Re: Bought a 95 900S

Fri, 4 Jul 2003 10:57:59 -0400, snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com suggested: : I just bought a 95 900S and as a first time Saab owner I have a few simple : questions. : : 1. Daytime running lights, I know they're nice for safety but I want to : control when the lights are on and off so DRL has to go, is it a simple as : pulling a fuse and/or relay?

I know that there's a fuse that you pull. There might be something else, too, but pull the fuse first and see if that works. I believe it's in the interior fuse panel.

: 2. One of the headlight assembles was replaced last year after the old one : cracked. The new light is nice and shinny and the old one has dulled glass. : Is there anyway to pull the lens off the old one and polish it with some : glass cleaner?

I don't think you'll be able to make it look as shiny as the other one, but it's not too much trouble to remove the lens.

: 3. The plastic wheel centers (round cover for lung nuts) is pealing, what : the best solution? Does the dealership want $100 a piece for new ones?

These are a dime a dozen at junk yards. Try calling a few. There's a big pile of them at my independent; I can ask him about them if you'd like. I know there's also silver alloy paint that you can get for the wheels, but I don't know how well that would work.

: 4. I like the look of the 96 900's with the rear lights extended across the : whole rear. What's involved in adding that plastic light/reflector piece to : my 95?

Replacing the entire tailgate, I'd expect. I could be mistaken.

: 5. Last and not least, the front fog (driving light?) is burned out, I : assume that to replace it you just remove the lens by removing the 2 screws : located right above it.

Nope, that's a sealed unit. Those 2 screws are 2 of the 3 that hold the fog light assembly in. You need to remove the splash guard from under the bumper and then there's a cover on the underside of the fog light assembly that you can remove to get to the bulb. Kind of a pain, really.

If you pull the fuse (maybe #15, I'm not sure about that, check the book) then they will shut off. But, if you want the headlight switch to act like a "regular" US switch - off -> Parking lights ->

Headlights - then you have to have the dealer reprogram the switch. At the same time I suggest that you have the fog lights reprogrammed so that the can be turned on of off at any time by the switch (not tied to the high beam off). If you have it done while you are having other work done you can probably get it thrown in, otherwise you will have to pay for a 15-30 minutes of labor.

Yes. Remove the headlight assembly from the car. *Carefully* remove the clips that hold the plastic back to the glass. *Carefully* seperate the two halves. Be sure to be nice to the gasket. *Carefully* clean the reflector with a very soft cloth, no liquids, no hard buffing (the aged reflector material can be accidentally removed if you get too agressive, particularly in the area around the bulb. The heat evidently softens/dries it). Assembly is the reverse of disassembly. Make sure the gasket is seated properly. I lubed mine with some of that silicone lube you use on spark plug leads.

Don't know, try eeuroparts.com

Funny, I have a '97 and I like the look of the 95 & 9~3 without it.

It's a little hard to get in there. Most folks advise removing the lower front splash pan under teh bumper (maybe 8 screw bolts) and going in that way. Some folks have gotten in from the top by removing the headlight. If you do a search here on "foglight" via google you will find quite a few posts on the subject. Just don't pay a dealer to do it.

No problem. If you'll post how many miles you have, I'll give you some other hints on things to do or check to see if they have been done.

Bob

This amazes me. Are the fog lights actually programmed like that? Fot what markets? What's the sense behind this?

Nel

1995 900S, Auto, 2.3, currently 89,000 miles. I know that for the last 58,000 miles is has been well taken care of.

Is the dealership good about reprogramming the DRL/headlights/Fog lights or are they going to screw it up and charge me $100?

Thanks, Casey

Don't know what market, but you should never drive in fog with high beams on. The light reflects off the fog and back at you and you actually see less.

snipped-for-privacy@madmousergraphics.com

design, print design, photography

Sun, 6 Jul 2003 00:02:16 -0400, snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com suggested: : :> No problem. If you'll post how many miles you have, I'll give you :> some other hints on things to do or check to see if they have been :> done. :>

:> Bob : : 1995 900S, Auto, 2.3, currently 89,000 miles. I know that for the last : 58,000 miles is has been well taken care of. : : Is the dealership good about reprogramming the DRL/headlights/Fog lights or : are they going to screw it up and charge me $100?

They'll probably charge you $100 whether they screw it up or not.

Long story...

USA. It dates back some years. For a long time, the only lights allowed were standard headlights. This was Federal law. States followed with their own laws (enforcement of vehicle regulations is a local issue) and some states/towns/officers would ticket you for even having fog lights.

Eventually they smartened up a little. Now, fogs are allowed but they have to be tied in so that they only work when the high beams are _not_ in use. This regulation came from the early use of *driving* lights by some innovators (before they were legal). They'd turn on the driving lights along with the high beams and throw *lots* of light out the front. When the Feds legalized fog lights, they were worried about people blinding other drivers, so they allowed the use of fogs only with low beams... thereby limiting the about of total light you could throw.

Now, we all know that fogs throw light mostly sideways, not forward. So, there's no real issue with total light. But, the Feds being the Feds, they wrote it into the law that way. So, cars that come with fogs have them tied to the low beam only. It actually has nothing to do with the fact that you should only use them with the low beams.

Now, after all that, you might ask "so what about driving lights ?" As far as I know, driving lights are still illegal. (In fact, if you consider that the have to be tied into the low beam circuit, they make no sense at all under US regulations). That does not mean that you can't have/buy them. You just can't get caught. Since most cops are not familiar enough with lens design to tell the difference, you are usually safe unless you throw a _lot_ of light(like over 55W driving lights) and/or they just decide to bust your chops. Usually you're OK unless you blind a cop coming the other way.

I like driving lights myself. I try to be courteous and dim them as I would the high beams for drivers coming the other way. In order to do this, you have to have a switch with fingertip access. That can involve some design or redesign in many cars.

Bob

Hmmm... 2.3 ? Not my motor, but I think that you still have the "upper idler pulley" issue. The serpentine belt runs across two idler pulleys. The upper one wears out somewhere after 45K miles. If yours has more than 45K miles, you should replace it and the serp belt. If the pulley goes or the belt breaks, you will be stuck and calling a tow truck. About $35 for the pulley and belt at the dealer or try

A nice DAY job. Some folks do the lowerpulley too but it's more if a PITA. I might do it at 89K. If you don't know how many miles are on the coolant, do a water flush and replace the coolant. Of course, change the oil, plugs, air filter. Check to see if the cabin air filter has ever been replaced/cleaned. You might want to consider shocks/cart's if they've never been done. A set of Koni's will make a world of difference if you can afford them. You can DIY or pay someone to do the front (advanced DIY) or rear (easy DIY).

Order a Haynes repair manual from

if you plan to do your own repairs. A complete factory set or CD is > $200 although you can buy paper manuals on a per-component basis for $15 to $25 each.

If that is all you go in for, they will probably charge you for

15-30 minutes - which is $20-$40. Ask first when you get there, they will tell you. If you are having something else done, many of them throw it in for free. YMMV.

Bob

Thanks for the maintenance advice - I think they already had the pulley replaced but I'll check. I have a few more questions, (I don't have the Owners Manuel with me) what is the standard bulb number for the lower right front fog light? Also the radio antenna doesn't go all the way down, it will go up and then back down to about the last expandable section and stop, any ideas? Thanks again for all the help. Casey

95' 900S

I'm getting good and answering my own questions - fog light H3 55w. But now I have another question, the alarm seemed to go off the other day for no reason, I've read that Saabs start doing odd things when the battery goes. Yes? No? Casey

95' 900S

Yes, but not usually the alarm going off/

Are you sure it was for no reason ? Were you near the car ? If you have a sedan, there's a vibration sensor that is supposed to sense glass breakage - maybe it's too sensitive and a good blast of wind set it off.

You might want to wait until you get to know the car a bit more and see if there might have been some operator error involved.

Bob

"Operator error" you mean like me smashing the windows or prying open the doors, sometimes I do things without even myself noticing. Next time the alarm goes off, I'll make sure I'm not accidentally breaking into my own car, silly me. ha ha.

Casey

Hey, I was only suggesting that you might have done something odd since you just bought the car. You didn't list any of the conditions under which the alarm "went off". For all I know, you may have opened the door when you thought it was disarmed but it was still armed. Your post gives no indication of what actually happened.

You might want to display a better attitude here. We post helpful information *voluntarily*.

Bob

Tue, 08 Jul 2003 02:13:37 GMT, snipped-for-privacy@thisaddress.com suggested: : On Mon, 7 Jul 2003 21:10:13 -0400, "PILOTOTS" : wrote: : :>I'm getting good and answering my own questions - fog light H3 55w. :>But now I have another question, the alarm seemed to go off the other day :>for no reason, I've read that Saabs start doing odd things when the battery :>goes. Yes? No? : : Yes, but not usually the alarm going off/ : : Are you sure it was for no reason ? Were you near the car ? If : you have a sedan, there's a vibration sensor that is supposed : to sense glass breakage - maybe it's too sensitive and a : good blast of wind set it off.

Mine was set off by hail once.

: You might want to wait until you get to know the car a bit more : and see if there might have been some operator error involved. : : Bob

Sorry I thought the joking nature of my email would be very obvious, I guess it was not. I apologize.

Casey