In all my years of driving Saabs, I've never seen this one. My '94 CSE has reently started showing some very strange behavior. When I'm cruising in 5th the shift light comes on. I'm pretty certain it is a switch somewhere, but I don't know enough to know what switch nor how hard/expensive it is to replace. Any ideas?
I don't know anything about 9000s, but I'd bet there's a switch to tell the system when you're in fifth, specifically to prevent the light coming on. I'd start looking around where the reversing light switch is fitted.
Being in the US and not having seen non-US saabs, I'd have to say that yes the shift light is probably a US only feature probably mandated by the EPA or some such govt' agency to protect us from ourselves.
Oh I know that I'm the one in charge of when I shift, but I find it strange that I have a light telling me to shift when I'm in 5th and can't shift up, unless thre is some hidden 6th gear.
This is actually a very bad thing. Shift light in 5th gear means the computer thinks you are still in a lower gear and most likely you are. The reasons are:
1) transmission linkage is "off" and you are not in 5th gear even though the shifter is(most likely)
2) clutch going bad and failing to disengage in higher gears (maybe)
3) faulty computer (very unlikely)
What is it that makes you think it's "most likely"? I would have said it's *extremely* unlikely that top gear could be un-selectable in such a way that the driver could be fooled into thinking it's still working.
It's virtually impossible for the driver to fail to notice this.
Again, a clutch slipping to this extent would be really obvious. The OP would have mentioned it surely?
I can't imagine the way in which it might be faulty to cause the reported symptoms and no others.
There's only two ways the system could tell whether the gearbox is in
5th or not.
Comparing road speed with engine revs - If this was the case, the reported symptoms would be accompanied by others. The speedo or the rev counter would be wonky for example, or the clutch would be slipping badly.
There's a "5th" switch on the linkage just like the reversing light switch. Failure of this switch or it's wiring would cause exactly the fault described.
The light is not on costantly. It come on intermittently. This is what led me to think it is a switch of some sort.
I'm not in a lower gear. I would certainly recognize the higher RPMs, Increased noise etc.... I've been driving stick for over 25 years, and saabs exculsivelly for 15.
Clutch is fine and there is no slippage in any gear.
Highly uunlikely as I recently had a Nordic Stage 3 ECU put in. (Several weeks before this issue popped up BTW.)
Ah, my mistake then. I must have been taken in by comments like "...the computer thinks you are still in a lower gear and most likely you are." and "...you are not in 5th gear even though the shifter is(most likely)"
You seemed to be saying that the OP was most likely unable to select
5th gear. Of course I realize now that you never would have suggested such a thing ;o)
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