Category Archives: ideas

let it go, let it go!

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from SAABNET: Color: gray Trans: Manual Mileage: 172,654 Price: $3200 OBO
Selling one of the “Holy Grail” SAABs for an old friend/customer who reluctantly must part with “his baby” for health reasons. This “pre-Aero” 9k turbo, original Bay Area (Northern CA, sold at B&B SAAB in Santa Clara) always garaged car, is about as close to immaculate as you’re likely to find at this point, and the Jet Engineer second owner has kept meticulous mechanical care of it. Of course it has the 2.3 engine without TCS! 16 inch factory “aero” wheels in beautiful condition. Super clean gray leather, nice carpets and headliner, crack free dash, original sound system. 5 speed manual, with recent clutch, DI, water pump, tires, and battery, and really needs nothing at this point to be an incredible SAAB daily driver time machine. Reliable and safe enough for a college student’s first vehicle, or fast and tight enough for a SAAB turbo nut. Really a one of a kind 9000. This car should go to somebody who will appreciate it!
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1991 9000 for sale in the bay area… reply:

This car should make the drive no problem.  Although anything can happen with a 20 year old car (hard to believe!) it’s been kept up very well.

I used to have a shop in SF, and it’s a very small SAAB world out there.   I think I first talked to Bud over the phone about transmission stuff in the early 90s, and then I met him when our club hosted the SAAB Convention in ’96 at Tahoe.   Not sure I’ve had anything to do with him since then, but he was legendary among his customers and SAAB people at that point.  Like Paul Perry here in the Bay Area.
Anyway, there’s one or two other people who are reasonably serious about this car, but so far we’re still in the “talking” stages.  I know how hard it is to buy a car long distance, so I didn’t expect it to be easy and quick.  Maybe everyone is hoping they’ll get it for less money if they wait.  Not sure how to figure out a “fair” way to sell it other than the person who makes the best offer by the end of the month or so.   It would be nice if whoever gets it is happy with the price, but I really don’t know what the final price will be at this point!
dan

what now…

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i just posted (Sept 15, 2015) this on LA Saab Club facebook group to see what people have to say…

ok friends, i need some solid, honest advice. here’s the synopsis. back in 1986 i bought a new 9000T (one of the first in OC), in ’90 it was totaled when a lady ran a red light, but bud at J&B rebuilt it for me. we fitted some unique rims, and i drove it several more years then sold it to a saab enthusiast who sold it on to another saab enthusiast. earlier this year i saw it, and bought it back from him (250k mi) with the hope of restoring it. i’ve just finished all the suspension work (koni’s with all aero springs/sways) including all new bushings etc. as well as fixed a few oil leaks and upgraded to a newer air cleaner assembly. …then it started getting ugly. the fan blower motor fuse melted down and when bud & ron (J&B) opened up the “fishbowl” realized that all of insulation on the wires in the wiring harness was starting to significantly disintegrate or was just crumbling. now i’m in a conundrum. do i try to replace the wiring (at least everything engine side of firewall maybe more) or the entire harness….or do i find another 9000 (if i can!) and swap all the suspension over to it. or is there another option.

now the soft-part. i have a bit of an emotional attachment. it was the first car my wife and i bought together and drove during the early part of our family’s life. both of our boys were brought home from the hospital in this car–their first car ride. and it saved our lives in what could have been a bad accident.

i welcome any and all wisdom and thank you for your time helping me decide what to do next…

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lots of encouragement to fix it/keep it on the road HERE

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my update November 15, 2015 – 2 months later:

thanks for all of your SAAB-wisdom. wanted to let you know that on thursday of last week, i decided to go up and pay a spontaneous visit to my 9000 that had been at J&B for quite a while and talk candidly with bud about the future. i walked in the door and bud asked me if i was hear to pick up my 9000!? because it was done! i was shocked and sure he was kidding…but he was not. ron and nick had finished the rewiring job the day before and it was ready leave the shop. instead of another harness, ron decided the best solution was to purchase new wiring, so he did. i think the bottom line was ron was just tired of it taking up space in the shop! so on friday, i got a ride from a friend and picked her up! so now we’re back on track with the restoration. amazing work by some extremely talented and knowledgable gentlemen. so thankful. below is all that can be seen of many hours of masterful wire splicing.

 

harnessing the options

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once we floated the “whole new harness” idea, bud asked around. before he knew it, an entire 1988 harness showed up on his doorstep. i went up to see it and to talk to him about this option. as we dug into the pile of wires (every wire in an entire SAAB 9000 is connected here in this pile, including the fuse box) we started to notice areas that had started to deteriorate just like mine had. so it became apparent fairly quickly that this was not a harness  we wanted to use. and that maybe we should even reconsider the “whole harness” option all together. Here’s a couple of shots of the harness and bud and nick inspecting it.

monte carlo yellow & edwardian grey

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it needs paint. or it needs something. at this point, the cost of paint is pretty much out of the question, so i’m seriously condsidering a partial wrap with monte carlo yellow, leaving the edwardian grey lower section in tact. it’s pretty good anyway.

below are some inspirations: