The banner above is an advertisment - if it asks you to download software, please ignore.
Site News - 3/26 M Car Covers (by State of Nine) | 12/12 Make Amazon Pay Saabnet!
Date: Sat, 16 Jan 1999 21:46:06 GMT
From: ewmnopsam.com (Erik W. Miller)
Subject: Re: Any 300K miles engine around? Need real data...


I don't know if my experience will relate in here since it's all limited to later 99's, but here goes. We've had 3+ 99's (one was an unfinished project) all with various numbers of owners, and all with between 175K and 225K (miles, rather than Kilometers) on the clock. The first one that we owned was a '75 (in 1990), and at about 190K the transmission went bad. The transmission was my fault--I didn't know that transmission oil was a regular service item, and apparently neither had any of the previous owners :p. In addition, the timing chain had been making noise, so I pulled the engine apart while the transmission was being rebuiltto see what else might be wrong. The timing chain noise is common on the older 99's--the spring on the automatic tensioner is weak and can go bad between 150 and 200K miles. However that was the only point of major wear in the motor. There wasn't even enough of a step in the cylinder walls to warrant honing or replacement of the rings. (yes, I did check the ring end-gap. It was fine). I was at that time an aircraft mechanic (since then I've found high tech to be more profitable). I have more than a little experience around engines, and was very impressed with the durability of the Saab engine, as well as the logical and intelligent design. This car, and the two subsequent 99's we've owned was not treated to any special care by the previous owners. I would seriously doubt that any special oil treatment got closer to any of these autos than the window display at the local auto-parts store. However, they have all run impressively, produced good compression and leakdowns and have generally been extremely reliable cars and a joy to own. And by and large they have a number of miles that would leave most other makes wheezing, leaking, and smoking in thier wake. Okay, it's a 99; maybe not so much wake. But you get the picture. So maybe the additives help. But plain old regular maintenance does wonders. I tend to go by either 5000 miles or every six months for oil and filter, btw. If you have a car that sits for extended periods (especially any collectors) the oil breaks down if it's not circulated periodically. Try to start any long-sitters once a week and let them warm up fully. Otherwise, change the oil before taking her out of the garage for that first sunny day drive of the summer. Discovered this as a motorcyclist in Alaska. Erik Miller '80 99 2dr '76 99 3dr (dead project) '75 99 2dr '75 99 4dr On Wed, 13 Jan 1999 10:58:45 -0800, Ken Washington <kenwashnopsam.net> wrote: >David, > >Yes, I try to stay ahead of the power curve. I picked my 83 900T up at >the factory in Sweden. In the upper inside corner of the windshield on >the drivers side was a sticker telling me to change my oil and filter >every 5000 miles. The owners manual said somethingelse. In reality, I >changed the oil between 3000 and 5000, depending on how th oil looked >and my schedule. A truck ran into the back of my 83 900T. I replaced it >with an 87 900S in Sept. 95. By May of 96 I had to close my business >down and have not worked since then because of my injuries. So, when you >don't have lot to do, changing the oil helps break the monotony. >Besides, if you talk with Dick from Falls Church, an Amsoil Rep, he will >tell you that the standards for motor oil in the U.S. are different than >in Europe. We change more often, but we longer warranties. > >Ken Washington >87 9000S >87 900S >83 900T >

Return to Main Index
StateOfNine.com
SaabClub.com
Jak Stoll Performance
M Car Covers
Ad Available

The content on this site may not be republished without permission. Copyright © 1988-2024 - The Saab Network - saabnet.com.
For usage guidelines, see the Mission & Privacy Notice.
[Contact | Site Map | Saabnet.com on Facebook | Saabnet.com on Twitter | Shop Amazon via TSN | Site Donations]