Saab 9-5 wagon ignition problem

I have a 2000, Saab 9-5, wagon, 3L V6. The vehicle has developed a strange problem which I would like to know if anyone else has experienced.

The problem occurs when the vehicle is running. The engine will sometimes shut off on it's own. To be more specific when approaching a stop sign or when the vehicle is about to stop the engine stops running. Sometimes trying a restart works but usually what happens during a restart is the vehicle will crank without starting. If I leave it sit for a few hours the car will restart.

Running at highway speeds does not cause the engine to shut off.

Is this the beginning of an ignition system failure? Would a trouble code scanner help me understand what the problem is?

Thanks, Paul

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Paul
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This is probably not relevant because it happened in a 2002 9-5 Aero, which has a different engine. But I had nearly the identical symptoms. In addition the "check engine" light went on. Since I was about 1 mile from the dealership at the time, I took it right over. Described the symptoms to the service mgr and he said "Sounds like the throttle body to me." I had no idea what a throttle body was, but apparently it's the controller for the "fly-by-wire" throttle control. He hooked up the TechII and it confirmed his diagnosis.

He popped the hood and pointed it out. "Damn," sez I, "that's a $500 part." He went inside to work up the estimate: parts + labor = $504.

*sigh* It's a bad sign when you can guess repair costs that close...

Gary

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Gary Fritz

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