I thought it's about time to introduce my project that I acquired in I believe August it was. It's a 1977 99 EMS notchback in silver. There is a little bit of a story of how I got to the car, so here it goes.
I believe the first time I really got fixed onto the 99s was quite a while back in Germany when my friend and I started the green 99 turbo notchback that was stored under a shed in the backyard of his parents house. From that day on I've always thought that the car that looked so ridiculous to most of the people was probably the coolest car I could imagine. Certainly a spin in Dennis' immaculate 99 turbo last year made it even worse and hanging around on this forum does definitely support the want to own a 99. That being said I started looking around for 99s which is not the easiest thing to do. I saw a few coming up here and there, but there was nothing that really caught my eye.
While browsing through my e-mails one morning I saw an e-mail from the president of our NWSOC club. He forwarded a message from a woman that had a Saab 99 sitting in her garage which wasn't used anymore. The car belonged to her husband, who unfortunately passed away, and since she was moving to another place there was simply no need for the Saab. She wrote that she would give the car away for free but only if it goes to someone that really appreciates it and can make good use of it. I didn't think too long and e-mailed her right away because after all a free Saab from the Westcoast is like blood to a group of sharks. After a few conversations the deal was sealed and the car was ready to be picked up. I really owe Dennis (squaab) and Craig (mezzanine) a big thank you at this point because those two picked the car up for me and stored it at Dennis' place. Thanks guys, you rock
.Dennis send me a bunch of pictures after he picked up the 99. The car looks pretty solid and has only minor surface rust in some little spots and a minor fender bender. The interior looks very good (except for the headliner of course) and according to Dennis the carpet in the trunk looks almost better than new. With the car came a trunk full of parts, a 99 turbo gauge, a nice EMS steering wheel and of course soccerballs.
My plans for the future are to convert the car to a nice little street racer that could be used for occasional autocross or even hill climb events. However, I would like to be able to also use it for a commute to work if there would ever be the need for it. I think the main things on the list of modifications would be a B202 turbo, maybe a GT28RS, a water-air intercooler, a new suspension set-up, a wildwood or equivalent brake set-up and other seats. In terms of engine management I'd like to see a T5 in there but because of some issues that two mutual friends of me and Dennis had I'm more leaning towards Motec or PiResearch (Cosworth) units. Some of those units are quite pricey but at least there is tech support and parts for their units are readily available.
For now the car will sit at Dennis place so you guys shouldn't be surprised if you don't see any updates on this project. Last but not least I'll put up some pictures so you can all have a look at the 99.
The new temporary home
