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Re: Things to look for when buying a used 900?
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Posted by RS [Email] (#15) [Profile/Gallery] (more from RS) on Sat, 3 Feb 2001 20:58:44 Share Post by Email
In Reply to: Re: Things to look for when buying a used 900?, GTI Jason, Sat, 3 Feb 2001 20:30:16
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After having owned 900Ts and 900Ss, I can say that the turbo isn't really any more maintenance than a normally-aspirated car. You have to know a few more things with a turbo (like what can cause the turbo to give you low boost), and you should be careful about what oil you use.

The turbo is more fun than the n/a, but a n/a 16-valve is nothing to sneeze at. But I have to say that, at highway speeds, my 900T is almost like a friend's Olds 4-4-2 - you tap the gas and you're up to 85 from 75 before you can say antidisestablishmentarianism. OOOOOOOO-Weeeee!

In either the key to happy SAABing is how well the car has been maintained, what wear items have been replaced, and how sound the body is.

Have a good SAAB mechanic look at any SAAB you're thinking of buying. It's worth whatever you pay him. He should know all of the trouble spots, what's expensive, and what's cheap to repair. If you're in the rust belt, look at the porthole where the drive axles go from the transmission to the wheels and feel around the wheel wells. They can be repaired, but you have to love your SAAB a *lot*.

Listen to the transmission. If it whines at highway speeds, the pinion bearing is bad. It's a common malady, and needs to be taken care of quickly.

Bear in mind that any classic 900 you look at is at least 8 years old (unless it's a '94 convertible, which will be 7), so seals wear, gaskets leak, CV boots are ready to crack, and one of the inner CV drivers is going to be worn. Be prepared to do things like replace the heater valve at some point. (I'm saying this because I just replaced the one on my '89 900T this afternoon because I was tired of wet feet.)

My preferred years are '88 and '89. '88 gets the same brakes as the 9000 and the '89 gets the Bosch LH 2.4 fuel injection controller (but has those lousy passive/agressive seatbelts.) After that, you get ABS, which can save your hide, but is expensive to repair.

When you do buy one, SAABnet is one of the best resources you could ask for.
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