What I Did To My Saab Today.

[phoenix]

Today I started work on swapping my "dead" auto gearbox on the 9-5 for a "live" one. This means pulling the complete egine & transmission out. 

Removed/made ready so far

All engine/box mounts removed except rear
PS pump off
AC compressor off (hoses still on)
Exhaust dropped
Battery & tray out
All fluiids drained
Crankshat pulley off
Hub nuts slackened
Radiator fan assembly off

Snags so far:

- the fuel line tool I bought doesn't work with Saab fittings so I'll have to take the rail off
- I can't work out how to get the selector cable off the gearbox!

Whilst the lump's out I also plan to replace the subframe bushes

Tomorrow's jobs:
- get the fuel rail off
- undo all the wiring looms
- driveshafts out
- build the engine crane
- subframe bushes

I suspect the weather may not be good enough to continue on Sunday. Maybe Monday will see the enigne pulled...

[collywobble]

Finally got the summer wheels and tyres out of my workshop - learnt two things, firstly always clean them before you put them away and secondly, 99p alloy wheel cleaner from 'Poundstretcher' is useless! There's a reason 'Autoglym' is expensive is because it works, mind you a pack of 5 toothbrushes from 'Poundland' are ideal for scrubbing off the brake dust!

So now sitting down with first glass of wine of the evening with two clean summer wheels, will clean the other two tomorrow and then put a coat of wheel wax on all four......

[Geoff1951]

Now, which job is easier - fitting sgould's tyre pressure monitor, or phoenix's gearbox swop?

There's only one way to find out...

[phoenix]

Well. I'm part way there. The engine is now ready to pull. Two issues yesterday:

- I couldn't get inner end of the OS driveshaft to release, so ended up pulling the tripod joint instead
- The crane I bought had problems with holes not lining up properly and I had to oval them to get them to fit

However I did find the source of the vibration which I had thought was the box:







 

The CV boot was intact, although the clip did come away rather easily, possibly suggesting it hadn't been sealed properly.

Luckily enough I had already secured a used complete driveshaft as I thought I'd felt a small amount of play.

[mikeloadsasaabs]

Not actually done but planned for this week, is to swop the summer and winters around. Have got some shiny new 17"s for the summer, tyres fitted, ready to go on. While they are off, I will be replacing the rubber grommet that seals where the handbrake lever goes through the backplate (on order, expected in this week). At the same time, replacing the springs that pull the handbrake shoes away from the drum when the handbrake is released, then adjusting the handbrake shoes internally before finally adjusting the cable. I'm hoping that these measures will give me a handbrake that actually holds the car  I replaced the shoes last year, so apart from these measures there's nowt else I can do to improve it.

I also need to do the job described in this post http://www.saabtechtalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=1512.0, which sounds a real pig, as my NRV valve broke a few months ago and I cobbled a temporary solution using 6 cable ties  . Goodness knows why the NRV couldn't have been a separate part instead of being integrated into the pipe! I have the part, it's just a case of summoning up the enthusiasm......

[mikeloadsasaabs]

Not actually done but planned for this week, is to swop the summer and winters around. Have got some shiny new 17"s for the summer, tyres fitted, ready to go on. While they are off, I will be replacing the rubber grommet that seals where the handbrake lever goes through the backplate (on order, expected in this week). At the same time, replacing the springs that pull the handbrake shoes away from the drum when the handbrake is released, then adjusting the handbrake shoes internally before finally adjusting the cable. I'm hoping that these measures will give me a handbrake that actually holds the car  I replaced the shoes last year, so apart from these measures there's nowt else I can do to improve it.

I also need to do the job described in this post http://www.saabtechtalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=1512.0, which sounds a real pig, as my NRV valve broke a few months ago and I cobbled a temporary solution using 6 cable ties  . Goodness knows why the NRV couldn't have been a separate part instead of being integrated into the pipe! I have the part, it's just a case of summoning up the enthusiasm......

Well, all jobs done on this lovely sunny day  . I can report that the grommet that seals the handbrake operating lever as it goes through the back plate can be easily replaced from the outside, meaning that no dismantling is required other than removing the return spring for the cable.

And, if you ever have to replace the pipe containing the NRV for the oil breather system, I can report that it's certainly easier with two people as the other post I referred to indicated, the second above the engine with a long screwdriver to press the top half of the quick release clip. It's a bit awkward to position, but visibility isn't too bad. SWMBO wielded a mean screwdriver, and as a bonus has had a few choice words added to her vocabulary  . And it's easier to thread the new one in from underneath, which also needs a helper as it's a little difficult to see where it should actually goes.

The only minor fly in the ointment is that the new centre caps I bought a couple of months ago to go with my shiny new wheels are the wrong size, they are fractionally too small. I think there is a 60mm and 63mm size, so these must be 60s. Luckily they were only £12 or so, I'll shift them on Ebay and look for the correct ones.

[sgould]

You're right.  I bought the same caps and they are too small

This weekend I have put the summer tyres back on.  Then I refitted the rain sensor on the windscreen.  I did it last year, but used some silicone sealant to stick it.  That was the wrong stuff, it relaxed too far and the sensor wasn't sensitive enough when it wasn't tight on the screen.  Restuck it with Araldite.  Let's hope that works.

Then I dismantled the mirror switch on the driver's door and cleaned the contacts, in an attempt to get the reverse dip on the passenger mirror working.  But it made no difference   I think the fault lies in the memory module as the passenger door mirror now does not always respond to the memory button when I adjust the seat.

Then I found that all my tinkering with the doors open and shut, had flattened the battery…..

[mikeloadsasaabs]

You're right.  I bought the same caps and they are too small

Just managed to sell mine on via Ebay Austria, turned a small profit by selling them at €17.50 - a lot of frantic last minute bidding! 

[stevetreacy]

You're right.  I bought the same caps and they are too small


Then I dismantled the mirror switch on the driver's door and cleaned the contacts, in an attempt to get the reverse dip on the passenger mirror working.  But it made no difference   I think the fault lies in the memory module as the passenger door mirror now does not always respond to the memory button when I adjust the seat.

Then I found that all my tinkering with the doors open and shut, had flattened the battery…..

Hi,

Been down that very road several times. Can you adjust mirrors in each direction with switch. Mine cant be adjusted up or down, N/S only, but memory raises and lowers them. I also have no kerb position working. Switch cheapest place to start I would hope

steve

[sgould]

The switch does adjust both mirrors in all directions, but the passenger dip does not work.  And when I press the memory button, the driver's mirror moves to the right place, but the passenger side only moves in & out; it doesn't adjust the up/down.

So I am assuming the memory module is bad.  Something to look at next month when I have some free time.

[Mac2509]

Replaced front and rear de-laminated badges with gleaming new ones, then received an email letting me know I can have the front fitted for free, (great, nice to know when I've just paid for replacements).
Then replaced fin antenna for a nice new one....
 Not to bad a job once you've got past the "look dear it really wont take to much longer" and "I know I said it would only take ten minutes but I keep getting bloody interrupted by someone asking how much longer I'll be" stage of things.
Looks a lot better now, although I'm not convinced that the new fin wont leak

[sgould]

I put a quick polish on mine after the muck had been removed by the guys in the hand was at the end of the road.  Then off to Swedish Day!

At Swedish Day I met two men who let me play with my Tech2 on their cars.

Cleared the "Test Brakes" message on one car and married a CD Changer on the other.  The CD changer came undivorced with the VIN No. of the donor car.  So now I know how to do that.

[Paper Plane]

Took the 9-3 Cabrio to local garage at the other end of my village because the "Check Engine" light had come on and he does diagnostics.

Great result too! Not only was there no fault and he turned the message off, but it turns out he's an apprenticed Saab mechanic.

So, no more trips to Kwik Fit, just a mile up the road in future.

steve

[phoenix]

Not today, but Sunday's efforts:



Part way through replacing the subframe bushes, and off the car because the pesky ARB bolts sheared, despite having been soaked in pen oil for a week.

[phoenix]

Finally... she's back on the road. In the last week I've shot blasted the control arms (which were in quite a bad way), plus the plates around the rear subrame mounts, drilled & retapped the ARB mounts, wirebrushed & painted it all.

Yesteday I got the subframe back in (with the entire exhaust system still in one piece). Today I started the engine for the first time in around a month... without issue (doesn't sound that big a deal until you remember it's been out of the car and disconnected from everything and I had to put it all back together correctly). Ran fine. With my foot on the brake I moved the autobox selector through the gears to make sure the fluid had got everywhere it needed. No leaks, so then I droppped it to the ground and went for a test drive. Shifting felt a little awkward at first, which I put down to it needing adaptation but within 3/4 of a mile the fault lights were on for both gearbox and engine 

Limped home with the display showing (and it driving) like it was in 5th (in D or M) unless I selected the low range. Not good. Read the codes- just P1743 , too much slip.

Checked WIS to see if I'd missed anything (e.g. should the torque converted have beel filled with fluid before fitting) and then remembered that as a precaution, because mine is an mY03 an the donor box came from an MY06 I'd got the ECU as well. So I swapped the ECUs over. On start up there was an error code, P0725, rev disparity. Wasn't looking good. However I cleared the code and went for a drive... Bingo! All good now 

So there we are, I've successfully completed the most complex procedure I've ever undertaken on a car and come away (relatively) unscathed. 4 weeks later and she lives. Yay!

What it's taught me is that most procedures are achievable for the home mechanic, but you do need to have

a) time- things will not go as well as you hoped. We are lucky to have 3 cars beween 2
b) some of the right tools e.g. engine crane, bearing press
c) the ability to take a step back and think every now and then

Some pics