The sludge pile under the oil pickup screen (removed)
And the pickup screen:
Post Cleanup:
Update your crankcases and change your oil with Mobil 1 synthetic, and you can usually avoid this problem.
-Chad
Saturday, February 19, 2011
More Sludge!
Just dropped the oil pan on a '02 9-3 with an oil pressure light on. Mmm mmm Sludge.
The sludge pile under the oil pickup screen (removed)
And the pickup screen:
Post Cleanup:
Update your crankcases and change your oil with Mobil 1 synthetic, and you can usually avoid this problem.
-Chad
The sludge pile under the oil pickup screen (removed)
And the pickup screen:
Post Cleanup:
Update your crankcases and change your oil with Mobil 1 synthetic, and you can usually avoid this problem.
-Chad
Sunday, February 6, 2011
A botched 9-3SS brake job -or- one more reason why you should always have a SAAB specialist service your SAAB.
I recently got to observe a pretty amazing site... a front brake job on a 9-3 Sport Sedan that had been completely botched in just about every way.
Client stated brakes were soft, making noise, and not stopping well. Front brakes had been "replaced" by a local generic automotive repair shop. Client took the car back to them on two different occasion stating the above issues and overall not being pleased with the work.
The findings were pretty amazing.
Firstly, the shop had "turned" the brake rotors (a process of removing metal from the rotor to create a flat surface). I NEVER do this or recommended it, as replacement with original SAAB parts is a much better option for the same amount that most shops charge for their "turning" service. The rotors had been cut way below their minimum thickness, and had about half of the braking surface removed. Once the pads would have worn down near their replacement point, the brake pistons would have overextended and blown out, causing a loss of front brakes (which provide about 80% of the cars stopping power).
Stock rotor vs. the turned rotor on the car
Now, on to the pads. The pads used were incorrect for the car. The car was a 2003 9-3, which is a tough year to order parts for. In 2003, the sedan version of the car was different from the convertible version of the car. The convertible was the older body style, with different brakes. The issue is that the difference is slight, so if you receive the wrong parts, it seems as if they will install... because they will, but they are completely incorrect!
The pads on the earler 9-3 (which is what was installed on this car) are too large and will rub the caliper, inner hub of the rotor, and bind when the piston trys to compress them. Here's what it looked like when the wheel was taken off:
1: The rattle clip retainer is missing
2: The pad is rubbing the inner hub
3: The pad is not making full contact with the rotor
4: They put some kind of grease on the back of the pad to make it work?
I was pretty amazed at this point. It would have been one thing for them to do the job and send it out thinking it was okay, but the client took it back TWICE to complain about issues with it and they still looked at it and said it was OK!
Things got worse, though. After taking it all apart and removing the pads, it was immediately apparent that something more was very wrong. The pads binding had caused the pistons that push the pads onto the rotors had cracked on both sides due to the binding of the incorrect pads! I can't stress how dangerous this was to be driven. The brake fluid was leaking out from behind the pistons and failure was imminent.
Cracked brake caliper piston
After reassembly with all new and correct parts the brakes work and feel great. I just wanted to put this up as a reminder to everyone... make sure you know who's working on your car. Most inspection stations fail cars on brakes and exhausts, then try to sell them to the customer because that's how they keep their doors open. I'm not saying I'm perfect, but I would have easily caught this before I ever installed the new parts. My cost for the job with all new parts was also less than what this shop charged her... just something to keep in mind.
All done
Take care,
-Chad
Client stated brakes were soft, making noise, and not stopping well. Front brakes had been "replaced" by a local generic automotive repair shop. Client took the car back to them on two different occasion stating the above issues and overall not being pleased with the work.
The findings were pretty amazing.
Firstly, the shop had "turned" the brake rotors (a process of removing metal from the rotor to create a flat surface). I NEVER do this or recommended it, as replacement with original SAAB parts is a much better option for the same amount that most shops charge for their "turning" service. The rotors had been cut way below their minimum thickness, and had about half of the braking surface removed. Once the pads would have worn down near their replacement point, the brake pistons would have overextended and blown out, causing a loss of front brakes (which provide about 80% of the cars stopping power).
Now, on to the pads. The pads used were incorrect for the car. The car was a 2003 9-3, which is a tough year to order parts for. In 2003, the sedan version of the car was different from the convertible version of the car. The convertible was the older body style, with different brakes. The issue is that the difference is slight, so if you receive the wrong parts, it seems as if they will install... because they will, but they are completely incorrect!
The pads on the earler 9-3 (which is what was installed on this car) are too large and will rub the caliper, inner hub of the rotor, and bind when the piston trys to compress them. Here's what it looked like when the wheel was taken off:
2: The pad is rubbing the inner hub
3: The pad is not making full contact with the rotor
4: They put some kind of grease on the back of the pad to make it work?
I was pretty amazed at this point. It would have been one thing for them to do the job and send it out thinking it was okay, but the client took it back TWICE to complain about issues with it and they still looked at it and said it was OK!
Things got worse, though. After taking it all apart and removing the pads, it was immediately apparent that something more was very wrong. The pads binding had caused the pistons that push the pads onto the rotors had cracked on both sides due to the binding of the incorrect pads! I can't stress how dangerous this was to be driven. The brake fluid was leaking out from behind the pistons and failure was imminent.
After reassembly with all new and correct parts the brakes work and feel great. I just wanted to put this up as a reminder to everyone... make sure you know who's working on your car. Most inspection stations fail cars on brakes and exhausts, then try to sell them to the customer because that's how they keep their doors open. I'm not saying I'm perfect, but I would have easily caught this before I ever installed the new parts. My cost for the job with all new parts was also less than what this shop charged her... just something to keep in mind.
Take care,
-Chad
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Crankshaft Position Sensor Replacement, 900's, 9000's, 9-3's, and 9-5's
Some issues have classic symptoms that throw up a red flag right away when a client is describing them. "The car wouldn't start after I shut it off for a few minutes, but would start right up if I let it sit for an hour" is classic Crankshaft Position Sensor failure.
This little sensor is mounted on the front of the engine on turbo SAABs from 1994 and up. It's job is to tell the engine management system the angle of the crankshaft. Essentially, it's just a magnet that corresponds a pulse from a trigger wheel mounted on the crankshaft. However, without the signal, the car doesn't know what order to ignite spark or fire the fuel injectors, therefore leading to a no start condition.
Sometimes the sensors just fail and have no visual signs of wear, but on the car I was working on today, this was not the case.
Old, broken wiring harness vs. new sensor.
Oil from an oil leak at the cylinder headgasket soaked the sensor harness, causing the rubber to swell and eventually rupture. Heat from the turbocharger also aids in the degradation, though there is a metal heat shield over the sensor to prevent this. If this was a clients car, I would have definitely caught it in the consultation, but this was an out of state tow in that broke down locally and had the car towed to me.
Where the sensor mounts, if you look hard inside the hole you can see the trigger wheel the sensor reads its signal off of.
Easy enough job to do. A common failure that can leave you stuck and stranded... no bueno.
I'm getting out of the cold and heading to Florida for a week on a bit of a vacation. Heading to the Rolex 24hrs of Daytona race on Saturday/Sunday. See "Yinz" later.
This little sensor is mounted on the front of the engine on turbo SAABs from 1994 and up. It's job is to tell the engine management system the angle of the crankshaft. Essentially, it's just a magnet that corresponds a pulse from a trigger wheel mounted on the crankshaft. However, without the signal, the car doesn't know what order to ignite spark or fire the fuel injectors, therefore leading to a no start condition.
Sometimes the sensors just fail and have no visual signs of wear, but on the car I was working on today, this was not the case.
Oil from an oil leak at the cylinder headgasket soaked the sensor harness, causing the rubber to swell and eventually rupture. Heat from the turbocharger also aids in the degradation, though there is a metal heat shield over the sensor to prevent this. If this was a clients car, I would have definitely caught it in the consultation, but this was an out of state tow in that broke down locally and had the car towed to me.
Easy enough job to do. A common failure that can leave you stuck and stranded... no bueno.
I'm getting out of the cold and heading to Florida for a week on a bit of a vacation. Heading to the Rolex 24hrs of Daytona race on Saturday/Sunday. See "Yinz" later.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Cabin Air Filter Replacement, All Saabs
For whatever reason, most of the cars I see have never had the cabin air filter replaced. Maybe Wright and Cochran are skipping them in the major services they're doing, or clients are being naughty and skipping their scheduled maintenance!
The filter does exactly what the title says it does, filter the outside air that flows into your car. All the air you and your family breathe with the windows up passes through this thing, so it's important to make sure it's working properly. The units I use also have a charcoal residue built in to the filter which eliminates outside smells from coming into the cabin!
I change it on almost every major service I do, and here's why:
Old filter v. new, on a 7yr old car with 91,000 miles.
This is a picture taken by head technician Anders at Swedecar in California showing how clogged up the housing around the filter can get. The cowl cover that typically covers the filter is removed in this photo. Anders reported that by clearing out the housing and replacing the filter, the customers air conditioning temperature dropped by almost 10 degrees!!!
Have you had yours replaced?
The filter does exactly what the title says it does, filter the outside air that flows into your car. All the air you and your family breathe with the windows up passes through this thing, so it's important to make sure it's working properly. The units I use also have a charcoal residue built in to the filter which eliminates outside smells from coming into the cabin!
I change it on almost every major service I do, and here's why:
This is a picture taken by head technician Anders at Swedecar in California showing how clogged up the housing around the filter can get. The cowl cover that typically covers the filter is removed in this photo. Anders reported that by clearing out the housing and replacing the filter, the customers air conditioning temperature dropped by almost 10 degrees!!!
Have you had yours replaced?
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
SAAB VIN Decoder
A neat little tool to use. Enter your VIN below and it decodes it for you.
Saab VIN Decoder
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
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