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900 to 9000 brake upgrade(long)
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Posted by blacksheep [Email] (#301) [Profile/Gallery] (more from blacksheep) on Mon, 8 Mar 2010 18:31:06 Share Post by Email
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First, allow me to thank all the members who do the work and then take time to document their efforts. Like many, I have saved hours by first seeking the collective wisdom and knowledge that comprises the Saabnet continuum.

That said, I would like to contribute my recent experience.

In September 2009 I had the good fortune to acquire a 1993 CE (#7)(yes, it's registered). This car came with no repair history, a vague story about a minor accident, which explained the '92 powerplant. I bought the car on Saabnet and didn't actually drive it until I picked it up. It was on the way home, racing down the backside of McKenzie Pass in the Cascades of Oregon, when I realized that a bit more braking might be in order.

Upon arriving home (safely), I went to Saabnet seeking ideas and inspiration. After sorting through the available options and following the various links hither and yon, I decided on the 9000 front brake upgrade. Furthermore, while in very good condition overall, the lack of history and its age persuaded me to do a complete rebuild with all new parts. And that , as they say, is where things got interesting.

A quick survey of the net revealed that, while all four caliper positions were available as rebuilds, only the right front was available new. A call to the local Saab dealer surprisingly came back the same, only RF. Knowing that ATE was the OEM for both the 900 and 9000, I found an online catalog listing for 9000 calipers, pads, and rotors. But no pricing.

So, I was soon speaking with Heather, at customer service for Continental (the tire people, they are also the parent company of ATE). According to her resources, the numbers I had were good, but there were none in the US inventory. However, they were available in Germany, and I could special order them through one of their distributors. Whereupon she recommended Tony, AT the Brinson Co. A supplier of BMW and Mercedes parts and tools, Tony was initially confused as to why I was calling him, but after a brief explanation and with Heather's recommendation, he cheerfully ordered the calipers, front and rear, but suggested I look elsewhere for pads and rotors.

Tirerack had both ATE rotors and pads, at reasonable prices. There are a lot opinions out there regarding the best pad/rotor combination and I don't pretend to know enough to judge. This setup is designed to save my butt on the mountain roads I traverse, not track days. (Although I do live just a short distance from the largest roadrace course in North America.) This seemed a reasonable and easy place to start. So I ordered and got an email the next day saying my order was delayed as the front pads had to come from Germany. I called back and said that was OK, and gave them further instructions to send the parts to Controlled Thermal Processing for cryogenic processing.(It works!) That left hoses. Stainless, for both improved physical protection and the reduced diameter/volume, intended to partially compensate for the increased volume of the 9000 front calipers. While I got a complete set, I ended up having to make new lines during the installation.

The install was fairly straightforward. The exception was in fitting the lines. Uncomfortable with drilling and tapping a new (read expensive) caliper, as required to use the modified original bracket, we (my mechanic and I) chose to have new longer hoses made up. In the back, while the first stainless hoses were of the right length, their stiffness made them unable to bend sufficiently to fit. Your results may vary.

This upgrade also included new Konis, so perhaps its difficult separate the resulting improvements. That said, I LOVE IT! I only have 350 miles so far and haven't push the brakes hard, but I live in mountain country and the brakes have performed flawlessly, smooth and quick.

So, we come to the bottom line. This was not an inexpensive project, the way I did it. For me, the search was half the fun and I learned a lot about a car I thought I knew well. If that's how you like to do it, stop reading here, as things are about to get explicit. There are many ways to go about a brake upgrade, some less expensive, some more. The following parts #'s include sources and the prices I paid, for comparison purposes.

Finally, if you've read this far, thank you. By way of apology for my longwindedness, I can only offer that I'm Irish, and the Irish only do two things well. Talk, and drink whiskey. And I don't drink whiskey!

Blacksheep

ATE Customer Service/Heather
1-800-560-5066

Brinson Co./Tony
1-800-535-8788

TireRack/1-800-428-8355

Controlled Thermal Processing/Roger Schiradelly
1-704-660-3326
CTP has several locations but this is their automotive specialist, just north of Charlotte, NC. Roger was very patient and informative, not only regarding the pads and rotors, but also other automotive applications I'm thinking about.

The standard disclaimer applies. However, these people all graciously went out of their way to help answer my questions and satisfy my needs. Something oft wished for, but seldom found in today's increasingly depersonalized commerce.

And now the numbers...

ATE calipers
FL 220117 FR 220118 $163.87 ea. L/R
RL 220006 RR 220007 $233.85/L $257.37/R

ATE rotors
Front CW25125 $68.00 ea.
Rear CW09130 $35.00 ea.

ATE pads
Front EU403 $81/set
Rear EU322 $49/set

Cryo Processing $35.00 per rotor/pad set $140.00 ttl

These prices as of Dec 2009

One last note. On the advice of the brake specialist at ATE I have switched to ATE SL.6 brake fluid, a low viscosity DOT4 fluid designed for ABS systems. Time will tell.
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