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Login to post Forums » Grassroots Motorsports » Almost lost the saab

June 2, 2008 9:19 p.m. mad_machine SuperDork

Ever since I picked the saab up at the beginning of May, it has had a clunk in the front suspension. Spent a day in the driver's side wheel well trying to find it.

I finally found it. I was cleaning up the engine bay and doing some painting when I pulled off the (stock) strut brace and found the answer to my question.

That crack goes 3/4 of the way around the strut bearing mount. A think a few more bumps and I would have gotten to witness the strut coming up through the hood. And to think. the car passed inspection for the clunk, but not the lack of a reverse gear. In your opinion, which is more unsafe?
June 2, 2008 11:10 p.m. gamby SuperDork

What exactly is the fix for that???
June 2, 2008 11:39 p.m. Carson Reader

gamby wrote:
What exactly is the fix for that???
June 2, 2008 11:40 p.m. Carson Reader

Your Saab is also the featured ride off to the side, how nice.
June 3, 2008 12:34 a.m. GlennS Reader

gamby wrote:
What exactly is the fix for that???

bondo
June 3, 2008 2:34 a.m. ArtOfRuin Reader

gamby wrote:
What exactly is the fix for that???

Shoelaces and bungee cords. Saw a strut bust through a Peugeot 206WRC during a WRC telecast once, and that's how they fixed it.
June 3, 2008 3:48 a.m. RedS13Coupe None

ArtOfRuin wrote:
gamby wrote:
What exactly is the fix for that???

Shoelaces and bungee cords. Saw a strut bust through a Peugeot 206WRC during a WRC telecast once, and that's how they fixed it.
Didn't that happen to Henning Solberge twice in a row (with a service stop in between) on one of these past few events?
June 3, 2008 6:11 a.m. 914Driver HalfDork

Hard to tell from the photo, but it looks like the cracked area is separate from the top of the inner fender. Is it? Does it come out with the strut?

No matter what, you should take the strut out for a good look. Maybe you can get away with a little MIG work. If it is separate from the body, it can be replaced.

Dan
June 3, 2008 7:48 a.m. mad_machine SuperDork

It is unboltable. I am waiting for new parts as we type. $54 each, so I am not too upset at the costs involved.

What amazes me, mine is a 94. The 94 had what some saab people have called "truely aweful" black rubber and metal strut bushings.. these are the later 95+ style and the car only has (almost exactly) 100,000 miles on it.. so there is no telling exactly how old or how many miles these bushing mounts have done.
June 3, 2008 8:23 a.m. 914Driver HalfDork

94/95? Can I assume that is the year and not the model?

I used to ice race a SAAB 95 V-4. Interesting, 4 speed on the column. A fellow racer had a 94 or 96, a wagon version of the same car. Once after hitting a very large hole in the ice, both his rear struts punched through the shock towers at the same time. Easy enough fix, PITA getting home.

http://www.familycar.com/Classics/63Saab95/
June 3, 2008 9:03 a.m. mad_machine SuperDork

yes, that is the year. A 1994 Saab 900 SE Turbo. the first of the "GM" cars after General Motors bought a 50% stake in Saab
June 3, 2008 9:05 a.m. 914Driver HalfDork

My buddy owns a foreign car shop, he says they started a lot of brake problems at that time....
June 3, 2008 9:11 a.m. GameboyRMH Dork

We go through shock mounts like brake pads down here in potholeworld. You really have to keep an eye on them, because unfortunately there is no "shock mount warning light" (although it would be very cheap and easy to add some).
June 3, 2008 9:17 a.m. 914Driver HalfDork

It appears to be aluminium in the photo. It wouldn't be hard to fashion one out of steel, but would it serve as well as aluminium with fewer drawbacks?

Dan
June 3, 2008 1:31 p.m. car39 Reader

Funny, my 65 Saab Monte Carlo did the same thing after hitting a ice mound in 1974. We junked it, rather than fix it, because it was just an old Saab, why fix it? Besides, I had that nice nearly new Subaru GL coupe waiting for me to drive. Sigh!
June 3, 2008 4:08 p.m. kturner None

don't waste your money on the cheaper strut mounts (kyb). get the SAAB part. do you have a eeuroparts account yet??
June 3, 2008 9:30 p.m. mad_machine SuperDork

yes, and I was hoping to find something adjustable. I have adjustables on my Bimmer and they helped a lot.
June 3, 2008 10:23 p.m. amaff Reader

GameboyRMH wrote: We go through shock mounts like brake pads down here in potholeworld. You really have to keep an eye on them, because unfortunately there is no "shock mount warning light" (although it would be very cheap and easy to add some).
lol that's awesome. Reminds me of when 1 of the Miata's lower ball joints separated at the Atlanta Pro-Solo this year on Saturday (like... 3 weeks ago? Feels like a year...). Took us ages to track one down at 6:00 on a Saturday afternoon. As we were leaving in my Co-Driver's Audi, I noticed a light on his dash that looked a lot like a warning light. I asked him about it and without missing a beat he replies "Oh that means that your ball joints are about to fail." Maybe it seemed funnier at the time because I really needed a smile (car breaking on course = no fun), but I laughed for a bit at that. Turns out it's because he had traction control turned off lol

Mad_Machine: I'm really glad you found that before it went. That could have been seriously ugly.

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