Messages

16

Saab 9-3 Sport Saloon / Convertible / Combi (Wagon/Estate) / Turbo X / AWD (2003 on) / Re: 2008 Saab 9-3 Sportwagon 1.9 Tid 150 Alternator charge

« on: 28 December 2019, 12:10:19 PM »

I don't know about the access issues, but can you check the voltage at the alternator output - that will point to a wiring or alternator problem

Thanbks carrera. Not checked the wiring earths etc yet but back from shopping had a good look again 'down there' and definitely insufficient room to wriggle the screws/tools/reg. So if, once I have stablished earthing etc good, there is still only 13.1v at the B+ on the alternator, I'll be putting a new one on.

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Saab 9-3 Sport Saloon / Convertible / Combi (Wagon/Estate) / Turbo X / AWD (2003 on) / 2008 Saab 9-3 Sportwagon 1.9 Tid 150 Alternator charge

« on: 27 December 2019, 10:01:21 PM »

Charge rate only 13.1-13.2 volts at the battery, both at idle and higher revs, with or without lights HRW aircon etc on.

Tomorrow I'm going to check for earth cable and other cable/connection problems, but if it turns out that the reg is defective, has anyone ever managed to replace the regulator with the alternator still in situ? Looks like it would just be possible with my slim hands. The alternator is around 3 years old and IMHO should be ok regarding windings, commutator etc.

TIA
Pete

18

Saab 9-3 Sport Saloon / Convertible / Combi (Wagon/Estate) / Turbo X / AWD (2003 on) / Re: Remote locking

« on: 27 October 2019, 10:56:02 AM »

don't rule out the ism,it's possible by the time you did what you did the button had popped back up..

Cheers Aerojohn. Having given the car lots of time since the event, I'm takng it that the most probable culprit was that button. I gave the area a jolly good clean and vac, so fingers crossed for now.

19

Saab 9-3 Sport Saloon / Convertible / Combi (Wagon/Estate) / Turbo X / AWD (2003 on) / Re: Remote locking

« on: 17 August 2019, 09:44:36 AM »

Where the fob is inserted there is a button if that stays down it's telling the car there is a fob still in the switch..
had this happen to me,steering lock wouldn't engage & doors wouldn't lock..

check this is popping up & not sticking down..

Thanks! The problem was merely that either fob would not lock the car. Of course after my lad arrived home and reported the issue, I got hold of the spare keys and the problem was the same. I then ensured that the car started OK etc with both keys. Still the problem existed, so then I went down the battery disconnect route and after our evening meal I returned to the car to find everything working as it should. No problems since. Still a total mystery.

Many thanks for all the inputs!

Pete

20

Saab 9-3 Sport Saloon / Convertible / Combi (Wagon/Estate) / Turbo X / AWD (2003 on) / Re: Remote locking

« on: 11 August 2019, 10:40:53 AM »

How have you set the alarm to “doors only”?  Whenever I have done this, it reverts to normal next time you open the car. So 8 would have to set the doors only option each time you leave the car.

Doh. I’ve just checked and of course you’re right. (a little learning is a dangerous thing lol )

21

Saab 9-3 Sport Saloon / Convertible / Combi (Wagon/Estate) / Turbo X / AWD (2003 on) / Re: Remote locking

« on: 11 August 2019, 09:31:01 AM »

Synchronising the key after a battery replacement in the fob is just a case of putting it into the ignition switch hole and waiting for the steering lock to release.  There’s no other way to do it.  You do this after the battery is replaced. There’s no way to do it before replacing the battery.

Thanks Will. In case my OH gets caught on a shopping trip (I've talked her through getting into the car from the left door etc) I have set the locking system for doors only to avoid the alarm going off if any of us have to unlock it manually. For now, it seems to be behaving itself regarding the remote locking/unlocking. It is still a mystery as to why it stopped working.

22

Saab 9-3 Sport Saloon / Convertible / Combi (Wagon/Estate) / Turbo X / AWD (2003 on) / Re: Remote locking

« on: 09 August 2019, 09:55:59 AM »

did you not just put the fobs in the ism first for 5secs each to resync,,

I did do that after the period of disconnection. Everything is working as it should, but I was more concerned by the failure of the locking system when it happened. I didn't try sync before disconnecting the battery. A mystery which I don't want repeated when OH is on her own!

Since sorting it, I have successfully locked and unlocked the car many times. Fingers crossed, but if it happens again I will then try sync of the fobs. Could it be advance warnng of problems with the CIM?

23

Saab 9-3 Sport Saloon / Convertible / Combi (Wagon/Estate) / Turbo X / AWD (2003 on) / Remote locking

« on: 07 August 2019, 08:51:59 PM »

A little phenomenon today. Son borrowed the car for a trip to Cowley, and when he came home at around evening meal time, he came in and said he couldn't lock the car. I popped out and sure enough the remote wasn't working. So I grabbed the spare keys, and the fob on them also wouldn't work. So after a bit of head scratching, I decided to disconnect the battery after our dinner to 'reset' the electrics, and left it off while we watched the Chase. Upon reconnecting the neg terminal, voila! System working as it should. Any ideas? Don't fancy my OH getting caught while out on her own, and my confidence in the car has now taken a noticeable dive.

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Saab 9-3 Sport Saloon / Convertible / Combi (Wagon/Estate) / Turbo X / AWD (2003 on) / Re: ESP problem

« on: 20 November 2018, 08:36:08 PM »

I would get yourself a copy of WIS the electronic Saab workshop manual, the procedure for changing the fuel filter in there tells you how to disconnect and remove the sensor and refit it when changing the fuel filter with pictures!

Thanks Audax. Unfortunately our PC is windows 7. I did have a copy which Will kindly sent to me but we had problems getting it on the PC, and my lad tried to get it on somehow on his page but I couldn't open it.

25

Saab 9-3 Sport Saloon / Convertible / Combi (Wagon/Estate) / Turbo X / AWD (2003 on) / Re: ESP problem

« on: 20 November 2018, 04:44:31 PM »

Sorted. My pal came over with his reader and laptop, but couldn't get the car to respond. It was as if the car had 'died'. So he contacted a mobile techie who used to work with us at the garage group years ago. He has masses of diagnostic gear and valuable info. While I was waiting for him to turn up, I did some checking and found a 10 amp fuse blown on the engine fuse board. According to my owners manual Nunber4 is the ECU fuse (also battery disconnector as optional equipment) I fitted a new one and it promptly blew again when ign turned on. So when the man arrived, it gave him a clue as to where to start looking. His info also listed the items fed by the fuse (via ECU) as PAS, MAF and - wait for it - water senmsor. Not mentioned in either the owners manual or the Haynes. Whoops - not my fault, but I had obviously disturbed the wiring of the sensor. It was that small loom of the sensor, unseen to the eye but wiring frayed and shorting out inside the sleeve. While I could now repair the wiring, I will order a new one.

Hope this info may help someone with similar symptoms one day.

Thanks everyone for all the inputs.

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Saab 9-3 Sport Saloon / Convertible / Combi (Wagon/Estate) / Turbo X / AWD (2003 on) / Re: ESP problem

« on: 20 November 2018, 08:53:01 AM »

I suspect your problem is not related to you working on the car but has potential to be a a coincidental CIM module failure.

That's what I am fearing Audax. Losing confidence in the car now, but I suppose with modern cars this sort of thing can happen to any make/model. Oh for the days of Morris Minors, points ign, SU carbs etc. Bliss. lol.

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Saab 9-3 Sport Saloon / Convertible / Combi (Wagon/Estate) / Turbo X / AWD (2003 on) / Re: ESP problem

« on: 19 November 2018, 08:41:47 PM »

Hi Will. Battery is OK - barely a year old, and reading a happy 12.7 volts at present. Yesterday when I checked the charge rate, it was 13.8 volts.

Tomorrow when I can see what I am doing, I will have a check of the ignition switch module to see if there is an open circuit in there. Obviously, as it got dark a bit quickly, when we were scratching our heads late this afternoon, I didn't have a chance to check any wiring around the wheel hubs etc, but to the best of my memory I didn't go near them yesterday, having not even taken the wheels off (brake pads checked thanks to the nice large openings of the wheels) The only place my hands/arms went in relation to the wheels was behind the right hand track rod with the ratchet and long extension for the oil filter removal, but again, not near any wiring there.

I'll report back!

Pete

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Saab 9-3 Sport Saloon / Convertible / Combi (Wagon/Estate) / Turbo X / AWD (2003 on) / ESP problem

« on: 19 November 2018, 06:04:31 PM »

Apologies for long post. Yesterday I started a service, changed the oil and filter, checked over the car etc etc. This morning the new air filter arrived, so during the morning fitted that and fitted the new diesel fuel filter which I had in stock. (to fit that, I jacked the car up at the rear nearside)

Finished that just before lunch, and after lunch OH took the car on an approximate 8 miles round trip to local supermarkets with no problems. Late this afternoon, the car would not start and the SID message came up "!Stability Control Failure contact service".

Upon turning the key to Ign On, the message shows and when trying to crank, the engine is not turning over. I think that jacking the rear up on one side may have set something off kilter, but I did the same thing when replacing the filter last year with no ill effects, and even if that were the case, I cannot understand why the car would have started and gone up to the shops, with a total of three starts of the engine during the trip.

I have a mate with an OBD reader coming over tomnorrow about 11 but if that doesn't show something than it may be dealer and hand-in-pocket time. 

29

Saab 9-3 Sport Saloon / Convertible / Combi (Wagon/Estate) / Turbo X / AWD (2003 on) / Re: Seat belt not retracting

« on: 17 November 2018, 09:35:39 AM »

The early cars did have a retraction problem.  Doing what you did seemed to solve it for a month or two, but in the end we needed a new belt.   I've been told that the problem lies with the bottom reel accumulating fluff and dirt in the mechanism which is very difficult to remove without dismantling.  And that;'s impossible because things are riveted together , etc.

Thanks Will. In the case oif my belt, the unit was devoid of any dust, dirt or fluff (although the surrounding areas outside of the trim were shamefully in need of vacuuming!) I reckon some grit or similar got in between the webbing and the guide, and given that the gap is extremely narrow, that was all it needed to 'roughen up' the plastic surface. Hey ho. The car lives a little longer. 112k miles now; just got through the MOT a couple of weeks ago - tester reported that the smoke test came up as only .1 (the limit on the B post plate shows .5 so he reckons that the engine is in very good condition)

Drive safe

Pete

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Saab 9-3 Sport Saloon / Convertible / Combi (Wagon/Estate) / Turbo X / AWD (2003 on) / Seat belt not retracting

« on: 16 November 2018, 11:23:14 PM »

This has no doubt been aired before, but I thought I would like to relate my own experience in the hope that it wil help others.

Lately, the driver's belt on my 9-3 Sportwagon has been reluctant to completely retract all the way back up. I had tried the silicone spray treatmenmt with no success. So by yesterday, it would not retract far enough to be safe to use. Today I set upon it and removed to necessary trim, ie B post lifting the sill trim to the rear of it and removing the short sill trim to the front of it to facilitate the removal. After disconnecting the lower attachment of the belt to the seat, and removing the upper guide and middle retainer, I found that the belt spool wound back in without any restriction. Close examination revealed a small amount of roughness on the surface of the upper guide - just enough to pinch the webbing  and stop it from sliding smoothly through. There is so little clearance that only a very thin nail file (thanks OH...) and then a piece of 600 grade rubbing down paper would fit in together with the webbing to effect the smoothing off of the plastic surface. Goodness only knows how anything which would make the plastic surface rough like that had got in there, but it is now nice and smooth and once everything was refitted the belt performs perfectly.

I am wondering how many, if any, belts have been replaced unnecessarily; I did look on ebay but found only one offside front belt which was pre-owned at 50 GBP and would not necessarily have been OK. Neo Brothers currently have a brand new one at 114 GBP, but of course there would have been the delicate problem of replacing it without blowing myself up or at best an impromptu castration. Naturally, once I had researched the possible cost I was very relieved to have sorted it out with no cost at all.