Nocturnal Instincts

May 15, 2024 Eleven

It’s be a bit of a slog getting the Nocturne Blue Aero back up to scratch, but with the help of a few, very clever Saab friends, the 9-5 passed it’s MOT last weekend and feels like it’s well on the way to a full recovery. When I bought it from Peter Raw, it was purchased as a spares car, great engine, rebuilt Turbo, and fast, bloody fast, but it wasn’t a car I planned to rescue.

We got it up on the ramp, and besides visible neglect for many years, it was a solid car, no gaping holes or disintegrating sub frames, just serviceable parts that hadn’t been serviced; brakes with so much wear they’d stopped stopping, lowering springs that had literally fallen apart, cracked DI pack, incorrect plugs, split gaiters and hoses, and numerous parts that hadn’t seen a spanner or fresh oil for way too long.

We set about working nights and weekends to fix a long list of issues, many that are usually overlooked on regular servicing, but now all done. We’d spent a few weekends on it, when a curveball hit us, it lost 5th gear, again, possibly due to many years of driving at sub optimal conditions, boosting hard in 5th gear, too much torque, and it just disintegrated. Luckily, another absolute Saab genius offered to fix the broken gear and all is well again.

The list is long, and never cheap, but decided the Saab was way too good to use as a donor car:

Neo Front 314mm Big Brake Upgrade kit
Genuine Saab Rear Vented Brake Discs and pads
New Eibach lowering springs
Steering Rack gaiters
Fuel filter
Rear rose bush
Genuine DI pack
Correct Aero spark plugs
Front low and main beam bulb upgrades
Auxiliary belt and idler pulley
Full service, oil, filters, brake fluid

It’s one of these cars that looks great from a distance, but get close and you’ll see it’s had a hard life, the interior has cleaned up amazingly well, but the bodywork isn’t fantastic, some areas of surface corrosion, including a few holes in the usual places, faded panels, and a few dents here and there, but here’s the thing, now it’s mechanically sorted, I kind of love the idea of it not being perfect, it’s a sleeper, an utterly sorted and genuinely exciting Saab to drive around in. With 340+ hp on tap, a manual gearbox and super limited slip diff, it’s an absolute smile inducing machine, and because it’s not perfect, I’m not precious about it, it wants and needs to be driven.

Hirsch Perfection

November 17, 2023 Eleven

Over the years of owning Saabs, I’ve always loved the opportunity to chose just the right wheels for each project, and without doubt, these are some of my all time favourites. The original Hirsch 18” six spokes are a perfect match for early 9-3 and 9-5 Saabs, they’re designed to enhance the car’s lines and aesthetically, feel as close to perfection as any wheel choice I’ve ever made.

These wheels, as with most Hirsch modifications, have become increasingly difficult to find, there seems to be a better supply in Europe, but here in the UK, very difficult. I asked around a few months ago, and luckily, another Saab owner had a set he’d been keeping for a future project, but with a little persuasion and an enjoyable road trip up to mid Wales, I had them safely stored in the back of the Sportwagon.

At some point in the past, they’d been refurbished, but having sat for a while, they’d picked up some marks and also began to corrode and peel on the inside, they’d also been finished in a darker metallic grey. As I wanted to create a Sportwagon as close to the original silver Hirsch one launched back in the early 2000’s, I decided to have them fully stripped again, realigned and powder coated in a bright metallic Silver.

To finish off, the’ve now got a new set of genuine, Swedish made, Saab wheel centres, a set of new black Hirsch performance rim stickers and freshly wrapped in new Goodyear tyres. They’ll be going back on to the Sportwagon in a the next few days, but I couldn’t resit taking a few photos of the precious cargo in the back of the 9-5.

The team at Perfection have done me proud once again, going above and beyond to help me give another Saab the wheels it truly deserves, their work is quite literally perfection.

Spotlight on RBM Performance

November 9, 2023 Eleven

For years, when I’ve begun my search for parts for yet another Aeroriginal build, I often come across RBM Performance. I’ve gone on to order numerous parts, but until recently, knew little about them, the more I looked around their website, the more I found, and one thing’s for sure, they seem to care about supporting the Saab community for the long term.

Launched over 10 years ago by French entrepreneur; Romain Mariani, RBM has become one of Europe’s largest supplier of both new and used parts for not only Saab, but Volvo too. They claim to stock some 60,000 parts and also invest in manufacturing items you won’t find elsewhere. I’m sad to say, they produced some stunning 19” turbine alloy wheels for Saabs, but seem to have stopped selling them now. They’re also in partnership with MapTun Performance and Abbott Racing.

As if, just to prove a point, RBM have owned, built and run a number of exceptional Saabs themselves, one being this rather beautiful 9000 CDE. I know I’m partial to any 9000, but this one is rather special. Not only has it been fully renovated inside and out, but has also been kept close to factory specifications, in fact, it wouldn’t look out of place in the Saab Museum. A few discreet touches have been added to improve the overall exclusivity; a full wood interior, Alcantara roof lining and a rare 3 spoke steering wheel.

The car seems to be for sale at a very reasonable €10,000 and considering the level of finish, I’d say this is an absolute dream for someone in Europe, sadly, the steering wheel happens to be on the wrong side for me, or I’d be very, very tempted myself. Further details.

Privileged

November 2, 2023 Eleven

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Every once in a while, I take a moment to try and remember the Saabs I’ve owned, some thirty five plus from memory. I didn’t always take photos of them, so sadly, a few older ones aren’t featured in the gallery above; a 900 T16S Coupe, 900 Turbo convertible, a few 9-3 HOT Aeros, an exceptional 9-5 2.3T and a 9000 S. My fascination started in the early 90’s, and hasn’t diminished over the years, in fact, you could say it’s grown deeper.

As they’ve become rarer, I’ve gone from owning to rescuing them too, some are light renovations, others more dramatic (stupid if i’m honest). I feel privileged to not only have had the pleasure of saving so many, but of also being able to share what i’ve done with like-minded Saab folk globally, it really is a blessing and I’ve met so many amazing people, some, I now call great friends.

I remain constantly in awe at how my efforts inspire others to enjoy Saabs too, recently, I received this wonderful email and felt I needed to share it:

Hello, I’ve been enjoying Saab vs. Scepticism for about a year now. You are living my dream. I love Saabs deeply. Many people do not understand, but with your beautiful photographs and thoughtful text you really capture what is special about Saab and why these cars and the company matter. I really appreciate your efforts. Thank you for providing such a beautiful tribute to Saab and with your restoration efforts keeping these interesting cars on the road.

I bought my first Saab with my lawn mowing money when I was 14 (1987 900 turbo convertible M/T with 260k miles) I’ve owned a 92 9000 turbo, 96 9000 CSE, and NG900 convertible turbo, a few 99’ 9-3s (my favourite!) an 01 9-5 Arc and many other Saabs; classic 900s and beyond. I actually paid some of my college tuition but parting out rear ended Saabs from auction and selling the parts on eBay about 10 years ago. But I’ve always wanted to just spend time (and money!) fixing the remaining Saabs and just sending them back out there to share with others.

Thank you again for your efforts and sharing them with the community. I think that your efforts have a huge impact in-terms of how much they are enjoyed and appreciated.

I always love to hear other Saab stories, some I share, some I add together with a High Mile Club Saab, but always enjoy hearing how Saabs are part of your lives too, don’t stop.

Fading Dreams

May 23, 2023 Eleven

As I scour through the ever dwindling list of Saabs for sale, I can’t help but notice a few that might have fallen further than others, the one’s that have been left to fade; go-faster stripes and incorrect badging, chrome embellishments and bonnet scoops, mismatching panels and even one’s that are closer to returning to nature than they are to the road.

Yet these Saabs are still the ones that came out of the factory and fulfilled dreams, Saabs that have given many years of enjoyment and pride. With love, they could be given a new lease of life, saved for the future, to live on and become modern classics even. Sadly, some will have gone past their sell by date with engine failures, corrosion and numerous other financially unviable ailments, but many won’t have.

I’m often intrigued to know these Saab stories; how have they ended up like this? Who’s owned them? When and where? Over the years I’ve learnt to look past their obvious issues and try and work out if they can be returned to their former glory, one’s with a solid base and something to offer still, to me, it’s often a case of why waste them, if they’re not saved and given a bit of care, we’ll lose them and that would be devastating.

One to rescue Saab 93 HOT Aero 2 door coupe

Saab Gathering at Caffeine & Machine

March 31, 2023 Eleven

I’ve long been a fan of Caffeine & Machine, it has set its stall out perfectly as a destination for petrolheads, a place for likeminded folk to gather, chat cars, eat great food and grab a coffee or beer. Having taken along numerous cars, from the Aston Vantage and Mercedes E320 to the Porsche Outlaw builds and Daimler, I’ve never taken any of my Saabs, until now.

Saab Club GB have kindly arranged a takeover of Caffeine & Machine for an evening; Monday 26th June. I can imagine this being over subscribed, so if you fancy a night with a load of other Saabs folk, I’ve suggest pre-booking your space. Tickets are £10 per car, but you then get £5 off any food or drink you buy, and you’ll defiantly need a burger whilst wondering around plenty of gorgeous Saabs to droll over, it’s hungry work after all.

I’m hoping the Turbo X or the Graphite Green 9-5 will carry me safely to the destination, and with it, my trusty camera to grab a few photos throughout the evening.

Tickets here | Saab Club GB full event details here

More than a feeling

June 28, 2022 Eleven

Almost a year to the day since I took delivery of this exceptional Saab, I watched it being driven off by a fellow Saabist on the next leg of it's journey. The mixed feelings of sadness and joy when this happens are strong ones and over the thirty plus Saabs I've owned and sold, really haven't faded.

I find it hard to explain to intrigued people why I continue to rescue Saabs; it's something that gives me immense pleasure and also an escape from the world. It allows me to dream, plan and implement everything from simple maintenance to modifications and bodywork, It's a pleasure that keeps me (slightly) sane if I'm honest.

I usually focus purely on Aeros, as they offer Saab's vision of the perfect iteration of each model, from the 9000 to the 9-3 and of course, the spectacular 9-5. I look for cars that offer a more unusual spec; colour, different leather, upgraded audio or even just a carbon dashboard, anything that sets them apart from the everyday. Of course, there's one stage above the Aero, and that's a Saab that has Hirsch modifications, they give the car the ultimate edge in my eyes, but are becoming increasingly difficult to find.

This particular 9-5 was only one of a handful in the UK that had been fully converted from factory, not just the remap, but the entire cooling system, Turbo, handling and aesthetics, all given a touch of Hirsch magic. I was sad to see this one go, but the pleasure I see if the faces of their new owners makes me happy. I know that with regular care, they'll give many more years of smiles, and that really is more than just a feeling.

Wabi-Saabi

April 20, 2022 Eleven

Wabi-sabi is the Japanese acknowledgement that there is beauty in every aspect of imperfection.

As time marches on and our SAABs continue their loyal service, Wabi-sabi is something that we have naturally learnt to embrace. We accept them for what they are, sometimes seizing the opportunity to improve where possible. Even the youngest examples are comfortably now over 10 years old, meaning wear and tear is par for the course.

Us SAAB enthusiasts often hear that repeated question: “Where do you get your parts from?”. Surprisingly to some, many parts are still available new and of course there is a loyal fanbase between whom there are various used parts out there.

As with all marques, you will always get parts which are NLA (no longer available) and rare to find used examples of which are in decent condition. If you were to plot parts demand versus availability, there is that small section of the graph where engineers/enthusiasts/entrepreneurs get excited.

9-5 (98-05) beige front door handles are a great example of this.

For some reason, presumably the chemical compound, the 98-05 beige handles wear much quicker than the grey equivalents, often adopting a green tinge and/or delaminating in the process.

SAAB fanboy James has decided to do something about this. Taking a NOS (new old stock) pair of grey handles and associated caps, he has used these to create a rather complex silicon mould, allowing a polyurethane copy to be cast. The result is a geometrically identical reproduction. He has matched the colour as closely as he could to a beige plastic door-bin but does acknowledge that they’re a lighter shade than he’d hoped for.

In his own words, “They’re not perfect, but they are a solid 9/10. If you want better, you’d best hold out for a genuine set, and have your wallet at the ready!”.

James is producing a limited run of reproductions, knowing that after approximately 50-60 casts, the integrity of the silicon mould will degrade and be retired to the shelf.

A set of 2 handles and 4 caps available from James for £110 plus post. He has even gone to the bother of sourcing the clips from Sweden (part number 9797200), and these are available for £7 per set (whilst stocks last!).

Parts can be sent anywhere in the world, but typical postage cost is £5 within UK, £15 within Europe or £20 to U.S.A.

James can be contacted via: Email | www.uksaabs.co.uk (username jamesvey).