Meet my 1984 Saab 900s

I'm a long time lurker here, but just recently got my first project car--a 1984 Saab 900s. Best part (maybe) is that she was FREE. She was left in the drive way of my sister-in-law's recently purchased house back in February when the previous owner just decided she'd had enough of tinkering with it and didn't feel like moving it to her new house. It had a no-start issue which I figured was fuel-pump related. When I cleaned the injectors and sprayed some starter fluid in the throttle body, she started up, but sputtered shortly thereafter. Yup, fuel pump. Anyway, once COVID hit I got really busy and haven't really had time to get my hands dirty, but since the weather's gotten warmer I've been trying to get into her a little bit more. 

Yup, front is dented and dinged from a fender bender last summer. Most of the damage looks cosmetic. I think I can make it look good enough for 10 feet. Kinda low on the priority list until I get her running well. 

Oh yeah. She's a sedan. I suppose it's a little more "average" looking than the hatchback or convertible, but I think it looks good. 

Looks good from behind. Paint's in good shape and all the chrome trim is in tact. 

Interior's good too. No rips or tears. Seats still feel supportive. The biggest problem is...

...the headliner. Super not looking forward to this. 

Early Saab 900s had the fuel pump and fuel sending unit separate from each other. The pump is on the left, the sending unit on the right. 

The seal is crusty. I'll have to clean that up. The sending unit is working in good order. It's certainly newer than the car. 

Fuel pump. This is probably my biggest mystery right now. Looking online it appears that most of the 900s came with a return-style fuel system. But this appears to be a regular banjo bolt with a crush washer like what one generally finds in returnless systems. I tried to loosen it up so that I could get a good look at the pump itself to see what I'm dealing with, but it wouldn't budge. At that point I was getting hungry, hot, and frustrated and ended up tearing the fuel line right at the connector. I just gave myself another project. I'll tackle it another day. 

Good times. I'm ~1.5 years into C900 ownership (89 900S), which has been interesting (in both the good and bad senses of that word). Headliner is on my list too, but since mine is a hatch I think I'll likely have an easier time of it than you will. Regardless, they are surprisingly entertaining cars to drive.

So glad to see a 4 door getting some love! They're immensely practical cars, and as 02 Pilot says, quite entertaining to drive. I've been a classic SAAB owner for almost 20 years now, and I think you'll find they're easy to work on too. 

Your fuel system definitely has a return in the typical sense...it doesn't go back to the tank at the pump as you've noticed, but I can't recall where it does. Somewhere near the accumulator? The pump is stubborn to remove since it has been in there a long time. It's a standard Bosch pump used on millions of other cars. There are specific model numbers that changed over the years, but from personal experience almost any 044 style submerged pump will work. 

How many miles on this one? 

Where are you? Looks super clean and rust free. 

Mezzanine: Shockingly, just a tick over 100,000 miles

Distubd: I'm in Baltimore. Rust can be hit or miss here. This one was definitely well loved.

Weird. One of the forever cars in our (very) modest collection is a near twin of this one. 

For inspiration, here it is in '16 when we pulled it out of a field in VA:

If you need any parts or answers, you've come to the right place. Between a few of us here, there are hundreds of years of combined experience with these cars. I'm really looking forward to seeing yours take shape.

Let me know if you ever need any reference photos or anything.

I love a neat Swedish project!  Good luck!

In reply to Powar (Forum Supporter) :

Thanks for the support! By the way, that is the exact vision I have for mine. Except replace the bike rack with a kayak rack. 

Nice score.

A buddy of mine has done several headliners, and they're not too hard, but it's dirty work. I've helped with one. Use high-quality 3M adhesive, don't use fabric with foam that's too thick (it creases in the corners), support the area around the sunroof hole during removal, to keep it from cracking. One car my friend did with tan fabric, not OE white -- it kinda sucked the light out of the interior. Some minor bad news for you: I recall reading that the headliner has to come out via the rear window on sedans.

http://www.twinsaabs.com/900_repair/headliner/intro.asp?nsteps=5

Had a 1973 '99 two door back in '74-'75 in Northeast Ohio.....an amazing winter sled, running summer Semperits in the winter of  '76 coming up I-77 from Akron after a six inch dump of the powder .....could here it rubbing on the bottom of the Saab.....no issues steady as she goes, while everyone else is on the shoulder blinker flashing.....northern climes/snow  I'd do another SAAB in a HEARTBEAT!!!