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I've got myself stuck in home isolation for 14 days so what better to do to forget the poo poo state of the world than to start off another project car... In my parents garden I have a tent, which for the last 10 years or so has held one of my dads cars along with a load of assorted crap. He bought the car in the 90's and drove it for a couple of years before it got parked up for some reason and first lived in his garage and then my tent. I bought the tent on the basis that the car would eventually become mine...  Earlier this week I convinced my parents to dig it out and attempt to put some air in the tyres and I paid a man with a truck some money to go visit their house:  Somehow all the tyres hold air and the brakes were not stuck on and half an hour later I got this dropped off in my drive: There is a spoiler and rear louvre for the tailgate but they got left in the garden at my parents house for now!        Check out that go-faster stripe  Somehow the interior is still perfect (other than the headlining) and smells of mothballs? Apparently the interior on this car was refurbished shortly before my dad bought it in the 90's   The engine however is covered in mouse poo poo and spiders and is disgusting..  The body is in remarkable good condition, but there is some nasty rust around the windscreen at the top and the bottom edges. I think the rust at the top was one of the reasons it was parked up.   This side has been patched with some fibreglass (apparently before my dad owned it) 
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Aug 20, 2020 23:26
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| # ? May 1, 2024 20:30 |
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DAY 1: The negative battery cable has disintegrated, so with the aid of some jump leads I fitted a battery and attempted to turn the key. Amazingly the starter motor works but the engine will not turn over. No surprise the fuel pump doesn't work. After one turn of the key the ignition barrel seized up solid and locked the gear stick up too (the ignition barrel in this car is next to the gear lever and is supposed to lock the gear stick into reverse when you remove the key). The key is also stuck in the barrel. Lack of a working engine does not worry me as my plan here is to remove the original engine and replace it with a later 1990-ish Saab 16V Turbo B202 engine (which I happen to already have...) Strip down begins and the coolant has apparently turned into sludge  After an hour or two of spraying plus-gas and skinning my knuckles and I can see lots of horrible K-Jetronic stuff. This is all going away and I'm gonna run this on a speeduino ECU    lots of kjet and wiring removed: I have also managed to desconnect the gear linkage, remove the speedo and get the engine mount bolts undone.  Next is removing the driveshafts so that I can lift the engine and gearbox out Lots of spiders:  Got the hub off and removed the caliper and separated the driveshaft from the CV and then sealed stuff up to keep the dirt out:  Hub refitted without caliper and driveshaft (so I can roll the car). Rust visible. I think this is the rustiest inner wheel arch... 
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Aug 20, 2020 23:49
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I love everything about this car. Does the original engine at least turn?
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Aug 21, 2020 01:33
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Both of my uncles had 99/900 turbo hatchbacks when I was a little kid, and I love to see them still, although they are very rare in my part of the world now. Excited for this thread, dude. Louvers! 
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Aug 21, 2020 03:29
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Someone put your engine in backwards 
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Aug 21, 2020 05:59
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Seat Safety Switch posted:I love everything about this car. Does the original engine at least turn? I cant make it turn with it in the car but you cant get a socket and big bar on the crank on a 99 because of the bulkhead. (I will be cutting an access panel into the bulkhead to fix this!). I had a quick go at levering it via the clutch assembly but without making a dedicated bar that would fit in it better (I think that there is a special saab tool for this!) feared for my knuckles too much if i slipped. Its got oil in and has been dry so I suspect it will free up - but then would still need a minimum of a light rebuild and some work to get the sludge cleared out of the waterways and replace seals (like the waterpump) and I suspect will also need the wastegate rebuilding (it has a diaphram and valve in), then on top of that will need lots of work on the K-jet to actually make it run properly. I hate K-jet and don't want to touch it ever again, and the engine also needs to come out so I can weld around it so I'm just going to fit the better later engine that I already have!
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Aug 21, 2020 09:06
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Day 2: Stripped the passenger side front axle out. Had to chop the caliper up with an angle grinder to remove it. I don't think this side needs any welding doing to the inner arch!!  Removed the engine. Tried to get it to turn over again when it was out and no success yet  Started stripping and cleaning the engine bay. This was underneath the engine!! #saablife  found 2 mouse nests while doing it. Engine bay stripped out  Then rolled outside. The big pile of rust is the remains of the exhaust  Pressure washed, scrubbed and degreased as much as possible  The rustiest side: My dad told me that when he bought it in the 90's it was parked in a farmyard and there was a hedge growing around the front. It was clearly on this side!  Test fit of new engine:  I need to cut a couple of 15mm recesses into the bulkhead for it to fit (as expected) Unfortunately I found the gearbox that was attached to my 16v engine is not the one I thought it was and in order to get the 5 speed box I wanted I will have to undertake a proper engine shuffling mission  currently debating leaving the car as a 4 speed
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Aug 21, 2020 22:43
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I’m excited to see your progress! I’m working on reviving a 1984 Volvo 245 turbo right now and it’s interesting to compare the way the two manufacturers implemented the K-Jet. I’m planning to keep it but I converted my last 240 from K-Jet to EFI so I may yet go that route if it ends up being too frustrating. The rest of the car is so original that I feel like it deserves a chance at least.
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Aug 22, 2020 05:13
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That's quite a bit of rust, but it could probably all be fixed. Is the 5-speed case bigger or is there some kind of linkage fouling problem?
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Aug 22, 2020 05:19
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I just ordered all the parts to rebuild both front corners with new ball joints, tie rod ends, CV boots, brake disks, calipers and brake lines. zundfolge posted:I’m excited to see your progress! I’m working on reviving a 1984 Volvo 245 turbo right now and it’s interesting to compare the way the two manufacturers implemented the K-Jet. I’m planning to keep it but I converted my last 240 from K-Jet to EFI so I may yet go that route if it ends up being too frustrating. The rest of the car is so original that I feel like it deserves a chance at least. Have you got a thread for your Volvo? I love old volvos but have only ever owned one and it was a boring later diesel one. This car was original too - but I really hate K-Jet after the fight I had with my last K-Jet Saab. (Note - I only hate K-jet because the parts are all now 40 years old and buying new bits costs stupid money so getting it running reliably seems impossible without much time and money). I want something that will start, idle and for which it doesn't end up costing thousands for any engine parts. Seat Safety Switch posted:That's quite a bit of rust, but it could probably all be fixed. There is quite a bit of surface rust and small bits but I haven't found any massive structural rust. It looks like an easy fix to me. This car is amazingly solid relative to the other ones I have worked on! You can barely get 3 fingers through the worst rust hole in the engine bay... The 5 speed box is the exact same dimension as the 4 speed and is pretty much a straight swap (you have to swap the linkage over too but I have the parts for this) The gearbox in the photo has the later front mount fitted (you can swap the front cover over to fix this) so isn't sitting on the front mount properly My problem is that: The gearbox on the original engine is a 4 speed (last used approx 25 years ago) The gearbox currently on the 16v engine is a 4 speed with the wrong front cover fitted (last used approx 15 years ago) I have a 5 speed box which I wanted to use here - but it is currently installed in my other old Saab which doesn't run and is parked under my carport on a gravel drive with limited access around the sides
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Aug 22, 2020 08:42
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Tomarse posted:The big pile of rust is the remains of the exhaust. Good thread title right there. Awesome that you already have a plan for this project! Don't lose momentum.
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Aug 22, 2020 15:35
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Day 3: Moved Saab out of garage  Got the other saab running so I could move it. Only took a couple of hours. 2 of the LPG solenoids also died in the process which was weird - I think they must not be sealed and rust up inside or something. One worked again after hitting it but the other I had to swap out for a spare. Drove it into the garage  Began a game of musical gearboxes: 
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Aug 23, 2020 09:33
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Day 4 + 5 I've been slacking taking photos because I have been enjoying playing loud music off my phone instead! Operation musical gearboxes has been a success and yellow car is now reassembled with a 4 speed box. Yellow car now starts and runs (though starting it can be a pig as the choke cable is broken and you have to tap one of the LPG solenoids with a hammer sometimes to get it to open) 5 speed box is attached to the engine going into the black car. Removed engine and gearbox have now been sealed up to prevent water/animal ingress and are now outside under a tarp. The black car has a weird smell inside it that makes your eyes and throat hurt so today I wore a mask and stripped out the interior and headlining to see if they were causing it - and so that I can start chopping and welding around the windscreen and bulkhead.   I am not convinced the seats are the culprit as the smell is still there when they are out and they only smell musty if you sniff them outside the car. Mouse ingress into the interior seems to have been none/minimal - there are no turds to be found. I think they were happy in the engine bay (where I removed 2 nests and many turds) It has been a bit moist in there (all the screws are rusty), but nothing was damp other than a bit in the front which I think came from my pressure washing. I have scrubbed some light mold off the door trims and dash.  When I got the boot floor out I found that there is no fuel pump fitted (I was expecting it to be dead but not missing!), so the tank is just venting into the interior. I am now hopeful that the old varnishy/petrol fumes are the source of the smell  Unfortunately the fuel pump fitting is also different to all the later 99 and c900 spares that I have, so even though i have already bought a new pump I cant mount it as I dont have a suitable hanger/cradle/bracket for it
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Aug 24, 2020 20:49
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Saab seems to have prided themselves on increasingly bizarre fuel pump mounts. Was it the 9-3 where most people just cut through the floor under the seats rather than drop the gas tank?
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Aug 25, 2020 04:59
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Seat Safety Switch posted:Saab seems to have prided themselves on increasingly bizarre fuel pump mounts. Was it the 9-3 where most people just cut through the floor under the seats rather than drop the gas tank?
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Aug 25, 2020 12:30
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Day 6: My photos of today also suck. Started by hitting the rusty front corner with the needle scaler:     There were some previous poo poo repairs on this wing. I also hit the front panel  I then spent a couple of hours with my grinder and cut out a poo poo load of rusty bits  Then I did a test fit of the new engine as it needs some bulkhead mods:  Clutch master cylinder is very close but i can flip that 180 degrees  Had to cut a hole for the end of the crankshaft. I'm using a bottom pulley on this that has been converted from a double to single belt in a lathe.  Now the waterpump touches the bulkhead and the alternator is really close:   I have started cutting to make some clearance up here. I also need to make up a top bracket for the alternator and find a belt that fits. Stock is 975mm but the brake servo stops me using that. I think I need to buy a 950/925mm belt and try that and hit the brake servo with my lump hammer a few times to ensure the alternator fins don't touch it.
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Aug 25, 2020 20:55
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Fuel pump hanger retrieved: Now I need to find a bit of 2.25" (55-60mm) fuel resistant hose to hold the pump up. I am assuming that fuel filler hose is probably my best bet here? edit:  lol. I'm not sure if adding Austin/MGB parts to a Saab is a good thing but it looks like its the perfect size and price! Tomarse fucked around with this message at 10:30 on Aug 26, 2020 |
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Aug 26, 2020 10:19
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I always thought old Saabs were designed by people who had heard of cars but never actually seen one up close and personal. Why why why is the motor backwards? Why is everything else the way it is?
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Aug 26, 2020 17:59
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User Error posted:I always thought old Saabs were designed by people who had heard of cars but never actually seen one up close and personal. Why why why is the motor backwards? Why is everything else the way it is? born from jets baby  
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Aug 26, 2020 19:18
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User Error posted:I always thought old Saabs were designed by people who had heard of cars but never actually seen one up close and personal. Why why why is the motor backwards? Why is everything else the way it is? because Saab . Since clutches are more frequent service items than timing chains it makes sense to me to put it backwards...Day 7: As per skid factory requirements I removed and refitted the engine approx 20 times and ended up with a cutout in my bulkhead that lets the engine fit and gives enough space to change the fan belt:  The alternator cooling fins are however REALLY close to my brake booster. I am waiting for a couple of slightly shorter belts to arrive to see if I can move the alt in some more before I hit the brake booster with a lump hammer or start shopping for a smaller one.   I also drilled out my trigger wheel and chucked it onto the crank pulley. I need to mount the sensor and then fix the wheel to the pulley behind it.  Day 8: Cleaned up the rusty roof:  I found this guy in the roof above one of the sunroof mounts. He should be easy to remove.  The windscreen surround is a different story though  I can cope with the holes at the bottom:   But i'm not yet sure about the best method to repair the top rail:   I've made a start on the bottom first: 
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Aug 27, 2020 19:35
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I have found a man willing to sell me 2 inches of the roof off a donor car! He also has a new green tinted windscreen (original OEM Saab turbo 70's spec) for sale to replace my lovely de-laminated non-tinted one.
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Aug 28, 2020 13:12
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Will he sell you the entire panel, then you can split and re-weld along the original seams?
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Aug 28, 2020 14:09
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InitialDave posted:Will he sell you the entire panel, then you can split and re-weld along the original seams? I think i'd rather do one big weld right along the front than have to take off and weld on the whole roof skin. It should be easy enough to grind the weld down because access is easy to the top side. There is a structural bar running behind the outer skin (which is still solid) so I can grind my outer skin off and plug weld the donor bit back on along the bottom edge
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Aug 28, 2020 14:54
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Tomarse posted:Now I need to find a bit of 2.25" (55-60mm) fuel resistant hose to hold the pump up. You need hose specifically rated for fuel submersion if it's actually going to be in any liquid, otherwise it's just gonna fall apart. Otherwise yeah, filler is probably gonna be fine. Probably.
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Aug 28, 2020 14:56
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Tomarse posted:I think i'd rather do one big weld right along the front than have to take off and weld on the whole roof skin. It should be easy enough to grind the weld down because access is easy to the top side.
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Aug 28, 2020 14:58
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User Error posted:I always thought old Saabs were designed by people who had heard of cars but never actually seen one up close and personal. Why why why is the motor backwards? Why is everything else the way it is? Also the motor is half a v8, but the half came before the v8.
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Aug 28, 2020 15:07
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STR posted:You need hose specifically rated for fuel submersion if it's actually going to be in any liquid, otherwise it's just gonna fall apart. I am hoping that fuel filler hose is suitably fuel resistant to deal with this. Its only going to be submerged when the tank is between 75 and 100% full. On the Austin/MG it is designed for I suspect that it also sits full of fuel for a while when the tank is filled up too - so I would hope it can deal with it
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Aug 28, 2020 15:38
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Tomarse posted:On the Austin/MG it is designed for I suspect that it also sits full of fuel for a while when the tank is filled up too - so I would hope it can deal with it On the British cars the fuel cap is on the rear deck so the rubber piece just connects the fuel filler pipe to the fuel tank inlet. The rubber hose is never in constant contact with gasoline unless you way overfill the tank. I would double check.
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Aug 28, 2020 20:04
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Found some documentation today. This car was last MOT'd when I was aged 7 (and the car was aged 9)! It also doesn't have a current registration document (it has one from 1987 but they changed in the uk in the 90's and it never got a new one) so I am going to have to talk to the DVLA to find out how I go about registering it. Bulk Vanderhuge posted:On the British cars the fuel cap is on the rear deck so the rubber piece just connects the fuel filler pipe to the fuel tank inlet. The rubber hose is never in constant contact with gasoline unless you way overfill the tank. I would double check. If the filler hose doesn't like it then my fuel pump will drop into the tank and the interior will start smelling of fuel so i should find out pretty quickly! I have the MGB filler hose now. I could leave it submerged in some fuel for a few weeks as a test and see if it dissolves?
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Aug 28, 2020 20:22
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Tomarse posted:Found some documentation today. This car was last MOT'd when I was aged 7 (and the car was aged 9)! Turns out it only took a 5 minute phone call and didn't cost me anything and a registration document is now in the post. Within 5 minutes of the call it started working in the online lookup utility (previously it would give a 'details not found' error). 32 years expired tax is pretty good going  Manufacture date is wrong on the documentation (its actually a 78), but it is still early enough to be instantly tax and mot exempt (once i fill in the form for that) 
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Aug 29, 2020 12:44
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Glad there won’t be too many hassles with tax at least. With no MOT required, you don’t have to get it inspected either?
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Aug 29, 2020 14:31
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Seat Safety Switch posted:Glad there won’t be too many hassles with tax at least. With no MOT required, you don’t have to get it inspected either? The ‘tax’ for cars here is a monthly fee that you have to pay which is loosely based on emissions/random numbers. It being historic/exempt saves me around £20/month. Not a massive amount but it’s nice. Yes - it is also exempt from compulsory annual inspections - though I will probably get an initial inspection done just to get a professional confirmation that I haven’t missed anything important. The guy who does the inspections at my local garage knows his poo poo.
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Aug 29, 2020 14:56
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Yeah, the DVLA have always been really good when I've phoned them. Compared to the American tales of their DMVs, it's really quite remarkable. I need to find out how to get the manufacturing date of the 924, as it's registered in Jan '82, so probably built in '81, but isn't registered quite early enough in January to be considered '81 by default.
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Aug 29, 2020 15:26
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I've got a bare Speeduino 0.42 PCB lying around (was a spare from an old project, never needed), if you need?
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Aug 29, 2020 16:05
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InitialDave posted:Yeah, the DVLA have always been really good when I've phoned them. Compared to the American tales of their DMVs, it's really quite remarkable. I got the 101fc date changed. I had to get an official build certificate from the heritage centre at Gaydon (who have the LR records) and send that off with a letter and the V5 (and some photos and stuff). You probably need a factory build record or owners club equivalent. Pomp and Circumcized posted:I've got a bare Speeduino 0.42 PCB lying around (was a spare from an old project, never needed), if you need? cheers for the offer! Some utter twat of a postman attempted to deliver my Speeduino and wiring loom today at 14:30 (it was supposed to be a pre-12:00 delivery....). I was outside in the garage by then having given up waiting so didn't hear the doorbell. He didn't try next door and just left a card and took it away again and back to the sorting office. The sorting office and royal mail call centre is closed from midday today until Tuesday (not open on Sunday or a bank holiday). I cant book a re-delivery slot until Wednesday. Awesome. I was gonna start wiring it up in the evenings as a non-neighbour annoying quieter activity
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Aug 29, 2020 16:48
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You're a mad man and I love it.
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Aug 29, 2020 17:26
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Just jumping in to say that interior is awesome and mint
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Aug 29, 2020 18:11
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I had a 93 Saab 900 once. Great car. Top down goodness with an amazing stereo helped get me through my divorce. I'll always love the lines on these, if you like unique you can't go wrong with Saab.
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Aug 29, 2020 18:22
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Rust repair on the bottom edge of the screen is really kicking my arse. Drivers side is now solid again but still needs the windscreen seal retaining angle section making and welding on.  before shot:  The middle bit is also solid but also needs the seal retaining angle refitting. I've got the piece made up for here but it needs trimming down and attaching  When i cut the rust out I found that there is a void under here above the heater box which you can just reach into from the sides. It held mouse nest no. 5. Gonna drill 2 access holes in through the top of the dash so I can spray wax in here.  The passenger side was the worst and is now almost finished. It needs some more cleanup and the seal strip is made up but needs welding on and end by the door is still open - but I need to take the door off to fill it in.  before shot:  Had to keep checking against the screen that I had the lines right as I cut out so much of the top and the panel is both angled and curved: Much of it is hidden under the screen seal anyway!  I am gonna aim to get the lower screen section fully completed by tomorrow. I then need to take out the brake booster and fix a big hole that I have noticed under there. I found water stains when I took the dash apart and it looks like water has got through the holes in the lower screen panel and sat under the booster along with mouse piss from nest no 4 (which was around the back of the booster). I also still have to fill in the bulkhead cutout I made for the crankshaft pulley but I need to draw out a template first so I can bend/weld a recessed panel up for it.
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Aug 29, 2020 19:51
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| # ? May 1, 2024 20:30 |
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Man, you’re just flying through this stuff. Great hustle.
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Aug 29, 2020 21:12
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