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Messages - mikeloadsasaabs

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1
Yep, having lived with the car for a couple of weeks now, the suspension knock over speedramps is definitely there. The car passed the MOT in August again, and there were no suspension related advisories.

I am thinking:
anti roll bar bushes
drop links
engine mounts (including any mounts to the subframe)

Surely the first two of these would have shown up on the MOT?

If it is engine mount/tiebars, does anyone have any visuals or part number for these, and/or experienced fixing such an issue by replacing one of these?

Haven't posted here for a long time ;D

One of the last repairs we had done to our old 9-5 estate before we realised it was becoming a money pit was to have the subframe bushes replaced at the rear of the front subframe, which cost us €750. The car had a clonk over bumps, not really heard, but felt literally underfoot,  which is how I knew it wasn't suspension. I don't know how similar the 9-3 and 9-5 are in this respect, but just a thought in trying to narrow it down.

2
Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: Front Tyres Center Wear
« on: 06 May 2019, 05:05:39 PM »
Could be that the guage you are using to check the pressures is underreading, meaning that you are inadvertently overinflating them. I always wondered the fronts on my 9-5 Aero wore so much in the middle, but when I had some new tyres fitted the garage explained that their guage was state-certfied, so I checked mine against that. It turned out mine was underreading by 4psi, and obviously had been for years!

3
The xenons on my old 9-5 were rubbish. I'm using Ring +130s on my Honda, they are pretty good and seem to be lasting well - the Osram Nightbreakers were OK but only lasted about 3 months. From memory the Rings have been in for around 5 months.

Oh how I hanker for another Saab as a plaything!

4
Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: DRIVER'S DOOR SEAL
« on: 06 August 2018, 10:05:50 PM »
I have a vague recollection that I did this many years ago, but can't remember the details. But I would suggest that you don't cut it to what you think is the correct length and then fit it. I think you'll find that  it might be better to fit it, and then trim it just before you reach the end while you still have a couple of inches or so to go. Otherwise, just a small amount of compression or tension as you fit it round the various turns and angles of the door aperture could mean it's ultimately too short.

5
Hi Geoff, by a strange coincidence we lived in Liss for 22 years before we moved to Austria in 2009. At the time we left, there weren't any Saab specialists in the area. There was one that came and went, and at one time Station Garage at Liphook was owned by an ex-Saab main dealer master mechanic, so I used them quite a few times. He then sold out, but the garage remained pretty reliable for everyday stuff. I used to pretty much look after my own car. AFAIK there isn't an alternative to Swain and Jones in Farnham (ex-Saab main dealers) or Lewis Saab at Bosham. I've used Lewis Saab a few times, they were pretty helpful. Not sure whether they are still Saab. I used Saabtech at Stevenage (now Welwyn) a few times, which I know is miles away, and I have nothing but praise for them, totally trustworthy and very knowledgeable.

For tyres, 2U Tyres in Peteresfield used to be good.

Not sure how much this helps, and bear in mind that this info reflects how things were nearly 9 years ago!

6
So, I'm thinking about tuning my car, given the choice would you do Hirsch or Maptun? If so why would you pick that option?

Maptun should give slightly better performance, Hirsch is obviously better certified!

I don't want to hear suggestions for other options as they have been discounted for good reasons :)
I had a Maptun Stage 1 on my 9-5 Aero, which came from Saabtech - are they no longer Maptun agents? It was plug and play, and was on the car for 8 years, taking it from c.76,000 miles to 230,000 with no issues. I chose the Maptun because at the time it was the cheaper and easier option. I did nothing else to the car, except that it had Hirsch suspension and DS2500 front pads.

7
All the best Max. It was a sad day two and a half years ago when we decided to part company with our faithful 9-5 Aero estate, and get a Honda CR-V with only 40% of the power! But I don't miss the sudden repair bills, the 4-monthly oil and filter changes, and the crawling under the car in temperatures around freezing! I still hanker after another Saab, and still drop in here most days, it's in the blood having been bitten in 1986  :)

8
Even I still drop in regularly, despite being Saabless for 2 years :'(

A very happy Christmas and a healthy and happy New Year to everyone!

9
A failing alternator was the straw that broke the camel's back, and made us decide to get rid of our faithful 9-5 Aero estate. It cost half the value of the car to replace at €650 parts and labour. It failed at about about 230,000 miles - they don't make anything to last do they  ::) . The car was a 2004 model, no idea whether it was a Bosch or Denso.

Petemate, I'm impressed that you changed it yourself. The mechanic that replaced it for us said it was a real b*gger of a job! He only quoted, and charged, for around an hour's labour but he said it took him a lot longer.

10
Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: Alternator replacment cost
« on: 21 August 2017, 09:31:52 PM »
That might explain why it was so much more difficult than he thought it would be, as our Saab was RHD and he probably didn't think of that  ::)

11
Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: Alternator replacment cost
« on: 21 August 2017, 12:44:14 PM »
Not directly comparable once again, but we paid around €570 for a new alternator for our 9-5 here in Austria a couple of years ago. The mechanic quoted us around €100 for fitting based on the time expected (around 90 minutes), but he told us when we collected it that it was a b*gger of a job and had taken a lot longer than expected, but he was very fair and only charged us the quoted price.

12
Checked the oil, checked and adjusted the tyre pressures, topped up the washer fluid.
That was it.
Yawn.
More than I did to the Honda - just checked the tyres, as it was serviced only 10 days ago having covered just over 40,000km.

I still drop in here most days, but don't post as there's nothing I've been able to contribute recently. I have been intending to post for a while, with all the spare time I have now that I'm not crawling under the Saab on a cold drive keeping it running, changing the oil and filter every 6000 miles etc.  ;D

Just as a reminder, we bought (leased) a Honda CR-V back in October 2015 to replace our old 9-5 Aero auto estate after spending more than half the value of the Saab on a replacement alternator. I wasn't expecting it to be such a happy transition from the 265bhp, 420Nm rocketship to the 120bhp 1.6 diesel SUV. However, although I often miss the Saab, the Honda is surprisingly capable particularly on the motorway, and was a good choice for our needs. With 300Nm, it drives strongly, and has a much more usable luggage area than the Saab due to a taller area under the load cover, which is not so deep front to rear as the Saab. We recently completed a two-day journey from the UK back home to Austria with four people plus luggage, and it coped easily. The legroom in the rear is way superior to the Saab which meant that everyone was comfortable. The engines is delightfully smooth at speed, and it returns an overall 52mpg, somewhat better than the Saab at 27mpg. Diesel here in Austria is around €1.08 per litre, about 95p in real money, and the Super Plus that the Saab used is around €1.25, about £1.10, so it's a good saving.

The Honda isn't perfect. The manual gearchange is notchy, and couldn't be described as a pleasure to use, although it's not something that is a real problem on the open road. The aircon goes into recycling mode much more quickly than the Saab, presumably because it has a smaller compressor to aid fuel economy. The rain-sensitive wipers never seem to operate quite as I'd like, whereas the Saab always seemed to get things just right. The seat squabs in the Honda are a little short, although the comfort is generally OK on a long journey. Because the Saab had all the goodies, we also miss the memory electric seats, as SWMBO and I share the car and it's a pain with manual seat adjustment. No leather heated and ventilated seats, the black cloth in the Honda is a little rough and cheap-looking, although they are heated - only with two settings though. No passenger seat height adjustment in the Honda, although the higher spec models have it. Rear visibility is great with the huge door mirrors, but parking is a bit of a nightmare with the heavy rear, although the standard reversing camera helps, unlike the Saab where you could see the corners.

The only problem we've had, which I'm monitoring, is a clutch judder first thing in the morning when it's cold. The dealer has checked it out and can't find any problems, but suggested that I bring it to their attention again if it gets worse.

If anyone is interested, I have posted a fuller review here on the Honest John website:
http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/owner-reviews/honda/cr-v-2012?review=4276#selected

I still look wistfully at Saabs when I see them (saw two 9-5 estates within an hour last week, unusual for here).....  :'(

13
I still drop in most days, despite having strayed into Honda-land, which has certainly given me carefree motoring! All the best for Christmas and the new year to everyone here.  :)

14
I'm guessing that, 9 months on, he's either fixed it or sold the car  ;)

15
Are you sure there isn't a hidden latch to enable the headrest to be raised (and lowered)?

Also, regarding the seats, when our 9-5 Aero was new, I believe that electric seats were an option, although heating was standard. We've had a couple of hot days, and I really missed the ventilated seats we had on our Aero  :(  The seats on the Honda are so-so cloth, which I doubt will wear as well as the leather ones in the Saab.

AFAIK, folding mirrors were standard on the Aero.

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