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Re: 99 Restoration
Posted by David M. Basch (more from David M. Basch) on Thu, 13 Apr 2000 11:00:59
In Reply to: , Kok Chen, Sat, 17 Dec 1988 12:00:00

Hi Lane,
I was in a similar situation a few years ago. My 1976 99GL had too
many problems for me to financially keep up with so I parked it at my
parents house for 5 years. During that time, I never gave up hope of
restoring it and I saved my money until I had it towed to my our
trusty Saab mechanic's and began the work. 10 months and almost $6000
later I have a beautiful vintage SAAB that I love dearly. I get
comments on it often and have met numerous enthusiasts in parking
lots all over town when they see me park it and wait to chat.

>'Use car salesman speedometer' -- where it shows speed but not miles driven.

Not a big deal. Remove the speedo and send it to a speedo shop. Mine
cost about $100 to fix. Easy to remove also.

>Standard problems with heat/defrost controls.

A common problem with 99's. After going through two ventilation
control boxes I decided to permanently leave on the defrost vents and
reroute the heater cable. I ran it through the back side of the
instrument panel and out the slot where the hood latch is. Now I just
pull the metal cable in and out manually for heat and it is hidden
from view.

>Turbo is shot, and typically the exhaust manifold will have a crack
>somewhere by now.

No experience with this.

>Engine needs to be gone through, and so should transaxle after this many
>years.

My engine needs to be gone through too. I replaced my gearbox with a
good used one many years ago and it's running strong since.

>Seats bad. Headliner gone.

Seats are not a big deal for a good auto interior shop. I recovered
my headliner with the help of the local auto interior shop and it
cost $80 dollars and about 2 hours of work on my part. Your turbo
with the third door would be even easier than my sedan.

>Bodywork would be very minor, but at 22 years, we're about ready for paint.
>Maybe crack on one layer of windshield, but no glass broken out.

These were the most expensive parts of my restoration. I had to
replace the windshield as well as the rubber gaskets and the gaskets
are as expensive as the windshield! ('Proud SAAB rubber' as my
mechanic describes them) I had my car painted and had some minor rust
repair done at the front of the rear wheels. This was about $3000 but
it was worth it.

>At this age, plastic grillework is in poor shape when you look close, and
>usually at least one front corner shows repairs to the turn/cornering light
>lenses.

Typical. My grille is missing a stripe and each piece of the
grille/headlight trim has small cracks in it. It's really not that
noticeable so I've left it alone. I believe that SAAB is still making
these pieces and the grille is about $80, if I remember correctly.

>After more than two decades, likely every rubber bushing in the suspension
>needs to be renewed. Brakes will need attention. Wheelbearings and CV
>joints may or may need replacement.

I had to have new rotors, and master cylinder. I replaced the shocks
with KYB's. Wheelbearing's, CV joints and other suspension pieces are
hanging in there even on our Colorado dirt roads.

Lane, I urge you to invest in your car and to keep another 99 on the
road. I've never regretted a penny I've spent on mine and it is a
trusted and reliable car that still does things better than most new
cars. You'll need to invest your time and energy in addition to your
money but it's a very rewarding endeavor. You can see my car at
http://www.davidbasch.com/SAAB/convention/1999dayone.htm


David Basch
Boulder, CO

1976 99GL 168k
1981 900 Turbo 305k


Posts in this Thread:

StateOfNine.com
SaabClub.com
Jak Stoll Performance
M Car Covers
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