12 Attachment(s)
Dash Fascia removal and install: How to - Saab 9000
This a step by step walk through on how to remove the dash on a 1994 Saab 9000 Aero with a factory CD player and stereo.
Tools you'll need:
-Full set of torx bits/driver.
-Flat blade screwdriver.
-DIN removal tools
-A short handled torx driver and/or a bit of creativity if you don't have one (explained in a bit)
This job is much more difficult than removing the dash on a c900. I can take the dash off a 900 in about 15 minutes, but this job took me around two hours my first time through. I give it a 3/5 level of difficulty simply because it was really frustrating trying to figure a few things out and how long it took. If you've done it is a solid 2.
I found a nice wood grain panel to replace the boring matte grey one that came with the car, so the old one had to come out.
I started with taking out the radio and CD player. If you have installed an after market stereo into your car, you should know how to take it out. If you don't, you unit should have come with removal tools and you can consult your instruction manual on how to get it out.
For those of us with a stock unit you need to stick in a set of standard DIN removal tools till they click then apply pressure to either side <-- O 123456 -->
(that's a radio, by the way) and pull it out.
Attachment 8307
Same story for the CD player.
Next the cages themselves need to come out. In order to get the cages out you need to take your flat head screwdriver and gently pry all sides of the cage inwards so that nothing is catching. Pull the cages out until you have the wires on the back exposed and can move both of them around freely.
This is where I got hung up. In order for the cages to come fully out you need to undo the cage from the connectors where the radios plug in and connect to each other. I know for sure other years are different, but mine looked like this:
Attachment 8308
Those 3 wires are on the back of the CD player and run to the stereo and who knows what else. They will not come off. Don't try and unplug them. What you need to do instead is take out the screws that hold that whole unit in. My CD player had the screws on either side of the cage and the stereo had the screws on the top and bottom. They're pretty small, so I missed them and tried to unplug those connectors to no avail.
Attachment 8309
Attachment 8310
See where the color changes? That whole unit comes off. After you get it off, the cage can be set down elsewhere and those units stay back behind the dash.
You'll see black male/female connectors that lead out of the stereo (not cd player) that run to the speakers and such. Label them and set them down.
Next I moved to the ACC unit. I had my ashtray/lighter directly below the ACC unit so with the tray still out I reached in and gently pushed it out. Undo and label the connectors that are on it. The dash I pulled was off a '96 and had one pigtail. My '94 had two pigtail connectors, so make sure you remember to plug both back in if you have two. (forgot to take pics here, sorry).
The SID and hazard button are the same story and with the ACC out you have a ton of room.
Attachment 8311
After all that is done you can start to push out all the switches. Push them from the back toward you and they just pop out except for the ACC fan. Label each one and set them down. Leave the ACC fan in the dash, but unplug its connector from the back.
Next we start looking for the screws that hold everything in.
The first one I went for was the one that held the bottom of the dash in. It can be found underneath the leather shift boot on cars with a manual transmission. If you have an automatic it is in the same place, but I have no idea how to get to it. Sorry. :oops: Shouldn't be too hard. Those with a proper manual gearbox, gently prise up the shift boot from one corner and you'll see this:
Attachment 8312
That screw holds both the lower part of the dash and the shift boot holder do-da trim in, so don't lose it.
Moving up a bit are two more screws. These guys should be completely visible with the stereo/CD player out but if I recall correctly they are one DIN slot from the bottom most cubby.
Attachment 8313
Next move on to where your seat heater/ACC fan is. You'll see a little black bar that separates the two rows of switches. With the switches out you can pry that little bar up and you'll see this:
Attachment 8314
Undo that.
Moving on to the other side you do the same thing. Also take out your headlight switch if you haven't done so already.
Before:
Attachment 8315
After:
Attachment 8316
Now all of your screws from the face of the dash are out and you might think you can pull it out. Nah. This is where it gets kind of tricky and where I was grateful to have a helper.
You need to partly pull up the dash pad so you can slide the top of the fascia from underneath it. Here's how it is done without removing the whole thing (which I did on the parts car.. whoops)
Firstly take off the left speaker grille (or right, for those who drive on the wrong side of the road :cheesy:). This is so you can lift up without it in the way.
The next screw is kinda.. tricky. If you run your hand along the cubby that your speedo cluster sits in you'll feel a hole near the top right. This is the screw that holds the dash pad to the frame it sits on. You can't take it out with a normal driver, so you either need a short stubby one or do what I did. If you take a 1/8th socket driver and a 1/4" bit, your torx bits will fit in the socket so you can use it like a normal socket driver to get that screw out.
After it is out, gently prise up on the dash while you pull the dash towards you. There's a bunch of short, long tabs that hold it under the dash, so make sure they clear before you just yank it and rip your dash pad.
Attachment 8317
After this you need to make sure you get your HVAC vents out of their respective HVAC holes so your fascia can finally be freeeeeeeee. The left most (or right most) vent is in there with a tab on the furthest side. The centre vent can actually just be popped out.
Attachment 8318
Those are little tabs you can push on and the thing just falls out. I opted not to remove the left/right most vent from the fascia itself, but instead just wiggled it out.
After all that the fascia should be able to lift out. If you didn't figure out how to get your ACC fan out yet, to get it out you need to press back the two tabs that hold it in. The tabs are on the top and bottom of the fan, and the whole unit falls out the back which is why I wanted to wait to pull it out. Now is a good time to clean and oil it so it doesn't make funny noises at you. :thumbsup:
I found getting it back in much easier than out, which is generally not the case.
To start, I fit the fascia over the steering column, so it loosely fit into where it needs to go and if you took off the centre vent, click it back in.
Slide the connector wire do-dads for the stereo up through their respective DIN slots and reconnect them to their proper DIN cage. Make sure you don't push them back in yet because you have to put back the screws that those cages block.
Proceed to push the connectors for all your switches back through their respective holes.
Slide up fascia underneath the dash pad so that none of the short tabs are showing. Here is where you need 12 arms because you need to sort of aim the centre and side vents so that they don't catch and slide smoothly into the tunnels. With everything straight you can push in and it should click. The reason you do this after you pull the wire connectors for the switches through is because they're a PITA to reach through their tiny holes and it is much easier to reach over or under the fascia and push them through.
Basically reverse of removal from here.
Go ahead and connect the switches and push them back into their slots. Screw in the screws and put those bars bar in that cover the screws under the seat heaters and under the fogs switches. Put back the speaker grille and screw the dash back down.
Hope this helps.
