Places to fix your car if no dealer or independent Saab repair shop: thoughts

[Dave T]

What do you do if your Saab needs repair and there is no dealer or independent Saab repair shop nearby? Probably go to an independent repair shop that fixes other cars.

This thread was prompted because I saw a new member post from LA, which is possibly Los Angeles but could be Louisiana.

I once (in the past century, not recently) had recall work paid for by Saab but done by Gerteis Motors in Shreveport, Louisiana. The owner told me that he used to drive a Saab 99. His repair shop now advertises as being a German and British car repair but I think it was VW when I went there. The recall was because the brake lights would occasionally not turn off when turning off the car. One could tap on the pedal to make the spring turn off the brake light. The recall was to replace the spring with a part that applied a different amount of tension. After having the recall work done, the repair lasted over 10 years when I got another car.

Auto Repair Shreveport, LA ( Louisiana ) - Gerteis Motors 1702 Kings Hwy in Shreveport.

Gerteis Motors is a full-service European automotive repair and service center specializing in older European models including VW models and caters to each customer's unique needs. We have been servicing the Shreveport area for over 35 years.

In Shreveport, there was once a Cadillac Saab dealer but they are not listed as an official service center in the Saab Parts website. It is possible that they are not interested in working on Saabs but one should ask them, if they are looking for help.

Euroteck European & Foreign Car Repair, 930 Shreveport Barksdale Hwy, Shreveport, LA 71105 is also mentioned as fixing Saabs and other cars though I don't know this shop.

[Kenneth Pain]

Well when it comes to places to fix your Saab - Very hard to find - because most mechanic are afraid of working with Saab due to lack of experience or they say they can and the car comes back worst. (In my area- Boston)

Opinion:

For oil changes, tire rotation, brakes, and minor fixes like Serp Belt, Radiator flush, trans flush etc. Any general mechanic can handle.

NOW for everything else: - Check engine light (OBD2 error codes) - etc - Come to the Forum and ask all the question and provide detailed symptoms and I think most of the members of this site will be able to provide an answer than most mechanic doing the diagnosis and reading ALLDATA . Its not really because they lack skills ... But us members have REAL experience cause we are inspired owners of Saabs and probably seen and heard it all.

Saabs are easy vehicle to understand and with member like Frank that 90% will have an answer, your best bet is to start here for help

I recommend that you try to do most of the work on your car - the quality of work is only measure on how much you love the car. -----------------------

For members in Massachusetts - Feel free to ping me on the site - and if you need help I don't mind getting the hands dirty - I know a few good euro-expert mechanics (like myself) in the area of the North Shore - Boston - Merrimack - And Essex County