Knurled. said:
"Day 2: The Volvos that I have infiltrated still do not suspect me, but I must be wary of that Miata. It seems to know more than it lets on."
“The Miata never moved it’s watchful eye from me. Coupled with the sound of Sabaton trickling from its lair, it was truly intimidating!”
What an awesome rallycross weekend at Bitzers Farm in Ohio! I will absolutely be going back for more WOR events- great friends (many I met yesterday) great racing, great food (!), and truly the rally spirit.
490 miles on the Saab, including driving it down, 10 or 12 runs on the course (I lost count!), and driving it home last night. “That’ll do Swedish piggy, that’ll do.”
The biggest thanks goes to Evan though- thank you for making the weekend possible for me :-)
02Pilot said:What sort of fabric did you use for the headliner? Mine is going to be dealt with soon, along with the pillar coverings and the door card inserts. I was planning to order some boring light grey headliner fabric, but why be boring if I can find something more interesting?
This is the fabric I used: https://www.joann.com/blizzard-fleece-fabric-tan-black-bias-plaid/16362147.html#q=Black%2Band%2Btan&start=1
I don’t know how long it will last, but I think a good while. It was the only Black and Tan plaid I could find that was wide enough for the job.
In reply to paranoid_android :
Thanks. My interior is blue, so the tan wouldn't look right. I'm thinking some sort of grey plaid, but I did just spot a geometric print with large moose scattered throughout, which seems almost irresistible.
In reply to 02Pilot :
Don't leave us Volvo (the Prancing Moose) pervs hanging!
For the record as well, a 91 Saab 4 door can fit:
With a little room left over.
02Pilot, prancing moose fabric sounds like win to me!
In reply to Knurled. :
GAH! Now I can't find it again - that Joann Fabrics website is a E36 M3show. But there are many, many moose-themed fabrics (I was only looking at the fleece) on there, so browse away.
paranoid_android said:Knurled. said:
"Day 2: The Volvos that I have infiltrated still do not suspect me, but I must be wary of that Miata. It seems to know more than it lets on."
“The Miata never moved it’s watchful eye from me. Coupled with the sound of Sabaton trickling from its lair, it was truly intimidating!”
Forged in Valhalla by the hammer of Thor...
(although I think the garage radio was playing Korpiklaani when I got there)
In reply to Knurled. :
It was Sabaton the night before.
In reply to EvanB :
One more reason to be pissed off that I couldn't make it in time.
In reply to Knurled. :
There will be a next time I’m sure! I’ll bring food for us to grill again. I *really* wanted to stay longer Saturday, but had to get back home.
After I gather the gumption to get under the car, I’ll assess the feasibility of coming down for the August event.
Video of some of the runs should be up in the next couple days. I’m exporting what I have now, then have to wait forever for it to upload to YouTube. Turns out the GoPro I was using kept shutting itself off because it was too hot. Wonder why...
In car footage now posted on YouTube:
The car did really well considering. And I learned some things too, which was one of the big reasons for going. The other of course was seeing friends and having fun.
The second morning run (kind of) shows a new phenomenon that happend during most of the runs that day. While going through the turn 4,5,6 section, I would hit a rut hard enough that the gear shift popped out of gear. It first happened during this run, and it completely surprised me as I stepped on the gas and didn't feel the car respond. I took my eyes off the course and looked down (mistake), realized I needed to put the car back in gear, and when I looked back up I had lost track of where I was on the course.
So I'm hoping it's simply time for new motor mounts, especially the front one. I'll know more once I get under the car for a good look.
A small update from the last few weeks. Of course I took a few images then forgot to post them.
During the last rallyx I heard a pretty hard clunk that sounded ouchie, so I started digging in to that.
Rear shocks came out thanks to Saab special tool 867-5309:
Aside from the upper parts they were in pretty good condition. The upper parts were not in good condition.
Drivers side mount from below:
Passenger side mount from below:
Not so good. I suspect the noise I heard was the shock bushing pushing through the weakened mount. So I will cut that out an put new metal in.
The other side I’ll likely clean and paint as it’s still quite solid.
I have a few boxes of replacement parts too, so I’ll try to remember to document them as they go in.
Ouch! Fortunately that should be fairly simple to shore up if you don't mind welding while staring straight up into what is spattering down at you.
I've "fixed" egged out shock mounts like that by sandwiching the old metal between two fender washers, with a nut and bolt to give a nice heavy squeeze on it, then a little welding here and there.
That's mild compared to what I found on mine:
That's how much I had to cut out to get to clean metal. The other side wasn't a lot better. Fortunately, yours will be pretty easy from the look of it. You can do all the welding from the top side, then seal the inside (that reminds me - I need to spray some Fluid Film up in there). Knurled's idea of washers might work too. Note that that sheet metal is pretty thick stuff. There is a patch panel available, but I don't think you need to go that far (I did...).
paranoid_android said:So I'm hoping it's simply time for new motor mounts, especially the front one. I'll know more once I get under the car for a good look.
Motor mounts for sure. Given the rallycross use, I'd encourage you to fill the front mount with some window weld. It'll stiffen it a little without sacrificing NVH.
In reply to Mezzanine :
The timing of your recommendation is perfect! I have a new front engine mount, and have been doing some reading on improvements there.
Would the window weld be applied to the limiting bracket to take the place of a piece of rubber? Or is it added to the rubber part of the mount?
Just to be clear, there were two kinds of mounts for these cars, depending on trim level:
For hydraulic mounts, which have a u-shaped bracket over them, add a piece of rubber hose to the bracket, per here: http://townsendimports.com/Web/engine_folder/motor_mount_mod_9000.htm
For rubber mounts, fill the voids with window weld.
I just did the front rubber mount on mine and never even thought about doing the Window Weld treatment. I may have to pull it out and do it before I forget.
Mine is a 91 S, so this is the one I have:
The rubber hose trick seems to be in my future.
The passenger side shock mount is done. I cut a small area out and welded in a piece of 16 ga steel. Then made what looks like a cap and welded that over the first piece. This is how the original was, so it should be pretty close to that.
I think I will use Knurled’s idea and weld in one thick washer on the other side so both sides will be nice and solid.
KYB Gas A Just shocks will go in. If they are good enough for Chief, they will be good enough for me.
Then the last nagging thing from my trip to Columbus- maybe a half dozen times I noticed a hesitation or a “miss” sporadically that hadn’t been there before. I think it was linked to vibration/shock, like going over railroad tracks or hitting a good pot hole.
I unplugged the TPS when I got to Evan’s, and still noticed it on the way home. So I’ll start replacing some obvious stuff just in case. Fuel filter, air filter, cap, rotor, yadda yadda.
Good job getting the shock mount patched. When I did mine I opted not to replace the top plate, as that seemed to be the source of the rust issue; dirt and moisture got into the gap between, and it rusted from the inside out.
Really interested to hear your report on the Gas-A-Justs on the C900.
A hasty update after my drive home from work today in my Subaru. A Jeep in front of me dropped a solid ice torpedo, and road conditions didn't allow for evasive maneuvers. So the Subaru is parked in front of my house with a very broken exhaust.
If it weren't 18 degrees outside, I'd be piecing it back together. Instead I threw my rallycross wheels on the Saab, charged up the battery and put some fresh fuel in.
I hate to drive it on salty roads, but I hate that less than doing exhaust work in my driveway when it's 18 degrees outside.
It's in its natural habitat. Much as I hate the salt, mine came with studded Hakkas, and by God they're getting used. I've got some cans of Fluid Film on the way to minimize the salty nastiness to the (already rusted from decades in the Northeast) bodywork.
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