I have a 2004 9-3 Aero (4k m) and it has an odd thunking/knocking noise coming from what I believe must be the front right strut. I already brought the car in to the dealer once and they said they didn't see a problem.
Admittedly, the noise does seem to be intermittent and more apparent when I first drive the car cold in the morning. It's also odd b/c the noise even comes when driving on perfectly flat pavement.
I was driving today with a friend and, unprovoked, he asked me to turn the radio down. I obliged. He cocked his head as if aiming his ear (to the right-front wheel) and said he heard a knocking sound, _the_ knocking sound. Phew...at least I'm corroborated!
I'm not sure if it's a temperature sensitive issue, because it seems to go away or at least minimize during driving later in the day. Or maybe this is just a red herring???
In any event, I've scheduled another appointment with the dealer and they agreed to have a tech drive it with me. Of course, it probably won't happen on the drive!!!
Be assured, red herring make a sort of sloppy flapping sound. But seriously folks ... if it is intermittent and worse when cold, then why not leave the car overnight & get them to drive you home one evening then pick you up the next day OR come oprund to accompany you in the morning when the car is still cold? Cheers
This is actually exactly what happened. I left the car there yesterday (wednesday) morning. They tried the car later yesterday afternoon...of course, it didn't show signs of the problem then. So they called and agreed to keep the car until this morning to test it again.
OK. They test drove the car yesterday morning. Thankfully they did hear the noise. They decided it was the struts and have ordered new struts and will put them on today. They admitted that they had never heard that sort of noise before.
Thusfar, the dealer has been very good about fixing this issue and a number of other issues the car has had. Is there any corporate oversight about the number/extent of repairs that are done to a particular vehicle under warranty?
Kind of relieved to see that someone else is seeing this problem. have a 2003 9-3 and I have had it to the dealership several times fo this noise with no satisfactory results. The real concern is that i is getting much worse. Not being even remotely familiar with mechanics I asked 2 others (loca mechanics) to get in the car and listen for the problem. They bot gave the same response - they wouldn't drive it! So for the 3rd tim in 6 months I have to have it towed to my dealer. You said you have had many problems with yours - any chance th problems have included the bearings & a computer problem that cause the car to just shut down in the middle of the highway? I've driven Saabs all my life but after this vehicle, my loyalty i really being tested
I let the dealer know the problem was intermittent and that it seemed to affect the car only when it was cold (first thing in the morning, when left overnight).
Thankfully, my dealer's service department was very attentive and they insisted on keeping the car overnight to check the car in the morning. I had had the car in previously and this was one issue (amongst several) that they couldn't replicate even though I had told them about it. So I got the car back and I paid more attention to when the noise occurred (cold/in the morning). So I had more direct evidence for them to work with the the next time I brought it in.
Towed? Wow...the noises my car was having were definitely not enough to prevent me from driving it, more or less just very annoying.
Thankfully no...I had two minor problems with the SID (an anti-theft warning and an onstar warning).
I had problems with the brakes...they were squeaking and grinding pretty bad.
Other issues I've detailed in prior posts.
I think the key is be sure you hold the dealer accountable for the problems your car is having but of course, always do so in a productive manner. By that, I mean, be your own savvy "detective". Your actual mechanic/dealer can't be with you in your car at all times, so it's all the more important that you attempt to discover where the problem is first. This is especially true when a problem is intermittent or occurs under subtle conditions. These types of problem can be very tricky to diagnose, even for seasoned technicians.
In short, I agree with you about your concern of the quality of manufacture. My first couple months with this car have not been the best experience. It's too bad, because I really wanted to like this car from the get-go. However, I was _very_ fortunate to have purchased my car from a very reputable dealership. They have more than lived up to their reputation. In two visits they fixed all the little/annoying problems with the car (all warranty covered of course). Now I will grant you, given this car's very young age, it shouldn't have had any of these problems at all.
Now, with the exception of one very minor issue, a broken undercarriage clip, (which can wait til the next oil change), I'm much happier with the car.
Actually, speaking of this broken undercarriage clip, has anyone else noticed the half-dozen or so cables/wires fastened/clipped to the bottom of the 9^3? This seems like a poor design decision to place these so exposed to road elements. It seems as though they should be better protected/encased in a metal housing of sorts. They instead have a handfull of cheap plastic clips holding them down, affording them little if any protection (from elements and even sabotage). Is this really a standard, accepted method to bring cables from the cabin to the rear of a vehicle?
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