New to saab, sucks so far.

'faqs' rather than 'faqa'.

You're not charging then. Should be, what, 14.6 volts when it's charging I think.

Yup, it would be.

Three words: "Voltage regulator".

Alternators are a fairly basic electromechanical assembly. The voltage regulator and diodes are much, much more likely to be the failure point. Now, the VR might not be the _root cause_ of the failure, something else may have caused it to go. But, any decent automotive electrical place will be able to tell you if it's the VR or the alternator itself. (if they can't, then they're just parts salesmen).

Dead link.

No slam taken. Here's this mornings update. I put everything I'd taken off back on, (belt, air filter, wire to alternator) and charged the battery all night on a slow charge. This morning it was sitting at about 13.5v. Cranked 'er up, it dropped and held at 12.3v. But it did seem to be holding. The whole time the battery indicator on the dash was displayed. I've been open to it all along, but I am starting to think that you're all possibly correct, that perhaps it is something other than the alternator. But at the moment I'm at a loss.

Yes it is. No I don't. And that's good to know.

Are you going only by the readout on the dash? If so, that may not be accurate. I thought I had a bad alternator. My mechanic says the problem is with the display on the dash. It's incorrect. Have you taken it to a place like Advance Auto where they wheel out their tester and pull the reading from the wires?

snipped-for-privacy@madmousergraphics.com

design, print design, photography

The rebuild is probably your best bet. There are several Saab mechanics in North Georgia listed on Saabnet. There's also a dealership in Chattanooga that may be closer to you.

your place, I'd take it to a shop that does electrical work. The Saab uses aBosch alternator, I believe, and any decent shop should be able to fix it orreplace it.

snipped-for-privacy@madmousergraphics.com

design, print design, photography

Right around.

I've certainly considered this, but herein lies the problem. I can barely get to the alternator, and it does have the built-in regulator. I have yet to find a manual for this type of work, or even a website with decent instructions.

is thebest I can find.

I've been through the yellow pages in my and all surrounding counties, and the only place I can find that will even touch the car is a 'parts salesman'. Other than the dealer in Atlanta, that is.

Found one!

Thu, 01 Jul 2004 16:42:03 -0700, snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com suggested: :

: Found one!

Yep, and I think that this is the only one that there is. It's a little thin for my tastes; kind of glosses over some steps that I found confusing as a total novice.

Many SAAB owners think the car is a different breed. An internal combustion engine is an internal combustion engine. It's been around for more than 100 years. How different can it be? If you are reasonably mechanically inclined. There is nothing you cannot do yourself. I bought mine (two of them, both 94, 9000) because they are cheap. I mean. SAAB is well known for it's low resale value in America. Of course don't expect anything different if you sell it. A good place to go for help is the SAAB network.

The Classic 900 is different. The engine is mounted backwards and sidesways(not transverse like most FWD), depending on your point of view. It is a front wheel drive with the pulleys against the firewall and the clutch just behind the radiator. The engine power is transferred to the transmission by chains. Is there a historical explanation of the logic behind this design?

If you are

Got the 2 8mm bolts out of the alternator. Stick tight as it was. According to what I read it needs 'coaxing' to be pulled free. This is quite a job to do in the driveway...

~GJ~

There's nothing special about the alternator in a Saab, it's a Bosch part, probably could find the same thing in a Volvo, BMW, etc. There's dozens of them in salvage yards.

Sounds exactly like my brother's Volvo did when the voltage regulator died.

I had a 89 c900. Unforunaely it was desroyed in a car fire after a car wash a few years ago. My own mistake of directing the garden hose down the

16v spark plug recess during the car wash.

But back to the difference. Is it not an internal combustion engine? Does the transmission not use gears? It was a great car. You may have the engine mounted upside down, or any which way you desire. Power still goes from the engine to the transmission to the wheels. My knowledge of maintaining my own cars over the years need not change to do the c900 (or SAAB 9000, or any other SAAB) is what I am saying.

Wait a sec, getting water down the sparkplug holes caused the whole car to burn up? Am I missing something here? I've seen more than one completely burned out c900 in local wrecking yards, something that concerns me a little since I have no information as to the cause.

Virtually every car on the road has an internal combustion engine and a transmission with gears, that's like saying that all humans have a brain (debatable), a liver and a heart, but with both examples the differences between specimines is vast.

Dou you have a SAAB c900 or a 9k? I think even the 9-3 and 9-5 are the same. Only more damage will be done because they are newer. Try it yourself. Aim the garden hose with water running at the vent hole of the spark plug recess on the transmission side. After it is well doused, start the engine and floor gas pedal because the engine may start to hesitate. You need to keep it up for a few minutes. See detail instructions below.

Before you do. Call your local fire department so they will be ready.

My point exactly. So how different is SAAB from other makes?

[...]

The same can be said about your petrol lawnmower. You have a point though that car design has converged, it's not as distinct as it was 50 years ago. Then you could identify a car just on its noise. A modern Ford Mondeo is about the same size and performance as my 9000 CSE. Which would I rather have? They probably do about the same job, but the Saab is just that bit more exotic and with attention to details e.g. a timing chain and everything in my 1993 still works.