Falling Into the Might-As-Well with the Saab

"Urambo Tauro" (urambotauro) 07/02/2018 at 12:30 • Filed to: saab 900, project, wrenching

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Oh yes we did.

In our quest to give the engine a clean bill of health before putting it back in the car, we are digging deep. Don’t want to miss something important.

How did we get here? “A noise” led to a timing chain/guide job, which led to “how about we change some gaskets while we’re at it?” And now, we’re coming dangerously close to a rebuild.

Does it need a rebuild? Probably not. We could just take care of the timing chain and be done with it. But this isn’t just a story about resurrecting a neglected car. This is going to be my brother’s daily driver, and he doesn’t want to have to pull the engine again for a LONG time. He’s in it for the long run.

We pulled the engine off of the transmission (its “oil pan”), and removed the timing cover. The timing cover gets sandwiched between the head and transmission, so popping the cover off scuffed the head gasket above a little. But that’s okay, because we’re already planning to replace the head gasket in the name of preventative maintenance anyway, and will put it back together in the correct order.

I w a s expecting to see some broken bits down in the oilpan/gearbox to explain the brief “shattering” noise I thought I heard. Here’s what we found:

Plucked out of the bottom of the “pan” and set atop the gear housing for a closer look.

Looks like... a c h u n k of cured p aint? Red paint? Some of the smaller bits may be pieces of chain guide, and I think there are some chunks of gasket material too, but there certainly aren’t any chain links down here.

The chain was intact, but seemed to be stretched. We found a spec stating that the tensioner must not be extended more that 11mm. Lo and behold, it was extended about 10.5mm. I’m sure that some of that can be attributed to guide wear, but whatever. The chain and guides are all getting replaced anyway.

With the transmission disconnected, we t o o k a quick p e e k at the bottom end. I took a second to see if I could wiggle any of the crank bearings. There was some play, which we will look into later using some Plastigauge. I f t h i s t h i ng n e e d s b e a r i n g s , n o w ’ s t he time.

Unable to mount it to my engine stand, we set it back down onto the gearbox. Continuing with disassembly, we pulled the head. Everything looked ok, but we did notice some deck scuffing underneath the head gasket, as if someone had cleaned it before putting a new gasket on. Interesting. Too bad we have no service history on the car. (Neither did the previous owner, apparently.)

Would be nice if we did. As near as we can figure, the gearbox appears to be from an earlier model. Because this one has a drain plug, which was allegedly phased out on 1991 and later models. Also, the transmission mount is a 1990/earlier style. This car is a ’91, so maybe someone replaced the transmission AND did some engine work. Who knows.

crowmolly > Urambo Tauro 07/02/2018 at 12:35

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How did we get here? “A noise” led to a timing chain/guide job, which led to “how about we change some gaskets while we’re at it?” And now, we’re coming dangerously close to a rebuild.

That’s how it always happens. I know a guy who had a shifter linkage problem turn into a full respray. That’s how you scope creep, kids.

winterlegacy, here 'till the end > crowmolly 07/02/2018 at 12:46

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Scope/feature creep is a dangerous thing.

shop-teacher > Urambo Tauro 07/02/2018 at 12:49

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“This is going to be my brother’s daily driver”

I was starting to question your sanity, but at least there’s an explanation.  

punkgoose17 > Urambo Tauro 07/02/2018 at 12:52

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I find it very interesting that you learned so much you can tell the transmission and transmission mount were replaced.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Urambo Tauro 07/02/2018 at 12:55

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My only weekend engine work was some work on putting a tube through the oil pan for the Ranchero and lengthening the sump. Because the steering link has to go through the pan, you see.

Urambo Tauro > shop-teacher 07/02/2018 at 13:04

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Yeah, I totally support my brother’ s eagerness to jump in with both feet here and make it reasonably reliable. Good thing he set aside a healthy budget to make that happen haha.

Urambo Tauro > punkgoose17 07/02/2018 at 13:04

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This whole car continues to be a fascinating learning experience.

shop-teacher > Urambo Tauro 07/02/2018 at 13:26

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Yeah, this is gonna be one pricey daily “beater” :)

Urambo Tauro > shop-teacher 07/02/2018 at 13:42

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H e ’ s p r o b a b l y g o n n a b r e a k e v e n , c o m p a r e d t o w h a t o n e i n g o o d c o n d i t i o n would have cost. A n d t h e “ l o s s ” o f n o t b e i n g a b l e t o drive it right away will be offset b y t h e w r e n c h i n g e d u c a t i o n h e ’ s g a i n i n g out of this . ( Before this, he’ d d o n e l i t t l e m o re than j u s t oil changes and brakes.)

shop-teacher > Urambo Tauro 07/02/2018 at 15:01

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He will also know what’s been done and what hasn’t.  That’s worth something as well.

chewymilk > Urambo Tauro 07/02/2018 at 15:10

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Just except it. You are suff ering f rom a classic case of “Saab disease ”

Unfortunately the only know cure is bloodied knu ckles, and a bloodied savings account. 

My bird IS the word > Urambo Tauro 07/02/2018 at 15:33

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I’m curious to see what the bearings look like. I didn’t even bother to look at mine.

Seven Footer > Urambo Tauro 07/03/2018 at 15:38

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Oh god, this is going to be me in about a year. My ‘03 9-3 is approaching 200k miles & I plan on pulling it off the road & refreshing/rebuilding the engine & turbo... and then I “might-as-well” replace the suspension while I’m doing that... oh, and the braking system... oh, and the...

This is going to get out of hand quickly, isn't it?

Urambo Tauro > Seven Footer 07/03/2018 at 16:45

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Yup LOL . Unless you can find a way to focus only on the most inaccessible parts while the engine is out.

Seven Footer > Urambo Tauro 07/05/2018 at 20:36

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Yeah, I know me though. I'll end up replacing everything I can, justifying it with "the engine will last another 200k after this!" Add in the fact that this will be the 1st engine I've ever tried to rebuild and, yeah... I'm going to be in for quite the learning experience. LOL