Dashboard Confessional

I own a 1996 Saab 900 Convertible.

And well it’ been a good car with 140K miles.

Recently I noticed a problem with the dashboard, the lights blink on and off and just yesterday when I went to start the car no lights turned on on the dashboard display and th car would not start. Fianlly after a few tries the lights came on on the display and was able to start the car. Could someone please tell me what’s going on?

“would not start” = no crank or = crank but no run?

Without having a wiring diagram for reference my guess is that this is going to be something fairly simple.
The battery cable ends should be inspected and cleaned as a first step. Most SAABs have a junction terminal through which all battery power passes (except for the starter motor). If this car has a junction terminal sometimes the connection will corrode or scale over time and cause a problem like this. Follow the positive battery cable (NOT to the starter) and see if it enters a small black plastic box located near the battery. If so, that’s your juntion terminal.

If everything is fine up to this point the next step would be the possibility of a bad ignition switch. The switches hold up pretty well considering the location between the seats but can sometimes be prone to failing due to dust, grime, cookie crumbs, or the random soda pop spill.
Hope some of that helps.