Which Saabs are sludgers?

[exranger06]

My sister is looking for a new (used) car and wants a Saab 9-3 or 9-5. Which engines were sludge-prone and what years/models did they come in?

Also, it seems that pretty much every one I've looked at so far are turbocharged. Are there any that are naturally aspirated, and again, which years/models are they?

 

[silverrat]

I think she'll have to worry about more than sludge if buying one of those.

 

[exranger06]

Like what?

 

[Autobahn88]

The cars to be concerned about are the 99 to 02 9-3 and 9-5 turbos. V6 cars did not have the sludge issues. Now saying that if she is serious a buying one make sure she has maint records of oil changes. These cars have to use a synthetic oil that meets the A3 euro. You will get all of the info you need on buying a 9-3 at Saab forum

 

[Autobahn88]

Originally Posted By: silverrat
I think she'll have to worry about more than sludge if buying one of those.


And what would that be? Like I have said before on this site. I own 2 and have owned many Saabs in the past. If well maintained they are just as reliable as any vehicle out there. I know quite a few Saab owners and we laugh at the misinformation that floats around about Saabs. Try to get owner feedback and not some heresay from people that have never owned a Saab or any Euro brand for that matter.

 

[rshunter]

Originally Posted By: Autobahn88
Originally Posted By: silverrat
I think she'll have to worry about more than sludge if buying one of those.
And what would that be? Like I have said before on this site. I own 2 and have owned many Saabs in the past. If well maintained they are just as reliable as any vehicle out there. I know quite a few Saab owners and we laugh at the misinformation that floats around about Saabs. Try to get owner feedback and not some heresay from people that have never owned a Saab or any Euro brand for that matter.

"AMEN, brother! AMEN!!!"

 

[daves87rs]

Originally Posted By: Autobahn88
Originally Posted By: silverrat
I think she'll have to worry about more than sludge if buying one of those.


And what would that be? Like I have said before on this site. I own 2 and have owned many Saabs in the past. If well maintained they are just as reliable as any vehicle out there. I know quite a few Saab owners and we laugh at the misinformation that floats around about Saabs. Try to get owner feedback and not some heresay from people that have never owned a Saab or any Euro brand for that matter.


+1

 

[cchase]

My sister owned a 1999(?) Saab 9-5 and it was anything but reliable. It did have the V6 and was not a sludger from what I remember reading at the time. It had a single turbo that only provided boost to half the cylinders, my guess is that it was very low boost.

 

[Spazdog]

Originally Posted By: Autobahn88

And what would that be? Like I have said before on this site. I own 2 and have owned many Saabs in the past. If well maintained they are just as reliable as any vehicle out there. I know quite a few Saab owners and we laugh at the misinformation that floats around about Saabs. Try to get owner feedback and not some heresay from people that have never owned a Saab or any Euro brand for that matter.


The older Saabs had a Triumph derived engine. I think they are unfairly be-rated for that. Transmission access is a PITA but otherwise they are fine.


My stepmother's GM era 9³ had electrical gremlins and window regulator issues. One persistant flaw was that it would just refuse to start. Tow it to the dealer and it still would not start. No fault codes, No security system problems. Then as if by magic, the next day it would start. You could drive it for another year + before it would do it again.

 

[terminaldegree]

IIRC, the last pcv revision to deal with sludge issue was installed at the factory part-way through the 2004 production run, at least on the 9-5. You can drop the pan to inspect it and the oil pickup screen if you want to be absolutely sure. On older models, you're looking for pcv revision 6.

All model 9-3 and 9-5 have turbos. The higher pressure Mitsubishi's are supposed to be longer-lived than the Garrett units that are found on "linear" models. As mentioned above, look at saabnet and saabsite for more information.

I like my 9-5. Great balance of performance, comfort, safety, and fuel economy. Yes, it costs more than my previous Chevy Malibu to maintain. If you're handy, DIY maintenance isn't too bad on this car.

 

[sleddriver]

I was the original owner of an 83 SAAB 900 turbo with a manual transmission. Kept it for 14 years and put ~256,000 mi on her. The original turbo lasted until 205,000. Put one clutch in it. I used 100% synthetic 20w-50 most of the time due to the Tx heat. Never had an issue with sludging, but this was the original 2 liter SAAB motor. If they have become sludge prone, then something definitely changed in the motor.

I'd have a mechanic familiar with SAABS and/or Swedish cars really check it out first. Read up on the model/yrs you're interested in. Poor maintainence will greatly shorten their (& most cars)life. You might want to periodically use a can of BG109 before an oil change.

One thing I remember doing during the Summer when I arrived home at the end of the day, was opening the hood in the garage to let all the heat escape. The hood fit so close to the top of the engine that there were numerous cut outs in the hood insulation for clearance. Plus the turbo piping right next to the battery, etc. added additional under-the-hood heat. Gave her a real good chance to dump all that heat (into the garage) instead of sitting there heat soaking with no circulation.

Had a LOT of fun with that car all those years . . and saved a BUNCH of money driving it for so long.

Good luck!

 

[artificialist]

I see very few SAABs and the only ones I see with sludge are the ones that never get synthetic oil.