it’s been 2 months up at J&B for a variety of reasons, but she’s home now. all bandaged up and ready for the road….or at least ready to continue the restoration to get her daily-driver-worthy. here’s a couple of shots. one shows the new airbox configuation and one shows the newly tape-wrapped harness!
Category Archives: updates
let the sun shine, now
you don’t realize how nice sun visors are, or even how often you use them, until your SAAB doesn’t have one. i’m not sure where this one ended up but all that was left when i got the car back was a metal stick. its probably on the side of the road in mexico, lost during one of the mission trips this 9000 provided transportation for.
the new one was supposed to be off of a1986, and it may well be, but it has a lighted vanity and the other one was not. so i had to trip the electical connector to fit up in the roof when i installed it. other than that, it all looks and works great! i’m sure goldwing was thinking they were giving me the best one they had.
the right-sized shoes
the first time i really drove the 9000 again, i quickly realized that the wheels were rubbing the inside of the fender well….and badly. i couldn’t go around a normal corner without SCRRAAEEEEEP. so i knew i had to replace the tires immediately. this was a serious drivability issue for me the way i drive. but i really didn’t want to plunk down 5 bills for some new rolling stock, and on top of that, i wasn’t really sure what size would fit right.
but, WHA-LA! i still had a wheel and tire in my back yard FROM THIS EXACT 9000. it was the original wheel that this 9000 rolled off the assembly line on. don’t ask my why i still had it, and please don’t judge me, but this came in super handy because i now new what the EXACT RIGHT tire size was. 185-65-15. and then it dawned on me: since this is a used car, let’s get some used tires!
so i found a tire place in santa ana, tire express, that has some great social media reviews, and i headed over to see what they had. unfortunately, their selection was thin, but they did have 2 pair of different kinds of tires that still has some life left in them. after explaining to them that the ones i was taking off had GREAT tread, they offered to make me a deal. pay them $50 buck to switch them, and that’s all. DEAL! granted, the new tires were not perfect, at least they didn’t rub the inside of the wheel well and made it SO much more fun to drive. roll on.
