Hi everyone- I went and checked out a 98 CSE 5 speed today. The car has about 170,000 on it and has been serviced at a well respected Saab indie. The beige interior was clean. The front seat leather looked like they were a little dry and really needed conditioning. The only negative on the car was the both front fenders were rusted to holy hell, the tires were shot, and the rear brakes needed work.
The car is listed for well under challenge money. I know these 98 CSE's are basically an Aero model so they have desirability. Would be pretty easy to find two black fenders to swap over??? Any other thoughts or things to be concerned with?
Check for cracks in the rear shock towers. If the cracks aren't bad, they can be welded up, if they are bad you will need to graft in a good tower.
Check the motor mounts.
I think TCS was gone by '98, it can be a pain.
If the boost pressure seems low, it could be as simple as a bad BCV.
I'll post more later if I think of anything else important.
I had a '96 CSE and this is what I replaced on mine.
- Worn Waterpump
- Rear calipers and handbrake cables (rusted slides and cables, caused dragging)
- Torn CV boots
- Bad DI Casette
- Broken Exhaust Manifold Studs X4
- Bad dash light dimmer caused dash lights to go in and out
- Fuel pump hose got kinked, I replaced the whole unit.
Check the front jack points, too.
TCS was long gone in '98 so you're good there.
Black fenders shouldn't be too hard to find.
Pulled the trigger on the car. It drove great on the test drive. The owner has had 6 Saab 9000s and was keeping a 98 CSE (with 300k) that they bought new. The brakes need a bit of work and the tires are pretty much dead. If I can find two good black fenders the car will be really sharp.
