Messages

1

Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: LPG Systems on 9-5 Aero

« on: 16 July 2014, 12:30:19 PM »

Have LPG on my 04 Aero.

Bought it that way three years ago, so don't know when the system was fitted.

Had a trip to my local LPG specialist a few weeks ago for a service, it'd started to run badly on full/ 75% throttle up steep (Holme Moss) hills.

Turns out it's my fault, the system is supposed to be serviced every 12,000miles/annually, and I'd never bothered. 

£230 later, including a full tank of gas, everything is spot on, as an aside the annual service is about £85, so it cost me roughly the same except for slowly increasing LPG usage as the seals started to fail and the car ran rough......

Recently had a run through North Wales to Swansea, from Manchester, cost about £60 in juice there and back and didn't use the motorway after getting on the A55, just nice fast A-roads.....

2

Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: Alarm acting up

« on: 16 July 2014, 12:16:27 PM »

Yesterday the alarm went off randomly, leaving the hazards flashing after the siren stopped. There was no one near the car. I turned the ignition on but there was no 'Service theft alarm' message as I had been anticipating. I re-locked the car and it appeared to behave for the rest of the day / night.

Since the car is ten years old, is this the usual failure of the batteries in the alarm unit, causing random alarms? Or does the absence of the 'Service theft alarm' message suggest it might have just been a glitch?

ISTR that, if the alarm unit is going off randomly and needs replacing / disconnecting etc, two short-term solutions are [1] locking the doors manually, which secures the car but doesn't activate the alarm, and [2] pulling fuse 14, which the car will run without but which also kills the AC.

But any reflections welcome...

My Aero is also ten years old. It had the SERVICE THEFT ALARM on it when I bought it, three years ago. I had it TECH II'd off and used the horn as the alarm sounder.

Fast forward to earlier this year, my alarm would siren started to go off. No indicators flashing, and wouldn't go off. Car would lock/unlock OK, I also had the appealing "sight" of the siren going off whilst the keys were in the ignition and car was running....

No further SERVICE THEFT ALARM appeared even when the siren was wailing away at two o'clock in the morning.

Took the siren box off (with the car battery disconnected) opened it up and pulled the siren connector. Sealed up the box and refitted it, connecting it back up to the car and put the battery back on. As far as the car "knows" it's never been off the car and is still, probably, making the now mute siren go off.

Not to bad to get at, up in the front n/s wheel-arch, not too sure what affect just unplugging it would have, I'll put a new, read s/h one in at some point. Seems an easier option than soldering in new batteries and caps.

3

Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: Flickering, flashing, pulsing, Out.....Xenon trouble.

« on: 14 November 2012, 12:08:45 PM »

Milowokie - you'll find the 4200 is better and was standard with most IIRC such as BMW and Audi. I did try a pair of 6k once but they were too white and were actually blinding on road signs and in snow! If you cna't get the Saab original's try getting from another main dealer who has same fitment - not sure if Insignia has them??

After a bit of a faff with the post office, my replacement lamps (4300k) arrived this morning.

Put them both in, I was running an original and one of the 6000k. My other original was dead, so no use keeping that in and the effect of having two faulty 6000k in didn't fill me with night driving confidence*.

Both are in, getting a dab hand at taking the lights out, much easier than fiddling around behind the battery with them in situ, and both are great. I did try Pentagon SAAB in Middleton, and they were quoting £50-ish +VAT per lamp.

*faults with the 6000k lamps included, strobe flashing when turning on/off, flickering candle (or underwater) effect when on, occasional flashes, turning themselves off, then on, then off, and maybe on again, throwing a 'faulty auto height' error. Not too sure if the lamps I had were bad or if 6000k aren't suitable.

4

Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: Flickering, flashing, pulsing, Out.....Xenon trouble.

« on: 07 October 2012, 03:31:30 PM »

I've contacted the supplier and they suggested that the lamps may be faulty and have offered to send a replacement pair.

I've asked for 4200K rather than the 6000K I have, just in case they may be iffy in my 9-5.

I'll wait and see.

5

Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: Flickering, flashing, pulsing, Out.....Xenon trouble.

« on: 05 October 2012, 02:50:43 PM »

My trouble was the week wait for the genuine SAAB one to be shipped from Sweden.

No I've got some kind of light at the front, rather than the cyclops look, I can order the proper ones without worry.

At least I'll have a cheap/emergency set as spares.

6

Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: Flickering, flashing, pulsing, Out.....Xenon trouble.

« on: 05 October 2012, 01:54:38 PM »

N/s as normal it's a proper Osram lamp, the o/s replacement  (with a company sticker on the back-plate) seems similar, just gently flickering like a candle effect lamp. The dead Osram used to flicker, then it would go out and re-light as though on full beam, very annoying for oncoming traffic, or even when following someone, it was as if you were flashing them all the time.

I would guess that, as is common with the cheaper lamp, that it is a reject from the main supplier quality control, or made in the same factory without the same safeguards. This tale has been told many times on here.

They may suit the retro-fitted HID kits, but not so hot on the 9-5.

Both replacement lamps flicker in a similar manner, but my original (since re-fitted) does not.

7

Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Flickering, flashing, pulsing, Out.....Xenon trouble.

« on: 05 October 2012, 12:40:43 PM »

For a couple of days now my headlights have been giving some trouble.

The n/s one is OK, but the o/s went pink (a few months back actually, related to my blown brake lamp trouble) and then back to normal.

Recently, it started to flicker just after the self-levelling. This turned into a flash of much brighter light every so often, and then gradually got worse, until it became a regular pulse on/off, until the final off.

Bought a pair of HID lamps and went about replacing them.

(Yes they weren't from a SAAB dealer, I did visit but baulked at the initial £200/bulb quote, upon further checking this went down to £65/bulb, but they were all in Sweden and would take a week to get here.)

Replaced both lamps and they both flicker slightly from the get go, head on it looks as though you're shining a torch through a fish bowl. Swapped the n/s for the old n/s and all is well. The old o/s lamp gives nothing in the n/s so I guess it's goosed.

I now have an old, working well lamp on the n/s and a new slightly flickering lamp, as was the n/s new lamp.

Is it time to bit the bullet and buy one of these ridiculous lamps at more than I spent on my last MOT?

Note: found it best to take out the headlight assembly (two bolts and a screw) to replace the bulb, much, much easier than fiddling around the back, especially with the n/s.

8

Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: Sacrilege?

« on: 27 August 2012, 04:41:22 PM »

Well, fitted the rears, much easier than I thought it would be, the squabs are especially easy to remove. (Remove plastic tab, slide side an inch towards the door, lift out)

Or should that be not as well engineered/fitted as on my 9000?

So here's the Griffero Rears,




and Aerofin fronts,

9

Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: Sacrilege?

« on: 27 August 2012, 10:59:56 AM »

OUCH!

What's a WIS and where do I get it?

Sounds like the front seats are a little more trouble than I thought.

Back seems to be a much easier proposition. The seats and cards are a spot on match to my Aero.

I'll fit the rears and keep the fronts as is, for now.

A bit more thought and information is required before I risk at best setting of the airbag light, at worse, blowing an airbag out with a dodgy connection....

10

Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: Sacrilege?

« on: 26 August 2012, 11:17:54 PM »

Back to the reality of the situation.

Anyone done a similar swap, '00 seats in an '04 car?

I've had a look behind the seat switches, but not found any spare sockets that may connect to the seat for the vent fans?

Should I look farther down the loom (perhaps glovebox out) or is it likely there's no plugs unless vented seats were spec'd from the factory?

Obviously spoilt with my previous 9000 as the wiring's in place for heating and electric on (nearly?) all models.

Any airbag issues, my ALFA ('00 156 V6) had some built into the seats, any in the SAAB's?

I'm collecting them tomorrow, so my Indy who removed them from the Griffin may be able to give me some ideas of fitment, maybe even the vent fan cabling.

11

Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: Sacrilege?

« on: 24 August 2012, 01:51:28 PM »

Not sure I like the sound of Seat Man, sounds like a mature American version of Bum Boy.

But yes, I do have a few leather seats tucked away ready to go in the right car.

12

Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: Sacrilege?

« on: 24 August 2012, 12:13:38 AM »

£100, for front vented/heated electric, back (heated) and door cards and switches.

Cheaper than the £450 I paid for my first 9K Aero interior (no door cards), AND the £140 I paid for the second (with door cards).

Still have a plain grey leather electric 9K and Carlsson (replaced with the 2nd Aero as it was in FAR to good a condition to use) 9K in my garage.

13

Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: Minor Flooding of 2002 9-5, car won't start now

« on: 22 August 2012, 12:24:36 AM »

Terrible flooding did in for my Hong Kong 9000 Special.

Left in the works car park overnight whilst I was enjoying myself at Stensham Services, the car park had been flooded (up to the top of the tyres), and NO ONE told me about it.

It was dry when I finished the next day and ready to go home.

Opened the car, turned it over, got one churn then a terrible burning smell. That's when I noticed all the carpets were wet.

When I got it back, via the AA, to my SAAB specialist, the DI/APC ECU under the passenger seat was fried (you could see the burn across the circuit board) and full of mud.

Needless to say my once great car was scrapped, but many of the parts live on in my garage, the Aero interior in my Carlsson.

I bet my car would never had dried out properly, there's a lot of carpet, plastic sheeting and sound deadening foam pads in floor of a 1991 9000.

Hope yours is a simple fix.

14

Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: Sacrilege?

« on: 21 August 2012, 11:24:26 PM »

Aero seats are already heated and electric, the Griffin ones are the same but with the built in vent fans and perforated leather.

Could fit the fans, I suppose, but the breeze would have nowhere to go on a standard Aero seat.....some perf/vented Aeros would be ideal, but how common are they?

15

Classic Saab 9-5 (MY 1998-2010) / Re: Sacrilege?

« on: 17 August 2012, 08:41:24 PM »

I think the wheel will jar with the metal fascia, also hasn't got flappy paddles. Already got the dipping mirror, dimming and folding too, haven't a clue how it works though.