I’d fix the SAAB were I in that position. I say to myself “well, I already own it, and its easier to remain owning it than selling it, so I might as well take a chance on getting it running again”. But commonsense says if what you need is a car to drive, and that’s the number one priority, is to sell the SAAB to a SAAB enthusiast or as a parts car, and buy another new or used big-seller Consumer Reports recommended car that will be reliable and easy to find parts for.
Well… It’s a steel vehicle with a steel combustion unit, allowed to sit outside for six years with no oil or fuel flow. So…
I’d personally go with - change the oil, oil filter, change the fuel, fuel filter, remove the spark/glow plugs, spray a little WD40 in the pistons (A LITTLE or you risk shattering the pistons upon returning the spark plugs), put charged battery in, remove the air filter, turn the engine by cranking it. If it turns, it’s a good sign because the pistons are not rusted hard enough to be stuck. Now return the spark plugs (probably change them too) and crank. If the engine catches in the first ten minutes of torture, it will probably run more or less ok.
However - it will never be as healthy as it used to be, as marks from the piston rings inside the pistons will stay exactly where they are. They’ll hopefully polish away a bit over time, but the dents will be there. Still, this could be a 100 or a 200 dollar repair + new air filter, tires, brake fluid, maybe parts of brake system) steering fluid, gearbox fluid, light bulbs etc. to make it road worthy. As well as the suspension will be probably a little s*it by now, as the springs were not cycled. If you’ll DIY it (because there is no reason why you shouldn’t, tutorials will be all over the internet) you can get a somewhat functioning car maybe inside 500$. I don’t know exactly where you from so I can’t tell exactly what the parts will cost. But personally I’ll try to revive the Saab first and you’ll see how well it goes.
John, Saabs were weird. That alone sold many of the cars.
They looked weird, the key was in the floor between the seats - on real Saabs anyway, many of the later models were turbo-charged and a bit exclusive - if you didn’t want to drive what everyone else was driving. The owners were fiercely loyal and, in our town, the dealer was great.
Some of the more technical differences - the 2 stroke early cars, the FWD with a north-south engine layout with no torque steer, good road-holding, reliable engines, emergency brake on the FRONT wheels! Watts link beam axle rear. Later cars lost their way and became mainstream transverse FWD cars with the key on the steering column. They later put it back down on the floor.
Some of that appealed to my wife but the bigger issue was, it fit her small stature, and less importantly, fit my larger stature as well.
3 Likes
Once again, I will ask: which model is it?