I'm starting a weird 80's hatchback collection

First was the XR4Ti. Purchased in a fit of spite after an insane deal was sold out from under me, it was not a high point for my rational mind. It had the trans cooler twist tied to the effing radiator, for God's sake.

So the XR is a pit: a car good enough to deserve saving, yet bad enough to be a long term, many month, capital R Restoration. (Or XR8 clone. Flat black, barely muffler'd, menacing XR8 clone. We'll call it the X-Rat.) It will not pass inspection without a month's worth of weekends and another grand in parts, on top of the grand I've already spent on parts. This is in addition to the awful, down to the primer paint, the feral cat seats, the cracked dash, etc. Basically, I'm looking at more than 1 or 2 more $K (not to mention months of work) in the thing to get it past Top Gear's Kristin Scott Thomas test, which is the whole reason I wanted a project car in the first place.

(To the uninitiated: Jeremy Clarkson generally determines whether or not a car is cool by imagining the response if he picked up his favorite actress for a date in said vehicle. Said actress was Kristin Scott Thomas.)

So, my response is of course to start eyeing the car I originally passed up for the XR: a Saab 900 SPG. 1986. Edwardian Grey. When I bought the XR, the Saab was 3x my project budget and the XR was half. Even with the money I've already spent the Saab is ahead in terms of $ (the Saab hasn't sold and the XR is like an onion, layer upon layer of bad decisions and neglect that soak up cash like a sponge) and frankly if I had it to do over again I'd buy the Saab first.

I'm going to look at the SPG tonight. It's in drivable, registrable condition as it sits.

If I buy the Saab, the XR would probably give it's turbo heart to a friend of a friend's Fox body SVO clone in return for a good old fashioned American helping of vitamin D(isplacement). Then flat black. X-Rat!!! Failing that, the shell is a prime candidate for rally beater, Lemons, etc. or if you really, really want to put in the elbow grease could be easily restored to full dress.

I've read the GRM Saab 900 article, as well as a few guides. As far as old school 900 problems, the transmissions like to grenade. Any other red flags? Unicorn parts? Other weird hatchbacks I could add to my collection?

Sounds like you need some FX16. I know I do. Though I'd prefer to make it an FX20.

With a black top 4A? I totally want something with a black top in it before I die, although I'd rather it be a AW11 . . .

Man, you guys are the worst.

If you're in rustville, check the spare tire hatch in the trunk, under the bottoms of the doors (lift the rubber piece), around the lower a-arms and where the axles come through the body, and, if you can, under the carpets in the front.

If the interior is moist (foggy windows) then you have water leaks, likely from the rear quarter windows.

Any sign of synchro grinding, walk unless you want to rebuild it ($$$).

85 and some 86 Turbos had biodegradable wiring insulation. It's likely fixed by now. Still, look for it underhood. If it's a mess and E36 M3 doesn't work, talk down the price and graft in newer wiring from an 87-88 (same fuel system as the 86) Turbo harness.

No unicorn parts, as far as I know, except it might be getting tougher to get brakes and discs for the 86-87 Turbos -- not a deal breaker if it is, though. www.eeuroparts.com is your friend but be very leery of ScanTech aftermarket stuff. Oh, well, the window seals noted above are NLA but you can get around that without too much trouble.

If the car only boosts a third or half into the yellow, don't sweat it -- it's easy to fix and you could talk the price down a bit because of it (unless the seller knows about "base boost" issues). Normal boost is to the yellow/red.

Search my old posts for all sorts of random E36 M3 about c900s.

If you serious about weird 80's hatches, put a Nissan Pulsar on the shopping list

I want that weird 80s hatch.

87-88 Sprint Turbo. Do it.

Two really cool cars, there. Too bad the XR is in such poor shape.

HiTempguy wrote: 87-88 Sprint Turbo. Do it.

???

honestly, I cannot remember seeing an XR that was not beaten to death. They have all but disappeared from the roads around here. It is a real shame too. I liked them and would own one, but with Ford's lack of support and the how few there are still on the road.. I think I will stick with my fiat.

Aside from my first car and my sports cars.. all of my cars have been hatchbacks. You cannot beat the combination of sport and utility

m4ff3w wrote: I want that weird 80s hatch.

What in the hell? Are these... findable?

Volvo 300 Series, Never seen one in the states.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volvo_300_Series

yugo + 1.5l from a fiat x1/9 + turbo ? :)

Lord Turbonia, I remember that SPG, and thought so many Saabistas (sorry, I actually hate that whole...adding "ista" on to a word thing) on this board would be SOO interested in that car. I even considered going to look at it myself. But I'm at the point where I need a small/economical truck, so no funky hatches....at the moment.

If you are really looking at off beat, tho this car has no real value to readers here, there is a Datsun 210 Hatchback, with AUTOMATIC over of Covington Pike/Covington Way.

Weird 80s hatchback - I kinda like the Renault Fuego. Or Isuzu Impulse Turbo?

I had one of these, and I'm looking for one in good shape.

My uncle had one of these

Much fun ensued...

Not exactly weird and barely qualifies as an 80s model (1980 was the final year) but I also like the Chevrolet Monza.

I drove a V8 Monza during high school and always wanted a Monza Mirage (box flares, baby!)...

I had one of those too:

Won the SE Div C Stock championship twice with it. Crude but effective.

So I went and looked at the SPG last night.

1) It's a little rough, but rough in a "it's from the 80's" way, not a "it's been in a barn for years because of a stack of botched repairs" way. It's been driven within the last 2 months or so and is currently registered. It also has moderately serviceable paint, only one dent, and a salvageable interior.

2) It has no muffler. Its current exhaust note wavers somewhere between beastly and annoying. I'll have to fix this to pass inspection. Tips for exhaust on Saab?

3) It won't idle without a little bit of throttle. What do I need to adjust?

4) The car has been sidelined by a leaking front brake caliper. Indie Saab shop wanted $900 for repair, which is a substantial fraction of the value as it sits. It's marginally drivable, as luckily Saab has implemented a brake fluid level monitor to keep you from getting air into the system.

5) The classic 900 is so much like a Cessna inside that it's scary. So full of win.

6) The best part: this car is a documented, full federalized (passes inspection!) gray market import, and the owners have the paperwork. The owners also know the first owner as they are the second. They're selling it because they can't justify the money to keep it running; they're car people and unafraid of small repairs, but frankly a Saab is a freaky product of parallel evolution and even minor jobs (like the aforementioned brake problem) are far beyond their comfort level.

Going back to see it in daylight on Sunday. The owners aren't relisting it because they keep having to field dumb questions from the sort of people who call about beater cars on Craigslist, and frankly they want to sell it to me because I know what it is and realize that it's a unicorn on par with an E30 M3 in terms of rarity and performance, but not in price or recognition.

Any thoughts on what to do next?

Next step: BUY IT.

SPGs are awesome.

As for the exhaust? BIG. 3", terminated in muffler of your choice. (or no muffler, whatever.) Uncorked Saabs sound awesome.

Yeah, I'm totally trending towards "buy it."

I thought the standard turbo logic would apply. Anyone I can buy big exhaust from via mail, or am I looking at a custom job? I've tried Google et al. for a turbo-back but I can't find anything.

^ + 1 million.

LordTurbonia wrote: Yeah, I'm totally trending towards "buy it." I thought the standard turbo logic would apply. Anyone I can buy big exhaust from via mail, or am I looking at a custom job? I've tried Google et al. for a turbo-back but I can't find anything.

You'll probably be able to buy a 3" downpipe, but the rest i'd suggest going custom anyways.

Yes, buy the SPG. You will not likely find an aftermarket exhaust handy, so fix what you have or drop it off at the local muffler shop. 3" all the way back suits the 900 nicely; the turbo absorbs most of the noise, so straight pipe will fly if you don't mind the drone. I would suggest a nice $15 cherry-bomb to take it down a notch.

The idle issue is likely the AIC valve, and can be swapped out with junkyard parts: any 900 16vT or na16v up to 91. The 2.1 has a different valve (I think...). Check very carefully for vacuum leaks.

The 86 has the older wheel bolt pattern (4x114.3), so rim selection is HUGE. The 86 & 87 also feature vented rotors in the front with crappy calipers that have built in cable hand brakes. Yes in front. Rebuilt calipers can be had for ~$90, but they are still crappy with sticky hand brakes. Not that the braking is bad, just the brake calipers themselves: they clunk, they stick, pad selection is poor. You get the idea. The good news is that Wilwood Dynalite/dynapro narrow mount almost bolt right up... a couple shim washers, some hydraulic fittings and away you go. Never mind that you lose your e-brake. That can be fixed too- I'll do a write up on the whole swap soon. Ok, I give- the whole swap is not as easy as it sounds, but is anything?

These are brilliantly simple cars to work on- they are not what you expect in terms of "standard" automotive engineering, but you will develop an appreciation of their quirks in no time. Fastener standardization, no tool entrapment, logical service access. 900's are fun, sporty cars that are incredibly sure-footed, downright snowmobiles, and can haul all the worldly possessions of three college students at the same time in the back.

C

LordTurbonia wrote: 2) It has no muffler. Its current exhaust note wavers somewhere between beastly and annoying. I'll have to fix this to pass inspection. Tips for exhaust on Saab?

You can buy a complete, stock, cat-back exhaust from eeuroparts.com for reasonable money, free shipping. eEuro's kit is by the OE manufacturer (Starla). I've installed three or four of these over the years: http://www.eeuroparts.com/Main/PartDetail.aspx?id=8819708A

If the car is truly grey market and has no cat, then you may need to add a "test pipe" if whatever's there is rusted, or if it somehow has a European (catless) mid-pipe.

Personally, I don't see how a 3-inch system is justified on a car making ~160 hp but YMMV, of course.

When installing, note that the tail pipe can bang against the body where it passes over the axle; take care to position it so that this doesn't happen.

LordTurbonia wrote: 3) It won't idle without a little bit of throttle. What do I need to adjust?

I'd suspect a vacuum leak before the AIC, which typically causes idle to fluctuate. It's a good idea to simply replace all of the underhood vacuum lines on a new-to-you, used c900.

Also replace the rubber bungs for the vac line fittings on the intake manifold. You can skip the thicker vac lines at the boost solenoid, though; they almost never go bad.

BTW, your car can use an AIC ONLY from an 85-88 LH2.2-equipped car. For you, at the junkyard, that means any 16V 85-88 Turbo or 16V 86-87 NA (or, from a 9000, any 86-87, and 88 Turbo). AICs from LH2.4 or LH2.4.2 cars are incompatible (even though the LH2.4.2 has a similar plug).

LordTurbonia wrote: 4) The car has been sidelined by a leaking front brake caliper.

I've had bad luck with eEuro rebuilt calipers. Your SPG's front brakes are a two-year-only system. You could try the local parts store for a rebuilt.

LordTurbonia wrote: 5) The classic 900 is so much like a Cessna inside that it's scary. So full of win.

Recently I toured the inside of an old Concorde jet. The gray leather seats look like they were stolen from a Saab 900!

LordTurbonia wrote: Any thoughts on what to do next?

Yeah, buy it.

Also, buy a Bentley manual, then adjust base-boost (even if it's boosting pretty well), then add a 3bar fuel reg from a 16V NA and do the APC resistor mod.