The Saab gets into Advertising

Manta Designs (http://www.mantadesigns.com) is the name I've given my penmaking "business" (if you can call it that... Should be "hobby" instead...)

I had a logo made by DIY Lettering a little while back, and just got around to putting the thing on my car. It was cheap and cut perfectly. I'll send more business their way when I need more.

New Shoes on the Saab

Had a blowout right by a tire shop. My spare has a bent rim and doesn't hold air, so had to buy a new tire. I ended up with 4 Pirelli P4's. I couldn't afford it but the price was right!

Unrelated Events?

Walker muffler, less than 2 years old. Welds broke clean at both ends, allowing the muffler housing to slide around.

After getting the motor mounts permanently solved, I went to chase another problem. An exhaust rattle.

Followup to the Unfortunate Events

The mickeymouse motor mount. This thing lasted a week without any sign of failing.

When the motor mount failed, and I couldn't get the one at the junkyard, I decided to rig something together. In the above photo is 18gauge steel and fender washers at the mount bolt points.

A Series of Unfortunate Events

No, it's not Lemony Snickett. It's ME!

I pulled out of my driveway this morning to take my son to school some 30-ish miles away. I had just adjusted my seat, so my "feel" of the clutch was off. I popped the clutch.

I heard a noise, and the car decided it wasn't gonna run anymore. I opened the hood and found the distributor cap loose, and the rotor in pieces:

Shattered distributor rotor.

Dull Taillight Lenses

I've noticed that every older or "classic" car I've owned over the years has dull taillight lenses.

Solved the Misfire

The stock coil that was in my 1986 Saab 900s

How's this for an interesting symptom?

The copper washers didn't last.

New banjo seals at the fuel pump
Part # 4443883

Well they did last. For about a day. So I got the part number of the correct washer, 4443883, which is the same part number as the seals that go on the narrow side of the fuel filter.

I bought the washers from Mike Shaw Saab's parts department for (you might want to sit down) $11 a piece. Thinking about it now, I could have bought a fuel filter from Autozone for the same price, but not had to drive into Denver.


I've installed the washers, so we'll see just how long they last. Hopefully longer than the fuel pump!

Close up of the step in the rubber seal.

Bracing the fuel pump with vise grips to
keep it from spinning in the boot when removing
the 19mm nut.

Misfiring under load

Worn out fuel pump banjo fitting washer.

Off and on for the past six months or more, the Saab had been misfiring under load. It seemed to only happen when I'd been driving in stop and go traffic for 2 hours or more.

Recently it started getting worse. I couldn't even make it up a hill anymore. I'd tried working on the distributor, the hall sensor, plugs, wires, fuel filter, etc etc etc. Nothing seemed to make a difference.

Yesterday I decided to test the fuel pumps. When I pulled the cover off the pump, I found a puddle of gas in the rubber boot. I dried it out and started the car. After a few minutes I saw fuel accumulating in there again. The washers around the banjo fitting were weeping.

I called around and NOBODY could sell me just those washers. Several parts sellers offered to sell me the pump, which had the washers in the box. Sooo... $150-ish for two washers?!?!?!

I visited my local Napa and they stock copper washers. The ones they had in stock were a bit too big, but I tried them anyway. Two days of driving with those washers in place and NO LEAKS!

Top that off with the fact that my misfiring has gone away!

I still need to find a source for the correct washers, but it was nice to finally solve the problem!

To louver or not to louver...

With the louvers...

UPDATE: I decided to list it on eBay: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330522345985

When I bought my Saab, it came with those funky 80's louvers on the back hatch. I kinda like how they look, so I left them.

All last winter, all they did was collect the snow and make it really hard to lift the back hatch. A pain in the butt. So this year I took them off.

Without!
The tags are whited out in this pic as those are my current tags. The first pic are the plates from the previous owner.

I think I like the look better without them. And I've noticed less wind noise on the freeway, and slightly improved gas mileage. Yeah, they're going up for sale.

Now I just have to un-silicone the mounting brackets from the rear glass. Sigh.

Wow.

My last post here was March 30, 2010. It's now January 12, 2011.

The Saab has just been humming along. I had the coolant reservoir develop a crack, but I had one in the garage from a junkyard trip. So swapping that in was a matter of just a few minutes.

My biggest need right now is TIRES. Man they're expensive. Even cheap crap like Douglas costs $300 for a set. But the tires the car came with are absolutely worthless in snow. I got stuck 3 times during the last snowstorm from lack of traction on an inch or two of snow. Scary.