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1994-2002 [Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
Hey Tim,
Welcome to the club! My '99 9-3 has 58k and here is what I've done in the past year of ownership. The 60,000 major service, I'm working from memory here so others fill in the holes;
1. Oil change. Mobil 1 0W-40 seems the most popular. I use Amsoil 0W-30.
Also, use a good filter, say Purolator Pure 1. I use Amsoil SDF 34.
2. Transmission fluid/gear lube change. Use a good synthetic. I use Amsoil
Series 2000 75W-90. This is important - most good Saab mechanics will
recommend changing it every year due to the amount of heat
transferred from the engine.
3. Brake fluid flush. This is to be done every 30,000.
4. Replace fuel filter.
5. Replace poly-vee belt. Also, replace the idler pulley.
6. Flush the cooling system.
7. Replace the air filter. Consider upgrade to a washable, more breathable
foam or gauze type.
8. Replace the spark plugs. Use only NGK resistor type. I use BCPR7ES and
gap them to 0.035"/0.8mm - this will help with DI cassette life.
9. Change cabin ventilation filter. It's located under the black cowling
below the windshield. Search this BB for procedure - kind of a
pain to get to, but necessary.
10.Inspect all the undercarriage - cv boots, brakes, exhaust and
hangers, brake lines and general shape of everything else.
Very important - if the headbolts haven't already been retorqued - Do it now!! If you're mechanically inclined and have a good torque wrench, this is an excellent opportunity to pull the valve cover off and get a look at the cams. This will also give you a very good idea of the general shape of the engine and how often the oil was changed. The headbolts accept an E16 Torx socket and there is detailed instructions on Taliaferro's Tehcnical Knowledge Base. Follow them to the letter, let me repeat that for emphasis - FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS TO THE LETTER. My local dealer wanted to charge me $200.00 for this. It takes one hour start to finish. I did it myself and spent the $200.00 on all the parts for the 60k major service and had change left over!
Now, for the mods. These are cheap to do. First, replace the air filter as mentioned above. Smooth and polish the lip on the Throttle Body Transition Casting (referred to on this board as TBTC). Pull off the bottom aluminum turbo tube between the turbo and the intercooler and remove the silencer. It's a plastic perforated tube wrapped with foil and gauze inserted into the alloy pipe. If you have the patience to get it out whole, good for you. I broke about five expansion tabs off and threw it away. Reinstall the pipe and snug the hose clamps. Consider the 3" airbox intake mod. You can do searches using descriptive terms for more info.
Get a spare DI Cassette. I think over half of them fail. That's good enough for me to keep one in the trunk!
Most of all - enjoy your new car! They are lots and lots of fun to drive!
Doug P '99 9-3 58k, '86 9000T 160k
posted by 207.235.1...
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