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Well, I just did it, and while the experience is still fresh in my mind, I thought I'd post the details.
As many of you know, I shopped around for awhile before ordering my new sender unit. I ended up getting it from Sobstory for under $50, plus a little more for shipping. That was a heck of a lot better than local parts places that wanted $110 plus two weeks to get it, or the rip-off dealership in town that wanted $209 for the part and would cheerfully replace it for me for "around $250, plus tax." Sheesh. Many have recommended getting junkyard senders, but I don't have access to many junked Saabs here in Northern Florida, and I've had lousy experiences with used mechanical and electrical parts. So I ordered a new one.
Mine's been reading about 1/8 tank low for several years, and never gets to up the full mark when I fill the tank. Otherwise, it works normally, including the low fuel warning light. My suspicion was that my sensor float wasn't floating as high as it should, probably as a result of soaking up some ethanol-tainted fuel on a road trip somewhere. I remember distinctly when it happened; I was staring at the gauge when the needle suddenly moved downward a notch and made me blink in disbelief. It never came up to full again after that.
Replacing it took me half an hour, and I went at a leisurely pace. I first clicked on the ignition without starting the car and noted the fuel level on the gauge. Then I shut it off and went around to the trunk. The rear floorboard of my hatchback is held on with two rubber straps. Unhook those, and the floor comes out. Then the front floorboard slides back an inch or two and lifts out.
Here's a tip for you! After you take out the front floorboard, put the rear one back in! Then you'll have a nice place to sit and work in there instead of trying to do everything leaning over the rear bumper.
Under a round rubber cover on the right side of the trunk is the sender unit. I disconnected the two prong connector to the fuel pump and then the small 3-prong connector to the sender unit, then moved that rubber cover out of the way.
Note that to test your fuel gauge and see if you have a bad sender, all you need to do is short the 3 wires in that fuel sender connector together, and click the ignition to on without starting the car. Your fuel guage should read all the way full and the low fuel light should come on with those wires shorted together. If that happens, the rest of your fuel gauge circuitry is fine and the sender is the faulty component. If it you get different results, you've got other electrical problems.
Anyway, to remove the sender you just unscrew the black plastic ring holding it in. That's not so easy to do without the special Saab tool made for that purpose. I wrestled with some channel locks and other tool handles, per the recommendation of people on this board, then gave up on that approach and decided to loosen it with a hammer and screwdriver. Putting the screwdriver blade on one of the ridges on top of the retaining ring and tapping it a few times got it loose. {{Thanks for the tip on that one, guys! :> }}
Once the ring is off I could just lift out the unit. Be careful doing this and don't pull it all the way out at once! Lift it up part way and let the fuel drain out of it into the tank. Have a rag handy and once it stops dripping, take it out the rest of the way.
Installing the new one is simply a matter of dropping it in. Mine came with a new gasket. I tightened the retaining ring as tight as I could by hand, clipped the connector back on, re-connected the fuel pump connector, then put the rubber stopper back in place. Put the floorboards back in, and I was done!
When I turned the ignition key to on, I discovered I now had another 1/8 tank of gas in there. Big dopey grin from me! I should have done this fix years ago. I went in and hugged my wife, the triumphant garage warrior with his latest conquest, and was rewarded with, "Eww! You smell like gas!" Women! Oh, well.
Sweeney, you asked about the float travel. Both my new unit and the old one would "thunk" when I inverted them and the float freely slid from end to end. It didn't seem there was much friction preventing the movement.
Andrew, I know you repaired your sender. I opened my old one (a small nut on the bottom of it holds the thing together) and inside I could find nothing wrong with it. The wires are all intact, the contacts are clean, everything moves freely. The problem is undoubtedly a soggy float. I doubt it would be economical to repair. I'm sure that if something else had been wrong with it, like the bad contact in yours, I would have been able to fix it as you did. But the cure for a slightly sinking float is beyond my patience.
Still, if anyone would like to have my old sender unit (which works, other than reading 1/8 tank low) I would be happy to send it to you for the shipping costs. Send me an e-mail if you want it.
Hope this helps anyone contemplating doing this job.
Warm regards,
- = M O N S T E R = -
(and Beastie) ==> '87 900T 158K
, Sat, 7 Oct 2000 10:56:43
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