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  Aug. 31, 2010 6:48 p.m. mad_machine SuperDork

  If I am totally honest, I always wanted a "classic" 900 over the NG Turbo I currently own. While quick, it always reminded me more of a muscle car than a european sports sedan. Fast in a straight line, but not very fun in the twisties. I also always loved the shape of the classic.

  So after screwing up the paint on the NG for the second time (It's full of pinprick holes) I threw in the towel and went looking for a classic.

  I found a 91 900s in northern NJ for $675 on Craigslist. The pictures looked decent even if it did have 221,000 miles on it.

  I get up there and find out from the seller that it has been running rougher than advertised. Said it had been running great, but the last time he had it out, there was a bad miss and no power. Tells me he will sell it for $300 as is.

  I get the key in hand.. start the car up.. purrs like kitten. Plenty of power for a 16v 2.0 non-turbo. It just needs plugs and wires. He obviously last tried to run it on a wet day. Today was not even humid. I got a $300 Classic 900.

  The good.. power everything but the transmission. Even the sunroof works smoothly. The headliner is intact, and almost everything works as it should. The sills are remarkiby free of rust, as are the rear fenders

  The bad: Passenger front fender is crusty with rust. Driver's side has a little bit starting to get a hold on the metal. headliner on the sunroof is loose (but the main headliner is intact) Dash is starting to crack, there is a loose headlight (broken plastic mounts) and the ABS light is on and the pedal is VERY hard, but still stops the car well.

  pictures: (please forgive the phone camera)

  

  And now the rust:

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  Aug. 31, 2010 7:02 p.m. mtn SuperDork

  Nice! What a great score.

  there’s a lot of debate on this subject—about what kind of car handles best. Some say a front-engined car; some say a rear-engined car. I say a rented car.

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  Aug. 31, 2010 7:08 p.m. rustyvw HalfDork

  I'm so jealous right now. I've been wanting another Saab for so long.

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  Aug. 31, 2010 8:16 p.m. Luke SuperDork

  Nice find!

  I want a 99 more and more every day. < edit > wow, having said that, a free '74 EMS just popped up on the local classifieds site. I need a trailer...

  "Just as a proverb says, one should always ny escort prepare for a rainy day." - GRM canoe

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  Aug. 31, 2010 11:15 p.m. procainestart Dork

  Sweet -- time to put a turbo on it. (By the way, a '92 non-turbo will have the 2.1L motor.)

  Before you turbocharge it (yer gonna turbocharge it, right?), check under the trunk in the spare tire area for rust, if you haven't already. Also look at the front end, near the lower control arms and where the axles go through the body. Pull up the rubber pieces along the base of the doors and check there. AND... just so there are no surprises, at some point you might pull the front carpets up to see if the floor is in bad shape. Saab used these stupid rubber-backed open-cell foam mats for sound deadening; any interior water leaks would get sponged up and stuck there.

  Almost all c900 dashes crack. If you find a good one and install it, I guarantee it will crack immediately.

  The headlights are designed to take a small bump -- in the back there are a couple ball-and-socket connections that pop apart. If the light seems to swivel smoothly up and down on a diagonal axis when you move it, then it could just be that one of the ball/socket connectors need to become re-acquainted with a smooth but somewhat forceful shove. If you need a whole new headlight, note that ideally you want one from a 91-93; 87-90 will fit but you'll need to file down the little aiming nubs for the wipers to work.

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  Aug. 31, 2010 11:16 p.m. procainestart Dork

  Luke wrote: Nice find! I want a 99 more and more every day. < edit > wow, having said that, a free '74 EMS just popped up on the local classifieds site. I need a trailer...

  Where are you located?

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  Aug. 31, 2010 11:23 p.m. Luke SuperDork

  Australia .

  

  "Just as a proverb says, one should always ny escort prepare for a rainy day." - GRM canoe

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  Aug. 31, 2010 11:28 p.m. pigeon Dork

  Well played sir! A close friend had an SPG that went like stink and looked the part. Unfortunately it succumbed to terminal rust around it's 20th birthday. The 9-5 he replaced it with was a freaking nightmare, to the point that he considers his B5 S4 to be a big improvement!

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  Aug. 31, 2010 11:53 p.m. grimmelshanks Reader

  ^yikes

  pinion shaft? uh-oh

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  Sept. 1, 2010 12:39 a.m. mad_machine SuperDork

  I have a small amount of rust starting to form in the trunk near the spare tyre. it is about 2by2 in the very corner. It mostly looks scabby right now.. so I may need to crawl under there and take a peek.

  Doors and sills look amazingly good. I will have to check the floors under the mats.

  The plastic mounts behind the light are broken. I can see where the socket is broken off cleanly (with the ball still in it). I may try JB weld for now.

  As for turbocharging.. I still have my NG that I am going to part out. I was considering keeping the engine, harness, and computer to see if I could adopt it over (Obviously not the engine)

  During the Sound Check, nobody can year you scream

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  Sept. 1, 2010 8:35 a.m. Powar Dork

  Awesome. More C900s on GRM.

  I'm down to two C900s and one 99 at the moment. My 900S, the girlfriend's DD 900S and my '70 99 say hello.

  

  I personally like the 2.0 n/a. It has sufficient power for most things (though it did feel a little 'lacking' on the straights at Nelson Ledges...) and it gets good fuel econ.

  '90 Miata / '68 95 / '69 96 DeLuxe / '70 99 / '73 Sonett III / '90 900S / '91 900 / '85 Hilux

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  Sept. 1, 2010 8:52 a.m. 81gtv6 HalfDork

  Very nice score. I haven't had a C900 for a while and am starting to get the itch again. My brother has one he is getting rid of but I don't think my wife would be very happy.

  I will have to say we have had good luck with both of our newer SAABs so far. My 99 9-3 SE had @ 240K in it when I gave it to my brother and other than a fuel pump and an AC compressor it was trouble free. The 03 9-5 Aero I have now is at about 130K and has been trouble free so far.

  Mad, when you get to the point of parting the NG let me know. I am interested in the RK wheels you have.

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  Sept. 1, 2010 8:58 a.m. mndsm Dork

  Man I'd love a 900 of that vintage. You did quite well.

  Go fast or go broke.

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  Sept. 1, 2010 12:53 p.m. mad_machine SuperDork

  81gtv6 wrote: I will have to say we have had good luck with both of our newer SAABs so far. My 99 9-3 SE had @ 240K in it when I gave it to my brother and other than a fuel pump and an AC compressor it was trouble free. The 03 9-5 Aero I have now is at about 130K and has been trouble free so far. Mad, when you get to the point of parting the NG let me know. I am interested in the RK wheels you have.

  The RKIIs are already off the car. I have them stacked away from where I was painting. The car is sitting on it's original vikings. Send me a PM with a decent off and we will talk.

  As for my NG. It's a 94 so it has the typical first year issues. It was also used and abused and put away wet by many owners. In the couple thousand miles I have driven it.. it has needed a new trans, a rear caliper, Starter, Alternator, Radio, disc changer, and it still does not have working aircon.

  parts people may be interested in:

  Viggen front and rear bumpers in primer, read to scuff and paint Genuine Saab bigger rear sway bar the RK2 BBS rims

  I also have a decent leather interior in black. Seats are powered with buttwarmers

  During the Sound Check, nobody can year you scream

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  Sept. 1, 2010 12:55 p.m. procainestart Dork

  mad_machine wrote: As for turbocharging.. I still have my NG that I am going to part out. I was considering keeping the engine, harness, and computer to see if I could adopt it over (Obviously not the engine)

  The NG harness and Trionic system can be fitted to the c900; see saablink.net and saabcentral.com, and http://trionic.mobixs.eu/ for open-source tuning software for Trionic.

  NG turbo pattern is T25 so won't fit c900 manifold without an adapter (all c900 T manifolds are T3 bolt pattern, even the Mitsubishi TE05s used on '90-'91 SPGs and '91-'93 Turbos.

  Don't want to scare you, but the 2.1L motor is prone to headgasket and block pitting issues, usually at cyl #1:

  http://townsendimports.com/Web/2point1_Block_Repair/saab_2point1_block_repair.htm

  Incidentally, next to the Bentley manual, townsendimports.com is probably the best single resource for repair information.

  @powar -- sweet '70. Link to mo' pics? The guy who heads up our local club has a '69 -- rare to see the early early cars...

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  Sept. 1, 2010 2:17 p.m. Powar Dork

  procainestart wrote: @powar -- sweet '70. Link to mo' pics? The guy who heads up our local club has a '69 -- rare to see the early early cars...

  The only pics that I've snapped are here. I've not taken many yet because I just dragged it home a couple of weeks ago and I've really not had time to do anything with it aside from a quick wash.

  To the OP: Is that Citrine Beige? I can't really tell from the pics.

  '90 Miata / '68 95 / '69 96 DeLuxe / '70 99 / '73 Sonett III / '90 900S / '91 900 / '85 Hilux

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  Sept. 2, 2010 7:20 p.m. mad_machine SuperDork

  it's listed as "grey" but it really looks more like a silverblue to me.

  I did get it home today.. but not without some hiccups. It is WAY down on power and there is a miss. I am hoping new plugs, wires, and a cap will cure that. It was really missing until I put good fuel in it.

  I am getting the "knock sensor" code on the CEL. Now that the exhaust fell off (I knew it was bad) I can still hear a very slight miss when accelerating in first and second.. each gear seems to make it go away some.

  During the Sound Check, nobody can year you scream

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