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03 December 2013 #1
Zachary Houseknecht Swedish Tank Operator
- Join Date
- 18 Jul 2013
- Location
- Harrisburg, PA
- Posts
- 40
- Saab(s)
- 1988 Saab 900 SPG
1996 Saab 9000 CSE DD Project
So here's my 1996 Saab 9000 CSE. Planned on starting one of these threads awhile back when I got her, but just didn't have the time.
Sitting pretty at 197k.
Replaced my 1999 Saab 9-3 - Pretty much base model with leather, heated seats, and sunroof, and fogs. Got hit in the rear on the side and the insurance company totaled it - it had some mechanical/engine issues so I let her go.
So first things first, got her home and in the first week this happened....
Two words - heater core. Went ahead and bypassed it. Seemed like a smart idea at the time, until I'm 5 minutes away from home and I see my temperature gauge flying up. Well - my bypass went bust. This turned out to be caused by the rad fan not coming on (didn't find this out until later). It had heated up the coolant and melted my bypass. And this caused the first major issue with my 9000 (yes - all user error here) - the head gasket.
So I went and bought the head-gasket and etc online - let my local Saab/Volvo indie shop handle it - it wasn't an outrageous expense - they claimed no machining had to be done to the head - so I was back on the road.....until I'm headed home on the highway and smoke starts to come out of my engine bay. First thought was me just burning off what went into my muffler system - and all that - but no....I'll come back to the real cause later.
But this does bring us back to the rad fan, which as I thought - was not coming on - the indie shop - for whatever reason didn't see this when the car was in - I wasn't too upset - I caught it before we had another destroyed head-gasket. Turned out to be the Fan Relay - simple fix - and again back on the road!
Replaced both motor mounts (bottom ones, since top seemed fine) and was advised by a buddy to get the right front axle assembly replaced, so had him replace that. Night and day difference! No clunk under acceleration, and nothing when I turn the wheel full lock (other than my tires rubbing a little on the plastic wheel-well.).
Back on the road - and smoke starting to come out from underneath the car when stopping, and creating a smoke screen while on the highway (I assumed people just thought I was James Bond :laugh: ) Well after propping it up on the weekend - don't have any time during the week - and plus it's dark by that time....
The turbo oil return line gasket must have heated up and pretty much disintegrated when the heater core went....
So went ahead and ordered all the gaskets for the turbo from eeuroparts, received them in a day, but again had to wait until the weekend to get to work.
My god was it a bitch in that limited space to get that off - I really did not want to take the whole turbo out of there - maybe it would have been quicker - lol! I only replaced the turbo return line's gasket to be assured it was this and not another gasket on the turbo, and ta-dah - it was as I assumed....luckily, now I can just keep the other gaskets as backups for the others.
Also, had some minor issues with overboost - possibly caused by a vacuum leak - so I went and replaced most of the vacuum lines.
With a little Swedish pride....plans on more of that color scheme when more mechanical/electrical stuff has been completed.
Now after owning her for about 3 months - or a little bit more, she's been a handful, but when she runs - she runs like a bat out of hell....I'm seriously trying to find a reason for me to not call this the best Saab I've owned....even with the number of issues I've had. The speed, the handling, and the overall comfort - even with shocks/springs that aren't so forgiving.
This is what I'm planning to do in the near future....
Figure out the central locking system - remote locks/unlocks some days, as well as the key in the driver's door - one day 100% there, and the next non-functioning
Eliminate the radio-alternator whine - again one issue that rears its ugly head one day - and won't affect the radio for a week sometimes
Replace the Fuel Filter. - Just ordered 11/29
Replace the Air and Cabin Filters - Ordered new Air Filter 12/01
Buy a replacement DI Cassette - not sure when this one will bite the bullet.
And if anybody knows - Fix the telescoping steering wheel - it doesn't lock at all.
200K Mile Preventative Maintenance -
Clean throttle body
Check drive belt condition and tension incl. tensioner. Replace as necessary
Check condition of cooling hoses - Possibly replace with silicone
Check manual gearbox oil level
Check brake pads and discs, Check brake lines and hoses for damage or leaks
Check and change brake fluid
Check steering joints and ball-joints for play and gaiter integrity
Check dampers and bushes for integrity and condition
Check power steering fluid level
Check/adjust/lubricate doors, bonnet, tailgate, etc. and door keeps-- My Fleet --
1988 Saab 900 SPG - Just passed 270k
1996 Saab 9000 CSE - About to hit 200k
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03 December 2013 #2
Jeffrey Master SaabTech/Moderator
- Join Date
- 25 Oct 2010
- Location
- Point Pleasant, PA
- Posts
- 1,316
- Saab(s)
- - 86' 9KT - 95' 9K Custom CS - 06' 9-3 Combi - 07' 9-7X Arc - 08' 9-3 Convertible - 08' 9-3 TurboX -
I'll have to post much more details of things to replace or look at - but you're on the right track!
European Motor Services, LLC - Point Pleasant, PA 18950 - www.europeanmotorsvc.com
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03 December 2013 #3
Sam Carlson Tutorial Bot
- Join Date
- 14 Aug 2010
- Location
- Medford, MA
- Posts
- 684
- Saab(s)
- '90 900 LPT with a flat-nose conversion
For the central locks, it is often just a simple cold solder-joint in the central locking ECU. If the horn toots but it doesn't lock or unlock with the remote, it is the central locking ECU for sure. Also if you try to lock the driver's door with the key and the others don't lock, it's the central locking ECU for sure. If it always works with the key but only sometimes with the remote, first change batteries in the remote and then start barking up that tree.
If you find that it is the central locking ECU, simply pull back the fuzzy paneling on the top of the driver's footwell and remove the black plastic box that says KIEKERT on it. That is the central locking ECU. Open the box up and re-solder the pins that go into the relay-looking things on the board. Use some nice solder so it doesn't happen again. Then re-install and your central locking woes should be gone.Ask me a question about your c900! I promise I either can answer it or know someone who can
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05 December 2013 #4
Zachary Houseknecht Swedish Tank Operator
- Join Date
- 18 Jul 2013
- Location
- Harrisburg, PA
- Posts
- 40
- Saab(s)
- 1988 Saab 900 SPG
Pulled it and can't seem to find any solder points that look bad - also my trunk unlock button ALWAYS works, I can't say that for the Unlock/Lock button - it is inconsistent - possibly a ground point is affecting it, or maybe one of the connectors where the central locking ecu plugs in? It's not the biggest deal in the world - just an annoyance right now.
Received these two just now!
Fuel Filter
Should be replacing this weekend...
Air Filter
Should be replacing today!-- My Fleet --
1988 Saab 900 SPG - Just passed 270k
1996 Saab 9000 CSE - About to hit 200k
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06 December 2013 #5
Sam Carlson Tutorial Bot
- Join Date
- 14 Aug 2010
- Location
- Medford, MA
- Posts
- 684
- Saab(s)
- '90 900 LPT with a flat-nose conversion
The cold solder joints will not be evident to the naked eye. When I fixed mine (common problem), I just followed the advice of others and re-soldered all the pins coming from the large black relay-like things on the main circuit board in the central locking ECU. Cold solder joints usually have very very small cracks in them that you cannot see without magnification. That said, if your horn doesn't toot consistently when you push the lock/unlock button on your key fob and the locks always operate when you use the key or button in the car, then the problem is not in the central locking ECU.
Ask me a question about your c900! I promise I either can answer it or know someone who can
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06 December 2013 #6
Zachary Houseknecht Swedish Tank Operator
- Join Date
- 18 Jul 2013
- Location
- Harrisburg, PA
- Posts
- 40
- Saab(s)
- 1988 Saab 900 SPG
Well then I will have to go ahead and do what you said - since my lights do flash when I hit the unlock/lock button my fob - every time - its the actual locking and unlocking that is inconsistent. So I may go ahead and resolder those points when I have time, and see if it fixes my problems!
-- My Fleet --
1988 Saab 900 SPG - Just passed 270k
1996 Saab 9000 CSE - About to hit 200k
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06 December 2013 #7
Sam Carlson Tutorial Bot
- Join Date
- 14 Aug 2010
- Location
- Medford, MA
- Posts
- 684
- Saab(s)
- '90 900 LPT with a flat-nose conversion
I was skeptical too, but it really did fix the issue for me. I couldn't really believe it, but it's been fine for about a year now.
Here's a picture of a cold joint (some folks call it a dry joint).
You can see the tiny crack around it, but that one is VERY obvious. It's easy to miss if the crack is small or internal. I recommend re-soldering all the pins for the black boxy relay-looking things on the board, and then for extra credit you can look around with a magnifying glass to see if there are any other pins from other components that look obviously cracked and re-solder them too. The board has a coating on it (IIRC) that needs to be scraped off before you can solder. Then just heat the joint with your soldering iron and add a little bit of new solder to reinforce.
The cause of cold joints is the early adoption of lead-free solder (really a good thing from a humanitarian standpoint!) which, in its early (cheaper) formulations, was quite brittle. Nowadays lead-free solders are much better and don't crack like that, but I think they cost more. Cold joints were common in some computers as Chinese and Taiwanese factories switched solders, making the same mistake as KIEKERT did earlier on in Germany. The solution for the computers was to remove all meltable things from the motherboard and stick it in the oven at 385F for a while to re-flow the existing solder.Ask me a question about your c900! I promise I either can answer it or know someone who can