Saab 93 Sell it or Fix it!

zoey48

Hi

I have a saab 93 and its got a misfiring problem (I have replaced the EGR and the Air Mass Meter) and pretty much means the car is unpowered smoking and undriveable. :-(

The only two options I can see are:

Fix it but I have been told it worth €6000 on a trade in if was working so I dont want to spend €3000 fixing something if I could save more by just flogging it off for €1500 and getting a cash sale dicount on buying something newer

Trade it in as is, but will a dealer even look at it? What should I expect to loose?

Any suggestion welcome.

Thanks Monday car owner

Mr Benevolent

zoey48 wrote: »

Hi

I have a saab 93 and its got a misfiring problem (I have replaced the EGR and the Air Mass Meter) and pretty much means the car is unpowered smoking and undriveable. :-(

The only two options I can see are:

Fix it but I have been told it worth €6000 on a trade in if was working so I dont want to spend €3000 fixing something if I could save more by just flogging it off for €1500 and getting a cash sale dicount on buying something newer

Trade it in as is, but will a dealer even look at it? What should I expect to loose?

Any suggestion welcome.

Thanks Monday car owner

Did you randomly replace bits without getting an opinion on what the problem might be? A MAF failure wouldn't cause a misfire. You'll need the error codes read from the ECU. Could be DI cassette failure or injector blockage (I pulled that from the 'net in 10 seconds.)

Theta

Sell it for parts? or just flog it. Thats if like above you havent had it properly checked out

What alloys are on it?

BlackWizard

Confab wrote: »

Did you randomly replace bits without getting an opinion on what the problem might be? A MAF failure wouldn't cause a misfire. You'll need the error codes read from the ECU. Could be DI cassette failure or injector blockage (I pulled that from the 'net in 10 seconds.)

Or did he/she even google for the symptoms?

Your DI cassette may be malfunctioning. This is the unit that sits on top of the engine and is held down by 4 bolts. This unit is responsible for creating and delivering the spark to your spark plugs. This unit is either red or black. It is a common failure on these cars.

A- Spark plugs? When it is running rough, pull all the spark plugs and see if any are wet and or have a large gap or a crack in the porcelain. $25 new spark plugs

B- IDM(ignition discharge module or also know as Direct ignition cassette) They usually wont clear up though, when they are bad, they are bad. $500 job.

C- Fuel injector. I rarely see fuel injectors go bad on SAAB's but it is possible. When the car is misfiring pull one injector plug off at a time to see which cylinder is misfiring to give you an idea.

D- Cylinder head gasket. The last cylinder head bolt on the bottom of #4 cylinder becomes loose and causes external oil leak and eventually will leak coolant, the coolant will leak externally and sometimes leak into the #4 cylinder causing a misfire.

zoey48

Right a bit more info needed...

It a diesel for starters, in the last 10K miles (it now has 90K on the clock) it has broken down:
1 Solenoid
2 Some manifold sensor
3 Both front coils went
4 Air Con went (it's not a leak)
5 EGR went

Ok am I just replacing bits willie nillie, nope a garage (fairly decent size business 4 or 5 mechanics) checked it out and said EGR valve was fecked and the part would cost in excess of €500 and considering the car had been in the garage twice in 500 miles he advise to get rid of it promto. He was actually quite shocked to see me again so soon and did not charge me for looking at it.

So I bought a error code reader off ebay it was only £30 basic but confirmed what the mechanic said
So I then replaced the EGR valve myself with a original quality part (yes I know what I am doing its a 5 minute job and it cost £220 on ebay)

It then started billowing out black smoke and after talking to some mechanics I was told that if you unplug the Air Mass Meter and the black smoke stops then it is most likely the Air Mass Meter. Bought one of those and yep you guess it, still fecked

So my next guess is the injectors but sure who knows where from there

The end of the story is car is no better, I am not aimlessly pulling out parts and putting in new parts and I don't what to pay some main dealer €2000 to do the that type of thing until the computer say its fixed.

So back to my original [FONT=&quot][/FONT]question, does anyone know if I can trade this piece of crap in and what I will loose doing so ?
Or can you recommend someone who is a saab expert that can access the damage and see if it is worth fixing?

It is only worth €6000 and if I can get a cash discount on a newer car what is a sensible amount to spend fixing it?

To be honest if I got it fixed in the morning I would sell if on the spot anyway :mad:

Barr

What year is it ? (dont think its given)

junkyard

I'd say walk away from it, maybe just try and get it going and trade it. Since GM got involved with Saab things just got a whole lot worse.....

mickdw

Could you have something like a timing problem or even a fuel pump problem? Id say a decent mechanic should diagnose this without problem

zoey48

It an 04 TiD 2.2 nice car inside pity about the engine.
Great to drive when its working but I think at this stage I have earned the right to DIS Saab and all GM car going forward :rolleyes:

Anyone recommend a mechanic somewhere around Artane that is up for the job and is decent?

quarryman

Hi zoey, can't help you with repair advice but you are going about it the right way. You need to get an honest independent who knows their stuff. Bring the car in, get some quotes. If the repair estimate doesn't make much sense compared to selling it at a loss then you need to decide how much you enjoy the car.

I've been there, feel your pain. I decided to go with a repair and was happy enough with the decision.

good luck.

zoey48

Cheers Quarryman it is good to know I am not alone...
Modern cars seem like they are engineered to have a best before date and its getting shorter as newer cars are produced.:eek:

galwaytt

junkyard wrote: »

I'd say walk away from it, maybe just try and get it going and trade it. Since GM got involved with Saab things just got a whole lot worse.....

If it's the 1.9 diesel, the engine isn't from GM, so that's got nothing to do with it. The same engine is fitted in 1000's of Opels and Vauxhalls, as well as Fiat's/Alfa's, and has a good rep.

OP - if you paid someone to change coils - in a diesel ! - I'd be wondering who's analysing what, and the prices..........

galwaytt

zoey48 wrote: »

So back to my original [FONT=&quot][/FONT]question, does anyone know if I can trade this piece of crap in and what I will loose doing so ?
Or can you recommend someone who is a saab expert that can access the damage and see if it is worth fixing?

It is only worth €6000 and if I can get a cash discount on a newer car what is a sensible amount to spend fixing it?

If it's the 2.2, tbh, it's worth nothing like 6k........I know someone who bought one a few months ago for € 4300.

As to values as-is - well, fwiw, my long-running Mazda diesel nightmare ended last Thursday, thanks to DoneDeal. 02 2.0 diesel, 88k miles, FSH, but knackered engine, Eur 750 is what I got. (It cost me €11355 in Sept 07) You can forget big numbers when selling broken stuff. Biggest loss I have ever suffered. Period. Even over a much longer period. Nightmare. Makes running a 911 a walk in the park. My 968's are vertiable econon-boxes, in comparison.

Back to petrol for me !

To be honest if I got it fixed in the morning I would sell if on the spot anyway :mad:

fixing it, and then selling it ? Now that is one way you're guaranteed to lose your shirt on it ! Either fix and keep, or sell as-is.

zoey48

galwaytt wrote: »

If it's the 2.2, tbh, it's worth nothing like 6k........I know someone who bought one a few months ago for € 4300.

Yep true if in perfect order it might not be worth €6000 but looking at carzone there are five 2004 93 TiD 2.2 ranging from €6000 (170K miles) to a crazy €14,000 (48K miles)
It all depend on the spec and condition of the car...

Do you have any tips from your experience that could be useful to other boardies?

Here is one from me, buy somewhere close to where you live and price is not the only factor... I have learned that lesson the hard way and I can't see myself importing a car again!

unkel

zoey48 wrote: »

but looking at carzone there are five 2004 93 TiD 2.2 ranging from €6000 (170K miles) to a crazy €14,000 (48K miles)

Carzone prices in general are dreamers prices. This seems particularly the case for Saabs for some reason...

zoey48

unkel wrote: »

Carzone prices in general are dreamers prices. This seems particularly the case for Saabs for some reason...

Cheers, good infoormation to know, I kind of knew that cbg prices were way off because private sellers are putting in dream prices.

Is there anywhere you would recommend that we can find realistic prices?

galwaytt

zoey48 wrote: »

Yep true if in perfect order it might not be worth €6000 but looking at carzone there are five 2004 93 TiD 2.2 ranging from €6000 (170K miles) to a crazy €14,000 (48K miles)
It all depend on the spec and condition of the car...

Do you have any tips from your experience that could be useful to other boardies?

Crumbs, I could be here for the day - You see, if it is, the 2.2 tax is also a minus for lot's of people. 14k for an 04 car ? Yikes, for 18.2k I'd sell my 06 !

What I found is that the sum of the replacement parts/engine+labour to strip + labour to fit = daft. For half-of-daft I could buy a perfectly good car instead. Which is my plan (Scenic).

Here is one from me, buy somewhere close to where you live and price is not the only factor... I have learned that lesson the hard way and I can't see myself importing a car again!

True for most things. Which is why we replaced the (imported) Mazda with a 2yr old 9-3 1.9 diesel from the local main dealer with a big warranty. Worth it, in the end.

kdobey

I've used a chap called Ben in Newcastle to service and do some work (replace Turbo) on a Saab 9-5. It was a while back but he's a saab specialist has a big workshop (next to his house I thnk).

I don't remember his surname - I just have him in my phone as "Ben Saab 087 2686133". He came well recommended and certainly cheaper then a main dealer.

Googleing "ben saab newcastle" will probably throw up a few hits. He is located between the N7 (Naas Road) and N4 (near newcastle kinda behind Baldonnel Aerodrome).

By all accounts he's probalby seen more saabs then you've had hot dinners - which sounds like the kind of guy you need to be talking to.

He may also be the kind of guy who would take it off your hands for parts/scrap/ too.

Best of luck with it - it's hard to know what to do with a money pit like that!
(I have a similar conundrum layed up in my drive)

Rgds
K.

zoey48

kdobey wrote: »

I've used a chap called Ben in Newcastle to service and do some work (replace Turbo) on a Saab 9-5. It was a while back but he's a saab specialist has a big workshop (next to his house I thnk).

I don't remember his surname - I just have him in my phone as "Ben Saab 087 2686133". He came well recommended and certainly cheaper then a main dealer.

Just tried the number and it unallocated...


Does anyone know is Ben Curran still in business, how do I contact him?

unkel

zoey48 wrote: »

Just tried the number and it unallocated...


Does anyone know is Ben Curran still in business, how do I contact him?

Did you try 4586000?