Hi, folks.
Please can you help me with devising a service schedule for my new treasured possession?
I've got the following from the Haynes & Owner's Manuals:
Item Miles Years
Pollen Filter 18000 1
Spark Plugs 18000 1
Brake fluid n/a 4
Oil change 9000 0.5
Coolant Renewal n/a 3
Air Con drain hoses 18000 n/a
Gear box oil level 36000 n/a
Air Filter 36000 n/a
Fuel Filter 72000 n/a
And I'd appreciate advice on the type of spark plugs, engine oil and gearbox oil as well please. I really want to the best of care of this beauty!
Cheers, all.
Is this the 260hp Turbo Edition or the 185hp TE. The last models were all called Turbo Edition.
It's the 260hp model.
Treat it as an Aero...
There are five attachments to this three here and two in the next one.
More attachments
Plugs are NGK PFR 6H-10
Gapped 0.9 to 1.0 mm
Engine oil see attachment
Manual gearbox oil change isn't specified or required. (see attachment)
FANTASTIC!
Thank you so much. I'll peruse all this info later.
Thanks again for this info. I see there are a couple of options oil-wise. Any suggestions? The car has 81k miles at the mo and is only likely to get about 5k miles added each year now that I can walk to work.
I use the GM Dexos 2. It's 5w/30 and is what the Saab garages should use. Neo Brothers were the cheapest suppliers I could fine.
But Mobil1 0w/40 is good and has been cheap in Costco.
81,000 miles is not a lot for a well maintained 9-5, so use normal oil, there shouldn't be any significant wear yet.
Great. Thanks yet again. So would you advocate using a flush as well each time? I was planning on sticking with the same 6 month frequency for the changes that I used to do on my old 9-5 Aero.
My Hirsched Aero is on 120,000 miles. It's been Hirsched to 300 hp since 19,000 miles. It's had Dexos at the Saab garage at the specified service intervals. Every 18,000 miles when I was working and doing 22,000 mies a year. Now I'm retired, the oil is changed once a year.
Personally, I wouldn't do a flush every time. It can lead to other issues down the track. It really comes down to the total mileage and the type you drive. If it is nearly all short run stuff, in the town and city surrounds where your average speed is under 35 then the oil will deteriorate more quickly than a car that has a long run regime at higher average speeds.
I would advocate a sump drop in the near future, mainly for your own peace of mind. When you Know the floor of the sump is shiny and clean and the innards are 'nice' then you can sleep better at night.
I have done two drops on my 5s and just recently i had to change the front seal and expose the oil pump gears. I was surprised at how shiny and clean it all was. No build up. No lacquering and certainly no gritty bits. Not that your car has sludge issues but your miles are getting up a bit now and you might want to consider a slightly thicker rated oil. You could go for a fully synthetic 5W40 rather than the 5W30. It will run smoother and quieter. One option might be to run the 5W30 in the cooler months and a 5W40 in the warmer months. But change it every six months is good preventative maintenance and oil is cheap in the scheme of things. Cheaper than changing timing chains and bottom end bearings.
Quote from: nine-fiver on 04 August 2014, 11:21:22 AM
Personally, I wouldn't do a flush every time. It can lead to other issues down the track.
I've never seen a benefit from doing flushes, in fact on some cars doing the flush and moving all the gunge to the sump wasn't such a good idea as it just blocked the strainer more quickly. Having seen the inside of the engine from high mileage cars that have been serviced properly I don't think a flush gives any benefit but a sump drop is worthwhile on any car.
Cheers you 3. This is fantastic information. I like the idea of tailoring the oil to the weather conditions (I don't understand the science involved but it sounds clever so I'll probably do that). In my old 9-5 Aero with just shy of 150k I changed the oil around March and again around September so will probably stick to a similar schedule or perhaps bump it on a bit to April and October.
Having read posts on here about the sump drop I am more than happy to have a go at that so will probably factor that in for next March/April time.
Thanks again.
I also would be very loath to do a flush for the following reason. The "flush" additive I believe is a low viscosity solvent with some detergent chemical additives. Running this for a few minutes probably would not damage your car. However it is not possible to drain the contaminated oil completely without dismantling the oil cooler and so all the flush that is contained in there will be mixed back into your expensive new oil, immediately degrading it, affecting its viscosity, protection and life.
I've always used flush on mine and changed the oil more regularly than specified- no more than 8000 miles. Compared to regular oil changes alone, it keeps things cleaner.
I concur there is a risk to unknown engines that sludge might be dislodged.
Although I only get the oil changed to the Saab schedule, the Saab garage does use flush, but it's been used on every service.
This weekend or next I'll be doing my first service work on my car but I just wondered if anyone could tell me the answer to tidied questions please:
Is it easier to get to the gearbox level plug and drain plug if I remove the passenger-side front wheel?
Are the air con drain hoses just on the passenger side of the centre console and are there only 2 of them?
I don't know about the oil, but there is an aircon drain hose either side of the centre console.
Thanks. That picture makes it really clear. Looks like it'll be a bit of a faff but do-able.
Just spoke with my dad and he said his Saab garage implied the gear box oil is one of those jobs that can pretty much only be done one way so I guess it's just a matter of getting on with it. Still, if anyone has any recommendations then please share them. I will definitely be following the tip of making sure the refill plug is removed first before draining the oil!
Quote from: pompey on 05 October 2014, 02:21:43 PM
So does anyone know where I can get a reconditioned gearbox fitted for less than £400?
Exactly what does that £400 include?
Quote from: Audax on 06 October 2014, 09:41:49 AM
Quote from: pompey on 05 October 2014, 02:21:43 PM
So does anyone know where I can get a reconditioned gearbox fitted for less than £400?
Exactly what does that £400 include?
I suspect that's pompey's wishful-thinking all-inclusive target/budget?
Quote from: Geoff1951 on 06 October 2014, 11:04:48 AM
I suspect that's pompey's wishful-thinking all-inclusive target/budget?
Well, I'd like to think it was a quote from leelac, but does that include fluids and extras and a warranty on top? (do they supply the box).
The reason I ask is there's fitting a gearbox and then there's fitting a gearbox properly. ;D
Quote from: pompey on 06 October 2014, 01:31:35 PM
I only spoke briefly with Leelac but he said it'd be around £400-£500 for a reconditioned gearbox, fitted with a warranty. I think he said it was a 6month warranty.
Considering the time involved with fitting the box alone, I can't see there's much money going to be left for "reconditioning". I suppose it *might* run to a change of fluid.
Quote from: pompey on 06 October 2014, 01:31:35 PM
I only spoke briefly with Leelac but he said it'd be around £400-£500 for a reconditioned gearbox, fitted with a warranty. I think he said it was a 6month warranty.
He knows what he's doing so I'd accept that offer! You are taking a bit of a chance with a 6 month warranty box but put it this way, I thought that meant £400 without the gearbox being supplied. Many places would charge you £400 for the labour and then for the gearbox and oil on top. A proper recon box (which would still only come with 1 year limited mileage warranty) would be around £1000-£1300 and the fluid is another £100. For the price of a properly recon box and fitting you can have the job done 3 times which would still give you 18 months warranty in total.
Quote from: pompey on 06 October 2014, 08:37:53 PM
By the way, how come the price for the gearbox oil is so high?
Bah, I got slightly confused and thought your car was an auto, even so gearbox oil is expensive because not much of it is sold and it has to last a long time. For a manual box I'm guessing that Leelac will rebuild it with second hand parts for the £400 (or pick a known good one, 9-5 boxes tend to be quite good), it only needs a couple of bottles of the oil though from empty.