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Jul 21, 2020 12:11:35 GMT
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Sometimes it happens that you spot a car for sale that is just perfect. And even if the timing isn't great you can't let it go. So that happened...
I was considering for some time to, at some point in the future, buy something a bit older than what I have so far. Older technology has it quirks and the styling and driving has a different charm. Several cars had been in mind but not a very clear favorite. Also, based on the work still with the other cars, it shouldn't be a restoration.
With the new house with garage's there was room again for a car and even one that could be stored safely inside. So once we had finished renovating the house and moved in and once the Suzuki project was at least at MOT level it could be considered to look around a little.
It went a little different. When helping a friend to find a new daily I stumbled upon a advert that just stuck in my mind. A 1973 (MY1974) SAAB 96 in very good condition. Never restored and with full documented history all the way back to 1973. At it's 4th owner and with only 120.000km. In very seventies green and even a green interior. So I went and picked it up!
From Vasteras in Sweden (not too far from Stockholm) and until 2004 with it's first owner. The first owner likely walked into that dealership and bought the cheapest one they had. It's a base model without options and the only accessoiry is a set of rubber floor mats for winter. It never had a radio installed!
Until 2007 with family of the first owner (they inherited the car). Picked up in Sweden by a Dutch SAAB enthousiast (who I have been in contact with) who owned it untill 2018. And I bought it from a car trader who used and registrered it as his own private classic car. He must have regretted selling it as he showed me when I picked up the SAAB that he already bought two other 96's to replace it.
No structural rust (some work was done over the years) and just very few small spots of rust. Mostly on the underside of the doors. Most of the paint is likely the original. Technically very sound but it's time for some maintenance. The day after we picked it up it left us stranded for a moment when the engine suddenly died. Turned out to be a fuel filter that was clogged. 1974 is the last year for this green. Also it is the first year that SAAB started to modernize the 96 by replacing chrome bits with black plastic. In 74 that was only the grill but every year after saw more things being converted to plastics untill they stopped production in 1980. The 96 started production in 1960 but a big part of it was carry-over from the 93 (which was a upgraded 92 itself). So in some things it feels much older than it is. At the same time it is a SAAB so very safe and robust build. The engine is a V4 1.5l from Ford Germany (Taunus) that was originally developed by Ford in Dearborn, MI. And what did Ford use during the development of those engines? A testmule that was a stripped SAAB 96 two-stroke.... SAAB did not know about that untill they ended up talking to Ford to buy a four-stroke engine. The gearbox is a four speed column shifted which is the same as the one used for the two-strokes. So including the free-wheel.
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V-8: 1988 Corvette - 5.7 TPI
V-4: 1973 SAAB 96 - 1.5
4-boxer: 1975 Alfa Romeo AlfaSud - 1.2
2-boxer: 1965 Panhard 24BT - 0.8
4-line: 1982 Suzuki SC100 Whizzkid - 1.0
4-line: 1997 Alfa Romeo 164 Super - 2.0 TS
4-line: 2010 Renault Wind - 1.2 Turbo
4-line: 2021 Citroen campervan - 2.2 HDI
4-line: 2022 Alpine A110 - 1.8 Turbo
2-line: 1973 NSU Prinz 4L - 0.6 --> for sale
2-line: 2021 Honda Rebel 500
EV: 2024 Nio ET5T
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teaboy
Posted a lot
Make tea, not war.
Posts: 2,125
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Jul 21, 2020 16:45:40 GMT
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I like that.
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Jul 21, 2020 17:27:04 GMT
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Crikey, that is lovely.
What a great colour and especially so in those first pictures with the trees behind.
I nearly bought one a few years back and love the way these drive.
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Last Edit: Jul 21, 2020 18:03:00 GMT by mrmoonyman
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melle
South West
It'll come out in the wash.
Posts: 2,010
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Jul 21, 2020 18:11:27 GMT
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Lekker kleurtje! About a decade ago when I still lived in NL I had a Swedish import Verona green MY74 95 for a few years, pictured below. Your car looks familiar, I think a former owner christened it "Knut". The first owner likely walked into that dealership and bought the cheapest one they had. It's a base model without options and the only accessoiry is a set of rubber floor mats for winter. It never had a radio installed! The base model was the only option, well apart from the rubber mats, which even may have been standard in Sweden. If you pressed the dealer hard he may have sold you a radio, but that was it as far as I know. It should have heated seats though, but apparently that was a safety feature according to Saab. If you need any workshop manuals and the like, have a look at my website.
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www.saabv4.com'70 Saab 96 V4 "The Devil's Own V4" '77 Saab 95 V4 van conversion project '88 Saab 900i 8V
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longman
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 507
Club RR Member Number: 3
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1973 SAAB 96 - what a find!longman
@longman
Club Retro Rides Member 3
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Jul 21, 2020 19:31:08 GMT
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I concur , its bloomin lovely |
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Paul
98 500 SL
86 911 Carrera/sold
23 Octavia Phev
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I thoroughly admire your SAAB. Integrity and fun, all at once.
John
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As a kid my sister and I were given colouring in books and a big packet of coloured pencils. That green was aptly named ,” Geese poo green” 🤣🤣
Cool car, actually saw a Very insipid yellow one a couple of weeks back. Geese poo green for the win 🤣🤣
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Lekker kleurtje! About a decade ago when I still lived in NL I had a Swedish import Verona green MY74 95 for a few years, pictured below. Your car looks familiar, I think a former owner christened it "Knut". The first owner likely walked into that dealership and bought the cheapest one they had. It's a base model without options and the only accessoiry is a set of rubber floor mats for winter. It never had a radio installed! The base model was the only option, well apart from the rubber mats, which even may have been standard in Sweden. If you pressed the dealer hard he may have sold you a radio, but that was it as far as I know. It should have heated seats though, but apparently that was a safety feature according to Saab. If you need any workshop manuals and the like, have a look at my website.
Very nice 95! I think I have seen somewhere pictures of your panelvan conversion.
You had some challenge in keeping it warm it looks like it on that picture. As far as I know the two-strokes had some sort of shades behind the grill that you could close; exactly for that issue. And you are right; this is Knut. It was named that way by the first Dutch owner, since the first original owner was named Knut.
Weren't there more options or luxury spec? Reversing lights were available for MY1974 just as fold-out rear side windows. Mine does not have those. Seat heaters (both seats for Sweden) were indeed standard as a safety feature. I think I spotted the wiring but it's not been cold enough to notice the effect. Since it also has (again Swedish spec) a seatbelt warning light that even measures if there is someone on the passenger seat there is quite a bit of wiring to the seats for such an old car.
I'll have a look an your website!
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Last Edit: Jul 22, 2020 7:45:14 GMT by engineer
V-8: 1988 Corvette - 5.7 TPI
V-4: 1973 SAAB 96 - 1.5
4-boxer: 1975 Alfa Romeo AlfaSud - 1.2
2-boxer: 1965 Panhard 24BT - 0.8
4-line: 1982 Suzuki SC100 Whizzkid - 1.0
4-line: 1997 Alfa Romeo 164 Super - 2.0 TS
4-line: 2010 Renault Wind - 1.2 Turbo
4-line: 2021 Citroen campervan - 2.2 HDI
4-line: 2022 Alpine A110 - 1.8 Turbo
2-line: 1973 NSU Prinz 4L - 0.6 --> for sale
2-line: 2021 Honda Rebel 500
EV: 2024 Nio ET5T
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melle
South West
It'll come out in the wash.
Posts: 2,010
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Very nice 95! I think I have seen somewhere pictures of your panelvan conversion. I have a thread on the UK V4 forum, hasn't been updated in a while though... The green 95 was a bit of a rot box underneath. I had no time to fix it and sold it to a dreamer, don't think it's been on the road after it failed the first APK (MOT) in his possession. You had some challenge in keeping it warm it looks like it on that picture. As far as I know the two-strokes had some sort of shades behind the grill that you could close; exactly for that issue. It was minus 5 and the thermostat was stuck open, so the engine wouldn't warm up. The car had a Calix block heater, but I'd forgotten to switch it on that morning. Weren't there more options or luxury spec? Reversing lights were available for MY1974 just as fold-out rear side windows. Mine does not have those. Seat heaters (both seats for Sweden) were indeed standard as a safety feature. I think I spotted the wiring but it's not been cold enough to notice the effect. Since it also has (again Swedish spec) a seatbelt warning light that even measures if there is someone on the passenger seat there is quite a bit of wiring to the seats for such an old car. There are endless debates about reversing lights. Some 96s have them, some don't and some only have one. There doesn't seem to be much logic to it and I'm not enough of a MY fetishist/ originality freak to care. Non-opening quarter lights were standard Swedish spec. Seat belt light was standard in all markets as far as I know. I've never had a 95/96 where the heated seats worked. |
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www.saabv4.com'70 Saab 96 V4 "The Devil's Own V4" '77 Saab 95 V4 van conversion project '88 Saab 900i 8V
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Jul 28, 2020 18:11:27 GMT
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Oh very nice. Can't beat a 96.
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My green little friend was dragged to two small scale events that did not get cancelled. Both of them in the rain.
Besides meeting with some classic car friends that don't have SAAB's I also met some new people that do have SAAB's. No 96's but plenty of 95's and newer stuff.
After these events it was time for maintenance and MOT. The plan was to do part of the maintenance myself but that didn't really work out so well due to lack of time and the MOT deadline in sight.
The front brakes have been fully rebuild. Rear brakes only cleaned and adjusted. All brake hoses replaced and new fluid. The ignition key cilinder was mangled beyond repair so it was replaced. All ignition parts replaced and adjusted. By someone who still knows how that old stuff works.
But also: structural rust The rust proofing coating was still there but underneath it was rusted already on the sill and near the front jacking point. This was the only spot of rust on the floorpan and possibly had to do with the fact that manby years ago the front windshield was leaking (and still in heavy rain the ventilation system is leaking a little). Not what you want to hear with a MOT deadline and little time. So off it went to a professional restorer who is specialised in 2CVs but still enjoyed doing something different.
With the rust fixed and the brakes perfect again it passed MOT without any issue.
A few little maintenance things remain. Carburator cleaning, some vacuum and coolant hoses, and to replace the coolant and transmission oil. Also the wheels need a bit of paint. So I hope I can get going on that during winter.
It's now in winter storage. Took it on the last drive of the year this last weekend. Let's see what next year brings.
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V-8: 1988 Corvette - 5.7 TPI
V-4: 1973 SAAB 96 - 1.5
4-boxer: 1975 Alfa Romeo AlfaSud - 1.2
2-boxer: 1965 Panhard 24BT - 0.8
4-line: 1982 Suzuki SC100 Whizzkid - 1.0
4-line: 1997 Alfa Romeo 164 Super - 2.0 TS
4-line: 2010 Renault Wind - 1.2 Turbo
4-line: 2021 Citroen campervan - 2.2 HDI
4-line: 2022 Alpine A110 - 1.8 Turbo
2-line: 1973 NSU Prinz 4L - 0.6 --> for sale
2-line: 2021 Honda Rebel 500
EV: 2024 Nio ET5T
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That is absolutely lovely. Brilliant colour too.
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Jaguar S-Type 3.0 SE
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These are just incredibly cool, and yours looks like a great honest example. Looking forward to seeing more!
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1985 Volvo 760 "Jurbo"
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melle
South West
It'll come out in the wash.
Posts: 2,010
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Don't stash it away for winter, they're brilliant in snow!  |
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www.saabv4.com'70 Saab 96 V4 "The Devil's Own V4" '77 Saab 95 V4 van conversion project '88 Saab 900i 8V
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True. Good winter drivers. But we don't really do winter here anymore. And to expose is to not quite freezing, always wet, salt on the roads and a lot of mud.. No fun in that and it has earned its retirement from that. I live rural and my daily drivers are covered in mud within 2 days after a full clean. Autumn (harvesting time) and early winter are bad times for classics here. If it would be really a lot of snow.. I could see the fun in that.
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V-8: 1988 Corvette - 5.7 TPI
V-4: 1973 SAAB 96 - 1.5
4-boxer: 1975 Alfa Romeo AlfaSud - 1.2
2-boxer: 1965 Panhard 24BT - 0.8
4-line: 1982 Suzuki SC100 Whizzkid - 1.0
4-line: 1997 Alfa Romeo 164 Super - 2.0 TS
4-line: 2010 Renault Wind - 1.2 Turbo
4-line: 2021 Citroen campervan - 2.2 HDI
4-line: 2022 Alpine A110 - 1.8 Turbo
2-line: 1973 NSU Prinz 4L - 0.6 --> for sale
2-line: 2021 Honda Rebel 500
EV: 2024 Nio ET5T
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melle
South West
It'll come out in the wash.
Posts: 2,010
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Nov 10, 2020 13:49:45 GMT
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As you can tell from my pics, I use mine in all weathers.
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www.saabv4.com'70 Saab 96 V4 "The Devil's Own V4" '77 Saab 95 V4 van conversion project '88 Saab 900i 8V
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V-8: 1988 Corvette - 5.7 TPI
V-4: 1973 SAAB 96 - 1.5
4-boxer: 1975 Alfa Romeo AlfaSud - 1.2
2-boxer: 1965 Panhard 24BT - 0.8
4-line: 1982 Suzuki SC100 Whizzkid - 1.0
4-line: 1997 Alfa Romeo 164 Super - 2.0 TS
4-line: 2010 Renault Wind - 1.2 Turbo
4-line: 2021 Citroen campervan - 2.2 HDI
4-line: 2022 Alpine A110 - 1.8 Turbo
2-line: 1973 NSU Prinz 4L - 0.6 --> for sale
2-line: 2021 Honda Rebel 500
EV: 2024 Nio ET5T
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melle
South West
It'll come out in the wash.
Posts: 2,010
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Such a fun summer cruiser They're excellent in all weathers.  |
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www.saabv4.com'70 Saab 96 V4 "The Devil's Own V4" '77 Saab 95 V4 van conversion project '88 Saab 900i 8V
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Oct 25, 2022 10:17:43 GMT
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Been silent here. Had some great tours with the Saab.    A 95 is cool also! Thanks to a worktrip I had a chance to visit the Saab museum in Trollhattan   And after some discussions they were able to find that my 96 was produced October 4 1973. Just some 2 weeks later it was delivered to its first owner who lived on the other side of Sweden. But then it was time to get some work done. I did not like the rusty wheels so time to do something about it.  Now that is some ground clearance! The wheels got sandblasted and then painted. We first wanted to go for powdercoating but was advised against it. When painted a little scratch (you get that when you mount the hubcaps) will not cause much issue. With powdercoating this makes a weak point from where the coating starts to come off.  New tyres as well.  Much better than the rusty wheels. Caps still to be polished and put back. Also time for a new exhaust   All painted with heat resistant paint to keep it from rusting.   Then it was time for its last MOT ever (from June next year on it will be so old it is exempted). One finding:  All fixed now so in good shape for next season. |
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V-8: 1988 Corvette - 5.7 TPI
V-4: 1973 SAAB 96 - 1.5
4-boxer: 1975 Alfa Romeo AlfaSud - 1.2
2-boxer: 1965 Panhard 24BT - 0.8
4-line: 1982 Suzuki SC100 Whizzkid - 1.0
4-line: 1997 Alfa Romeo 164 Super - 2.0 TS
4-line: 2010 Renault Wind - 1.2 Turbo
4-line: 2021 Citroen campervan - 2.2 HDI
4-line: 2022 Alpine A110 - 1.8 Turbo
2-line: 1973 NSU Prinz 4L - 0.6 --> for sale
2-line: 2021 Honda Rebel 500
EV: 2024 Nio ET5T
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