow.
Probably intake improvements, computer (if any),definately different rims as these are hell to keep clean (again, nothing fancy)maybe a little more. (I now plan on rebuilding the motor at around 150k milage, then I can get a little more nutty).
(Stealing the car from Liz today........in my best Borat "GREAT SUCCESS!!")

P.S. while trying to find the K&N intake yesterday locally (impossible), saw the damndest thing.
Some guy from around town is tooling around in a volvo with a small block chevy in it......think a Saab could handle that kind of weight in the nose??? Just thinking out loud.

RE: Yet another newbee
 

Haha, we're in the same trade. Sometimes it makes it hard not to set off the blow-off valve pulling up to a clients site. There is a relativey quiet sport exhaust availale for your car as well as an intake and of course there are staged computers and suspension modifications available. I'm assuming your engine is a 2.0 turbo, than you need a crossflow intercooler. The most common choiceo f turbo upgrade is a mitsuTD04. I'll PM you with some info.

RE: Yet another newbee
 

AHHH this is the problem! The car is a v6 (2.5L)
I can't find ANYTHING for this motor. (Save an air filter)

RE: Yet another newbee
 

ok, with that V6 you want to do some things ASAP. Get the timing belt and tensioneerdone, They love to break. And you're rigt, there isn't too much stuff available for the V6...

RE: Yet another newbee
 

Thanks for the heads up!
How much can I expect to spend on the tensioner?

RE: Yet another newbee
 

$220 for the part alone.

RE: Yet another newbee
 

YOUCH!
Factory part or aftermarkets available?

RE: Yet another newbee
 

factory is about$470

RE: Yet another newbee
 

Oofaa!
Is this a job that a mere mortal such as myself can do or should I send her off to the pros?

RE: Yet another newbee
 

have you ever done a timing belt? You could do it if you ahve a fellow mechanic that would give you a print-out from the directions to do it from ALLDATA or similar program.

RE: Yet another newbee
 

Never done a timing belt on a Saab. (I've done a few boat engines before (timing chains), probably best left to someone that actually knows what they're doing.
Again, thanks for the heads up.

RE: Yet another newbee
 

it's not difficult, if you ever done it on anythign else you'll be able to do it on a saab. You just need directions.

RE: Yet another newbee
 

I'm off to find directions, pray for my car!

RE: Yet another newbee
 

post up when you do get them. I'm sure the tensioneer is the most expensive part there, the belt is like $50

RE: Yet another newbee
 

Found this so far, still digging.
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgu...%3Den%26sa%3DN

RE: Yet another newbee
 

The V6 engines from 94-97 were a touchy engine to say the least. When they arrived on the GM-Saab scene back in 94 they were plagued with issues. One of the main issues in 94 was the timing cover seal would come off and cause the timing belt to come off causing internal engine damage. In most cases when this would occur Saab would replace the engines completely because they discovered that the ring lands would get crushed on one of the piston tops causing the ring to stick and the engine to smoke. This only occurred occasionally but did happen. It was later discovered that one of the main culprits in the V6 engine failures was the idler kit that most people would not replace when doing the belt. The belt should be replaced every 30,0000 miles but as time has taught us you must replace the tensioner assembly as well. In the Saab circles most people wonder why Saab came out with the V6 anyway when the horsepower from the 2.3 or 2.0 liter was as good or better. The newer V6 engines in the 95 have modified timing belt areas that are much more reliable.

V6 Timing Belt Removal



STEP1
Remove Air Filter.



STEP2
Loosen the bolts securing the crankshaft pulley. Remove the load from the belt tensioner by turning the belt tensioner pulley locking bolt forward in the car using a 15 mm wrench. Remove the belt from the coolant pump pulley and slowly release the belt tensioner.



STEP3
Remove the belt tensioner and remove the steering pump pulley



STEP4
Remove the water pump pulley use the engine bracket to pry against.



STEP5
Remove the timing cover and Remove the right-hand front wheel and the cover in the wheel housing.



STEP6
Remove the crankshaft pulley (undo the six bolts but do not remove the centre bolt).



STEP7
Place the engine top dead center and Zero the engine. The markings on the camshaft sprockets and timing cover should be in alignment as also should the marking on the crankshaft. Use locking tools 83 95 006 and KM-800-2 for the camshaft sprockets and locking tool KM-800-10 for the crankshaft (These tools can be purchased from Saab (18774177222) or from Baum Tools).



STEP8
Before removing the toothed belt mark its direction of rotation . To facilitate refitting the belt can be marked at both the camshaft marking and the crankshaft marking.



STEP9
Release the belt tension and remove the toothed belt.


http://www.thesaabsite.com/shop/images/warning.gif
YOU MUST HAVE THE TOOLS TO DO THIS JOB TO DO IT CORRECTLY! PLEASE DO NOT ATTEMPT THIS JOB WITHOUT THEM YOU CAN BUY THEM DIRECTLY FROM SAAB OR THROUGH BAUM TOOLS!
V6 Timing Belt Installation Instructions:



STEP10
Fit the toothed belt according to the marked direction of rotation. Use setting tool 83 95 006 to keep the belt in place and adjust the tensioning roller loosely by hand to prevent the belt from jumping off. Adjust counterclockwise. Fit a section of the toothed belt and fit tool 83 93 985 to measure the belt tension. Loosely tighten the centre bolts of the adjusting rollers. Adjust the lower adjusting roller counter clockwise to a belt tension of 275-300 Nm. Turning torque 30 lb.ft ft ******The adjustment of the belt tension is for preparation ONLY and must not be used as a check when the belt adjusted for the final time!



STEP11
Turn the engine over two revolutions until just before the zero mark and place the locking tool on the crankshaft. Carefully turn the crankshaft in the direction of engine rotation until the arm rests against the coolant pump's flange and then tighten the arm. Fit setting tool 8395006 and check that the markings on the camshaft sprockets are aligned with the markings in the tool. ********Check that the A marking is approximately 2mm above B marking. If the distance is less readjustment is necessary.



STEP12
Fit the crankshaft pulley and Tighten to a torque of 15 foot lbs.



STEP13
Reinstall the inner wheel cover and front right wheel.




STEP14
Reinstall Timing Cover.




STEP15
Reinstall the water pump pulley use the engine bracket for leverage.



STEP16
Reinstall the power steering pulley and tighten to 6 foot lbs.



STEP17
Reinstall the belt tensioner and tighten to 30 foot lbs.



STEP18
Remove the belt tensioner load/pressure by turning the belt tensioner pulley locking bolt forwards in the car using a 15 mm wrench. Install the belt on the coolant pump pulley. Carefully release the belt tensioner.



STEP19
Reinstall the Air Cleaner and hoses that accompany

RE: Yet another newbee
 

looks like you might as well replace the serpantine belt and tesnioneer...nothing too difficult there.