Radiator Fan is killing my battery!

It may not be the radiator fan. I have the same problem on a 1988 Turbo Convertible which we use for summer driving only. It was driving me crazy, then I discovered that the car has two alarm systems. In theory you can turn both of them off, but I learned that the second alarm is nearly impossible to keep off. I installed a kill switch at the battery and now when I start the car it instantly fires up despite months of non-use. If we leave the summer place after a weekend, I open the kill switch. Prior to the kill switch, we were lucky if the car fired up the next weekend. Now no problems other than to reset the clock and remember the radio code.

Tom

I believe my car has an alarm system, but it appears to have been disabled for some time. However, when I unplug my radiator fan, the battery never goes dead, so i'm pretty certain that this is the source of the problem. This obviously leads to overheating issues, so I only connect the radiator fan for longer trips.

You definitely have something wrong. Either the cooling system has a problem or the fan switch is misfunctioning. I live in one of the hotter places in the U.S. and the fan rarely runs at all and when it does, it's only for a minute or so. Even on the hottest days, when I return home, the fan will come on when I park in the garage but the fan has gone off by the time the garage door has closed or shortly thereafter.

I remember reading about a problem with early 9000's that would cause the fan to run too long and eventually cause the battery to go flat. The problem was the fan control relay that went faulty. The relay normally allows the fan to run for about 5 minutes after the engine is turned off. IIRC, the Saab recommended solution was a new relay part number that changed or eliminated the fan running after engine shutoff. Saab moved the relays around over the years, but I think it is in the box in the engine bay that also houses the headlight relays -- don't hold me to this, though. If it isn't there, the rest of the relays are above the fuse panel. You can access them by removing the glove box and then the fuse panel. I expect you can also access them by removing the top of the dash panel. I have never managed to accomplish this myself, though.

While/if you are working at the fuse panel, check the tightness of the nut and bolt that attaches a thick, red wire (main feed from the battery) to the fuse panel. There were reports that if this connection loosened, you would get electrical problems and possibly a fire behind the dashboard. There were a few reports of fires even after the engine was shut off.

Walt Kienzle

sounds like a 9000

replace the 4 wire a/c pressure switch for the air con.. this shorts out and causes this..

if u cut the black wire it will solve all problems. how ever u then carnt use the a/c ..