Oregon 99 GL coupe

[SalemSaab]

99 had been treating me well (except when i stall it & it won't start again) but this week it has stranded me .. will start & drive fine for a mile or two then shuts down while cruising in 4th gear. Fired up a few minutes later but today it does the same thing, had to tow it home

[Geoff]

Could be a fuel pump. I've had that same symptom happen when one went bad - pump gets hot and stops working, after it cools it will run again. An easy check is to disconnect the fuel line that goes to the fuel filter and drain it into a clean container. Look at the gas in the container. If you see any metallic specs or sparkles then your fuel pump is at fault. The metallic specs are bits of the pump that are wearing as it runs.

[SalemSaab]

thanks Geoff, will check that. wasn't hearing power to the pump but has a newer relay as that was a problem in the past.
My friend has a spare pump for a 1981 900 I think is the same so I might test that out.

the local saab guru recommended I check the fuse-box wiring so I'll have to do that the next time I see daylight, which weekends only

[SalemSaab]

99 has been back on the road and running great.
The above problem was traced to the fuse box. The fuel pump fuse position had been rewired elsewhere which I did not realize but John Collins remembered having done previously.

Question, what sorts of parts can I use off a 1981 turbo sedan?
My friend has been trying to pawn off a disused one on me. Had a recent motor + trans rebuild before being abandoned due to electrical issues.
Apparently the interior got a bit moldy (and its red anyway) so I'm trying to figure out if there is anything else I could salvage off it to make it worth my while (i.e. upgrades over corresponding 99 parts)

[DrewP]

The turbocharged H-engine can be transplanted in since you have the whole running car there to swap all the fuel injection stuff over. You'd have to change the shifter assembly too since the 5-speed shifter is a little different than the 4-speed. You'd have to re-work the cooling system, clearance the firewall a little, and figure out engine mounts - it's not a direct bolt in.

Most of the same stuff you'd have to do to swap in a 16V engine.

Other than that there's not much else you could use - wheels and brakes and suspension stuff is all the same I think, could keep for spares.

[SalemSaab]

Have been thinking of buying a neglected 99 Turbo for the turbo bits (see Craigslist thread), but based on the explanation of their common failures & neglect, and in talking to my local SAAB guru today, thinking it is not a good option.
Learned 99Ts had lower compression, hence different pistons, so I couldn't just bolt on the Turbo bits to my stock B as I'd imagined.
Sounds like adapting an H is a chore as well. Tho John Collins has a 16V stuffed in his.

He also mentioned 5-speed trans are heavier and less reliable than the 4-speeds. Aside from my clutch slipping a bit, my 4 speed works fine (tho I hate Interstate Driving). Its miserably slow in 1st & 2nd but pulls well enough on back roads in 3rd & 4th. It isn't broke so don't fix it for now I guess.

In other news, picked up a better front bumper, and we found a fiberglass 99 T replica spoiler lying around in the junkyard (not the SAS variety I don't like).
Hopefully will get those cleaned up & on the car, and repair/refinish my grille soon.

Now to find some carpet & seats before NASOC in 3 months...

[Crazyswede]

The 5 speed is heavier than the 4 but not so much that you would notice. The 4 speeds are not stronger or more reliable than the 5 speeds. The 4 speeds never saw real power and most were not driven for 200k miles.
You could tear down your B turbo engine and swap in some higher comp pistons. Look for an h exhaust manifold and run an apc setup and watercooled turbo. Or have someone make you a nice ss log echaust manifold. Put in a late 80's or early 90's 5 speed. These improve driveability, economy, throttle response, etc and no need to modify your engine bay.

[SalemSaab]

Right on .. what's better about the later 5-speeds? I have a 1981 available to me but I think it was rebuilt just before being abandoned.
Never heard back from the 99T guy tho someone on NWSOC is going to look at the two cheap ones on PDX CL

Got the new parts on the front end .. looks more like a proper 99 now

[Crazyswede]

The later 5 speeds got bigger bearings and were improved designs that heald up to the engines that saab was producing. I would say try out the 81 5 speed if it was rebuilt properly and is available. I ran a rebuilt 82 gearbox for a while with no issues. Just mind the boost in the first couple gears.

[Chouan]

Pretty sure the early 900 rotors are lighter then the 99. The upgrade would require the newer hub



I'd say thats more of an EMS replica air damn, although it does not have a license plate bump. It seems as if there is a bit of extra material around the outside. Hard to tell from the picture but that may be excess from the moulding process that was not removed. Looks good though!

[Geoff]

That's the fiberglass airdam that JC Whitney used to sell for $99. It came with a rubber strip that you could mount along the bottom that hung down another 3-4", as if it wasn't low enough to begin with....

[SalemSaab]

I know this has been recited ad-infiniteum elsewhere (can't remember the specific threads), but what is it needed from the 1980 99 to (easily) adapt a 5-speed?
Just occured to me that I saw a 1980 in the local junkyard, if I can get what I need for the swap off that car I'll have to scoop up my friend's 900 at last.

edit: Found it: viewtopic.php?f=18&t=3412&p=40239

[SalemSaab]

[Chouan]

If I leave my 99T out in the sun, but the engine is cool, I have problems starting. I suspect the WUR given that it sits right bellow the hood, actually heats up and thus I get a leaner mix then needed.

I have seen two different plates for sure, but they were out of cars so I cant be sure what they were for.

Have you looked at your control pressures? The test gauge is pretty helpful.

[SalemSaab]