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  1. #1
    Roger Cook
    Saab Enthusiast
    Join Date
    24 Jan 2011
    Location
    Ypsilanti, MI
    Posts
    201
    Saab(s)
    2008 9-5 Aero, 2006 9-3SC 2.0T, 2000 Viggen 'vert, SAAB Quantum, 2000 9-5 retired at 318K miles

    Building/Restoring a Quantum

    This was my reply to an earier post I created. Obviously the response belongs here in the Garage section so all follow-ups will be part of this thread.

    Quick story is that I purchased a never completed Quantum this year and transported it from North Central PA to S-E Michigan on July 8th. Included in the purchase was hundreds of pounds of parts collected by the previous owner of this car. He bought it in '73 and was the second owner. It fits well on the 6'-4" x 12' single axle trailer I purchased just for transporting this car to/from Shows.

    This car is SN #4109, meaning it was the ninth car kit ever produced; 4 = 1964 the first year of production, 10 = place holders, 9 = sequence number of kit production. Best information available is that 55 kits were produced and sold, only 28 are known to currently exist. I thought my car was the final never completed kit but I learned recently there is one more known never completed car.

    Today was the first day that I was able to attack its restoration.

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    How it looked on my trailer bringing it home. Towed by my '08 9-5 Aero

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    How it looked three weeks ago parked next to my Viggen 'vert outside my Hangar work space.

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    How it looks now after removing the body and placing the chassis on wheeled stands.

    Next step is removing the wheels and suspension, steering column and dash plate. Tires will be replaced, wheels will be sand-blasted and powder coated white. I hope the chassis is small enough to be soda ash blasted and powder coated in the original weird yellow shade. Control arms will be sand blasted, fully rebuilt, and powder coated black.

    Then on to the engine and transmission! I will use a bull nose 841cc engine (the car came with both a bull nose and long nose engine) and 4-speed transmission. I plan to seal the fuel tank side rails internally and use them for fuel storage, at least one side rail. This will not meet SCCA competition requirements, but is authentic to the date these cars were first built.
    Last edited by MI-Roger; 04 September 2020 at 15:52.

  2. #2
    Roger Cook
    Saab Enthusiast
    Join Date
    24 Jan 2011
    Location
    Ypsilanti, MI
    Posts
    201
    Saab(s)
    2008 9-5 Aero, 2006 9-3SC 2.0T, 2000 Viggen 'vert, SAAB Quantum, 2000 9-5 retired at 318K miles
    Slow progress since my workspace is unheated and winter is in full force here in Michigan. but off-site progress is being made!

    1) The engine is with Tom Donney in Ft Dodge Iowa for rebuilding. I sent him what I thought was a standard 1963-64 850cc Bull Nose, and a loose GT crank for fabrication of a Hybrid Crank to be installed in the engine. When Tom opened it up he discovered the engine already had a GT crank! Further inspection revealed the block had been ported, the head had been shaved, and the cylinder bores were 0.5mm larger due to reboring during the previous rebuild.

    FWIW - Tom Donney set a new World Record at Bonneville in 2020 with his Sonett powered by a 750cc SAAB 2-stroke engine.

    https://i.pinimg.com/564x/bf/51/05/b...bbe003b6ca.jpg

    2) The transmission is in N-W Pennsylvania being rebuilt. I am switching the clutch actuation to cable versus hydraulic as SAAB did not use hydraulic clutches until maybe 1966.
    3) I have a freshly re-faced clutch plate using a better friction material that stock. I will soon have a new Sachs pressure plate as SAAB used the same pressure plate as VW and there are LOTS of new parts available for old Beetles.
    4) The wheels, suspension, and bottom skin were removed a couple months ago. Next step is getting the chassis painted. and all suspension parts power-coated.

  3. #3
    Roger Cook
    Saab Enthusiast
    Join Date
    24 Jan 2011
    Location
    Ypsilanti, MI
    Posts
    201
    Saab(s)
    2008 9-5 Aero, 2006 9-3SC 2.0T, 2000 Viggen 'vert, SAAB Quantum, 2000 9-5 retired at 318K miles
    Updates:
    The engine was later discovered to have been over-bored to 71mm, not the 70.5mm as first thought. Excessive wear and taper in the cylinders means it will now be over-bored a second time, to 72mm, which equals 890cc displacement.

    The first transmission was discovered to have been trashed after it was opened up. I guess the absence of gear oil in the case should have been a warning. The Ring Gear was worn, the Pinion gear was completely gone with every gear tooth tip being razor sharp, 2/3's of the teeth were polished mirror smooth, and the remainder were deeply pitted with the hardened face completely gone. Additionally, both the drive and driven gears for 4th gear were worn. I located two additional 4-speeds, these being from Sonetts, so the R&P ratio was not the fantastic 5.43:1 in the trashed unit. After opening up both of these trannys one was found to be in Good condition and the other in Very Good to Excellent condition. The best parts will be combined into one finished transmission, which leaves a decision to be made regarding the remaining good parts. Do I sell these as loose parts? Or do I tell the Mechanic to build two transmissions and I sell the second one as a recent re-build?

    I got a price yesterday for re-covering the old Corbeau Equipe GT seat which came in the pile of parts. A local Auto Upholsterer has a resume containing Pebble Beach Concours winners so I approached him for a price. Hey, it is only one seat! How expensive could it be? Well, I can buy two new Corbeau seats for the price of his recovering! And some of the work will be my responsibility, not his. He estimated the existing seat as being a 1970's product, a decade later than the rest of the car. It has been previously recovered at least once, using bar stool Naugahyde and the basket-weave embossed vinyl from Volkswagen. So I will cleanup the existing seat, maybe using the talents of a far less expensive auto upholsterer that has replaced seat covers on my daily drivers if new upholstery is required.

    Prices are coming in to have the chassis grit blasted and powder coated. WIDE range of prices: $1900, $1200, $700, and at least one more proposal coming. Surprisingly, the lowest price source seems to have the best equipment to do the job, and he is the nearest company. Maybe the others are out-sourcing the grit blasting which is increasing their price. The guy who still owes me a proposal is the most escited about doing this project. Maybe a good sign?

    All new engine gaskets arrived yesterday. The starter I got for free looks to be in good condition with every layer of dirt I remove. The Brake Master Cylinder still needs to be rebuilt, and I learned that I will require an additional four front wheel brake wheel cylinders. The car uses only front suspension/brake pieces at all four corners, and the SAAB 96 used two wheel cylinders rather than one on the front brakes. Rear wheels used only one brake cylinder.

  4. #4
    Roger Cook
    Saab Enthusiast
    Join Date
    24 Jan 2011
    Location
    Ypsilanti, MI
    Posts
    201
    Saab(s)
    2008 9-5 Aero, 2006 9-3SC 2.0T, 2000 Viggen 'vert, SAAB Quantum, 2000 9-5 retired at 318K miles

    Periodic Update

    Reading old Sales Literature for the Quantum IV revealed the existence of two Factory engine options for the Kit. Option #1 was a '64 840cc engine with a GT crank, additional honing performed to the cylinders for ease of piston clearance, enlarged piston recesses machined in the head, higher compression (i.e. shaved head), minor porting to the engine passages, and a single barrel Solex Carburetor equipped #32 jets. This was stated as being good for 66 HP

    Option #2 provided higher power yet, close to 80HP, and included a special 2-barrel manifold and 2-barrel Solex carburetor.

    Based on what was revealed when the Engine Builder opened the engine for rebuild, I am convinced the engine which came with my car is an Factory Option #1 Performance Engine.

    I have also decided to have two transmission constructed from the good parts rather than one transmission and maintaining an inventory of old transmission parts sufficient to build a second unit. I know of a few people desiring a rebuilt 4-speed for a 96 and the added cost for rebuilding a second was relatively minor.
    Last edited by MI-Roger; 05 March 2021 at 19:43. Reason: spelling

  5. #5
    Roger Cook
    Saab Enthusiast
    Join Date
    24 Jan 2011
    Location
    Ypsilanti, MI
    Posts
    201
    Saab(s)
    2008 9-5 Aero, 2006 9-3SC 2.0T, 2000 Viggen 'vert, SAAB Quantum, 2000 9-5 retired at 318K miles
    Engine Complete!

    See below. Transmissions should be complete next week. Chassis and Control Arms were delivered to Powder Painter 4-days ago.

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  6. #6
    Roger Cook
    Saab Enthusiast
    Join Date
    24 Jan 2011
    Location
    Ypsilanti, MI
    Posts
    201
    Saab(s)
    2008 9-5 Aero, 2006 9-3SC 2.0T, 2000 Viggen 'vert, SAAB Quantum, 2000 9-5 retired at 318K miles
    Well, things are taking far longer than expected.
    - I have the new aluminum bottom skin for the chassis.
    - I had two splined nuts custom made from scrap inner drive axles so I can fit my car with the circa 1964 Rubber Donut Drivers rather than later GT axles or CV joint axles. These splined nuts connect the inner drive axles to the differential carrier. There is only one NOS splined nut known to exist in the US and none in Europe!
    - The rebuilt engine has been delivered to me. I thought there was a high likelihood this engine had started life as an Optional SAAB Specification S engine offered for the Quantum. The engine had the right block and right crank, crank bearings were SAAB Racing parts, but it had the wrong head (easily removable). Today I learned the original pistons were Standard parts and not the hoped for GT pistons. So this engine was NOT a Spec S engine but someone's custom built racing engine. Oh well, if it had been a Spec S engine when it arrived at the Re-builder's it wouldn't be today due to the work done. Total HP now should match that of the Spec S due to internal similarities.
    - I picked-up the freshly ground flywheel yesterday.
    - Still no word regarding the transmissions. On April 2nd I was told both were 50% assembled and completion was expected by the 7th. It is now the 14th and more recent requests for updates have gone unanswered.
    - The powder painter indicated his shop is slammed with work. The parts being coated in Black, White, and Silver are being worked on. The chassis is a special shade of Yellow and it will be done last.
    - The side rail fuel tanks will be retained and coated internally due to light rusting.
    - I received a proposal for an all new custom radiator. Cheaper than importing a re-built 96 radiator from Europe, then modifying it to work in the Quantum chassis, but with less cost savings than I thought.
    - New stock rubber suspension bushings have arrived. I found a low cost supplier for Urethane bushings and I will be buying a couple to trim to length and verify fitment before buying all required pieces.
    - Next up will be tires, reworked steering shaft, and all body mounts so that the car can be assembled into an attractive "Roller", while all other internal systems are being constructed to make it an attractive "Runner".

  7. #7
    Roger Cook
    Saab Enthusiast
    Join Date
    24 Jan 2011
    Location
    Ypsilanti, MI
    Posts
    201
    Saab(s)
    2008 9-5 Aero, 2006 9-3SC 2.0T, 2000 Viggen 'vert, SAAB Quantum, 2000 9-5 retired at 318K miles
    Transmission(s) Complete!

    I picked up my transmissions on May 6th, one for the 2-stroke in my Quantum and the other to mate to a V4 engine - which I promptly sold. Photo attached of the two transmissions. Work was performed by Bernie at George Riggin Specialty Automotive in Harmony, PA (an hour North of Pittsburgh).
    The swing arms, wheels, pedal set, coolant tank, coil springs, and miscellaneous brackets have all been Powder Coated. Still waiting for the chassis which will also have its fuel tank internals etched and sealed.
    I found new Ball Joints at a supplier in the UK and ordered eight since the Quantum uses SAAB front suspension at both front and rear. These are 95/96/97 parts and many thought new ball joints had become NLA.
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  8. #8
    Roger Cook
    Saab Enthusiast
    Join Date
    24 Jan 2011
    Location
    Ypsilanti, MI
    Posts
    201
    Saab(s)
    2008 9-5 Aero, 2006 9-3SC 2.0T, 2000 Viggen 'vert, SAAB Quantum, 2000 9-5 retired at 318K miles
    Chassis has been powder coated. I picked it up in late May, two months after dropping it off at a powder coater 60 miles away. He was slammed with work this sporing as was everyone this year.



    https://www.saabnet.com/tsn/members/.../882/51569.jpg
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  9. #9
    Roger Cook
    Saab Enthusiast
    Join Date
    24 Jan 2011
    Location
    Ypsilanti, MI
    Posts
    201
    Saab(s)
    2008 9-5 Aero, 2006 9-3SC 2.0T, 2000 Viggen 'vert, SAAB Quantum, 2000 9-5 retired at 318K miles
    New bottom skin installed 0.063 T6061 Aluminum. I bought it sheared to rough size, then self-performed all notching to fit and drilling for the 64 drive rivets. I clamped both the new skin and old skin to the inverted chassis, then used the old skin as my drilling template. The old skin used only 56 rivets but I felt 4 of the rivet spacings on each side were too large.



  10. #10
    Roger Cook
    Saab Enthusiast
    Join Date
    24 Jan 2011
    Location
    Ypsilanti, MI
    Posts
    201
    Saab(s)
    2008 9-5 Aero, 2006 9-3SC 2.0T, 2000 Viggen 'vert, SAAB Quantum, 2000 9-5 retired at 318K miles
    Ball Joints arrived yesterday! Yes, it required from May 8th until July 16th to receive these. The promised delivery date I received after the joints arrived in Miami was June 4th. Unfortunately, US Customs chose my package for a random inspection and early June became mid July as result!

    All rubber suspension bushings were 'pressed' into the bushing holders ten days ago. My B-I-L and I clamped the holders into a bench vise, then used a battery impact driver with a long bolt and spacers (and lots of rubber safe lubricants!) to press the bushings into the bushing holders. These are the upper bushing mounts after cleaning and buffing.



    I am waiting for delivery of Aircraft specification washers (due in two days) to bookend each rubber bushing on the control arm rods. Standard USS specification washers have an excessively large ID. After receipt of these the suspension will be installed.

    The steering rack was cleaned and painted today. New crimp rings to secure the new boots onto the steering rack were delivered this past week.


 

 

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