With too many other projects, the 93F was put aside. Stored in a warehouse for many years, then in the barn
when my spouse equivalent and I moved to a rural home. Over the years
I occasionally picked up parts, including a large stash of parts from
another former ice racer, Ken Cich, who originally built and raced a
two-stroke Sonett to compete with Minis and other Saabs in the FWD
under 1000cc class. He later moved up to a Sonett which had a Volvo
V6 shoehorned under the hood. During that time he had bought and
dismembered quite a few rusty Saabs for their good spares.
Eventually the 93F and my other cars
were kicked out of the barn as the woman in my life decided to raise
goats. It sat under a tree for a few years, and the woman backed her
truck into it once, destroying the hood.
One day while working on some other
project in the yard, my friend Tony
asked, “Does that thing run?”
“Let's find out,” was my reply.
We determined that the engine turned
freely, so mixed up some two stroke gas and gave it a try. After a
few false starts, the engine slowly fired to life for the first time
in ages in August 2012. However, I didn't dare attempt to drive it at
that time because the brakes were shot.
Brakes
Once the engine was running, brakes was the next order of
priority But where do you find wheel cylinders and brake shoes for a
50 year old Saab? As it turned out, it wasn't all that difficult.
Tom Donney had written about early Saab
brakes and posted the information on his web site.
http://www.tomdonneymotors.com/2008/11/03/wheel-cylinders/
Tom referred to the different braking
systems as:
Type
I called Shitty, Shitty, Shitty
Type
II called Shitty, Shitty
Type
III called just Shitty.
In truth, there are other variations in
wheel cylinder bore, NPT or British threads on the cylinder and brake
lines (which therefore necessitates the use of Whitworth wrenches),
and brake drum size. It was also possible that a former owner might
have used whatever he had available that wasn't exactly correct, but
would work okay.
Ultimately I was able to deduce that
what was needed was the same as an MG-TD/TF. This didn't surprise me
as Saab, being a small company, often used off-the-shelf parts from
some other car. Lockheed-Girling made brakes for many manufacturers
in those days. I was able to order what I needed from
Moss Motors.
Installing the new wheel cylinders went pretty smoothly, though
removing and re-installing the brake drums was, as usual on those old
Saabs, a pain in the butt.
 |
| Front brake cylinders installed |
While I was at it, I also replaced the
brake master cylinder with one from some old GM model. That's what
was on the car when I bought it, replaced long ago to prep the car
for ice racing. I also decided to replace the steel brake lines, at
least up front. That meant buying generic length brake lines, bending
them to match the existing lines, then cutting and flaring the ends,
using the old fittings. Once the job was done, the brakes took
several pumps to properly pressurize. I surmised that one of the
lines must have gotten pinched while bending it.
Other race car projects took precedence
in the garage, so the 93F was put aside for a few years.
Body and Paint
The 93F project was dormant until 2019,
when it was sent to Hennepin Restomods in the Twin Cities. Their
assignment was to repair the rust holes, replace the fenders which
had been cut back for racing, and install a fuel cell which I ordered
from ATL. They also replaced the single master cylinder with a dual
M/C from a Ford Pinto, and got the brakes to work properly.
I picked the 93 up in the spring of
2020 with a lot of the work completed. From there the plan was to
install a roll bar and racing seat during the summer, give it a
simple paint job, and be ready to race at the Put-In-Bay Sports Car
Races in September. Unfortunately a worldwide virus canceled most
events in 2020 including PIB. Fortunately, that gave more time to
prep the car. As it turned out, the extra time was a blessing.
 |
| Fresh out of the paint booth at Twin Ports Collision Repair. |
One of the businesses negatively
affected by the “plague” was the body shop run by my former
roommate, Steve Nelson. In order to keep his employees busy, he
offered to paint the Saab. He also offered me a super price to get
the deal done. It spent the month of September 2020 at
Twin PortsCollision Repair, occasionally getting put aside to complete a newer
crash repair. It was a different project than body shop guys are used
to. Instead of straightening the bent sheet metal on a newer car,
paid for by an insurance company, they were working on 60 year old
Swedish steel, with a 2-stroke engine to boot. It was less of a job
and more of an art project.
While I had requested a pastel blue,
the same shade as the Fart-hinder Racing Saab 900 and 93,
the guys at the shop talked me into a a blue closer to the color on a
Swedish flag. The finished product looked great. They also tried to
talk me into yellow stripes to complete that Swedish flag look, but I
had other ideas.
Different projects got in the way for a
few months, including adding shelves and lighting in the barn, and
cleaning the garage sufficiently to get a car inside, but eventually
the 93F found it's way to the garage stall.
Goals for 2021
A Black Friday deep deal on a QuickJack
lift brought one to my garage, and that took a bit of time to get
sorted and functional. By January 2021, it was ready to go and the
93F went up in the air. Front fenders were removed and work commenced
on removing front suspension pieces.
There were several goals for 2021.
Take the running car to the
Intermarque Spring Kick Off Car Show in Osseo, MN. That was in May.
Intermarque is an organization of vintage import car clubs that puts
on a few events each year specifically for older import cars.
Take the running race car to the
Saab Owners Convention in Albany, NY. A bonus would be to have it
running for the track day at the New York Safety Track.
Compete at the Put-In-Bay vintage
sports car races in September. Saab was one of the featured marques,
and I wanted to join other Saab racers to celebrate these remarkable
cars in competition.
Suspension
Saab wasn't about to change something
that worked just fine, so the control arms, tie rod ends, and ball
joints were the same for all Saabs from the first Saab 92 in 1950 to
the end of the run for the 96 in 1980. As a consequence of that stash
of salvaged Saab parts, I had several spare control arms and other
front end parts.
I started digging through the pile of
front suspension assemblies and came up with about a dozen ball
joints and several tie rod ends. According to restorers of old Saabs,
the original ball joints and tie rod ends seldom wear out, and
checking the play on several old ball joints I found that information
to be correct. Some had rubber boots that were cracked or
disintegrating, but the joints themselves were mostly tight. It
turned out to be pretty easy to come up with four good ball joints
and boots.
The tie rod ends seemed to be in good
shape, but the boots were not. Many years of twisting on the rubber
boots had torn them. In looking at other parts, I found a possible
solution: The boots on the anti-roll bar links from a 1999 (+/-) Saab
93 looked to be similar in size. Measurements with a
caliper suggested they were about a millimeter smaller in diameter on
the shaft and base. They should work just fine on a car that will see
only racing miles, maybe 100 miles a year. As much as possible, the
ball joints and tie rod ends were cleared of the old, crusty grease
inside, and were filled with Redline CV-2 synthetic high-performance
grease.
The shock absorbers that were on the 93
when I bought it were Gabriel Red Ryders. They were a cheap shock
when new, and were just fine for ice racing where loose shocks were
preferred. After 40+ years, they weren't pretty. For pavement racing
I wanted performance shock absorbers, and looked to Koni and Bilstein
for appropriate dampers. Neither company lists a shock for the old
Saabs, though enterprising Saab racers have come up with part numbers
that will work from the Bilstein catalog. No luck, however, on Konis.
A newer alternative in adjustable shocks comes from AVO in the UK.
The price was competitive with Koni and Bilstein, but they have to be
shipped from England. I placed an order for a set of shocks for the
93F, and another set for the Sonett V4 ice racer.
Poly bushings for the upper and lower
control arms, the front sway bar ends, and the locating arms for the
rear axle were sourced from PowerFlex USA. The replacement bushings
are primarily multiple pieces, with two pieces of poly pushed in from
each side with a steel sleeve to keep them in place. The Saab factory
manuals suggest that the mounts for the bushings need to be set at a
particular angle for installation. However, the poly bushings are
quite slippery compared to the stock rubber bushings, so attempting
to properly position the mounts was a lesson in futility. They were
installed however they fit.
All of the suspension parts that were
removed were cleaned and painted prior to reassembly. All of the nuts
and bolts are United States Standard (USS) thread, not metric. I was
able to replace all of the bolts and nuts on the control arms and
suspension mounts with Grade 8 fasteners from a local hardware store.
Total cost was about $25. Before assembling everything I cleaned up
all of the captive nuts and bolts with a tap and die set, and used a
drop of thread sealer (a.k.a. Loctite) to better secure the
fasteners.
The right front axle boot was torn and
desperately needed replacement. I was able to get some from David
Baugher in a trade for some generator/water pump cores. For those who
may not know, unlike today's outer axle boots that are part of the
axle assembly, the early ones attached to the brake backing plate and
remain stationary. The outer joint spins inside the boot. The inner
end of that boot is attached to a tube with the axle shaft inside. I
gooped it all up with Redline CV-2 synthetic grease
.
Engines.
There were several engines in the cache
of parts bought from Ken Cich, most disassembled. I was able to
inventory blocks, heads, intake manifolds, and other important parts
based on the casting numbers and dates stamped into the blocks from
the list of such numbers compiled by Bud Clark. There were also
crankshafts, both standard and GT/MC. I sold some of them to Tom
Donney and to Paul Nielsen, but kept a few.
There were three GT crankshafts in the
mix. Two had been rebuilt long ago by a well known Saab engine
builder in Kansas, but it appeared that a couple of the connecting
rods were bent. All three were shipped to David Baugher, who rebuilt
one and returned it to me as payment for the other two.
At the time, my plan was to stick
primarily with the stock 850 block from 1960-64 bull nose cars, which
could be modified with the GT cranks and some porting work. I also
had one 850 engine that came from Larry Williams' estate. Ultimately
I decided I wanted one good, reliable short nose engine, plus one
long nose engine as I had several triple carb manifolds, with carbs
of course. There was also the engine that was in the car since it was
raced in St. Paul in 1977. It still ran, but having sat unused for
many years, I wasn't convinced the bearings would last very long.
I started with the Larry Williams
engine, took it apart to see what kind of condition it was in. It
looked good, the pistons and rings were good and the bearings spun
freely. Both Marty Adams and Tom Donney said I should put it back
together for a spare, which I did. I gave it a coat of fresh Pontiac
Blue paint before I reassembled it, then put it in a plastic bag in
an attempt to keep humid air from rusting the steel surfaces.
I took the remaining engines, empty
blocks and transmissions to Tom for evaluation. Few were really
rebuildable, but had usable parts. Ultimately I ended up with two
fresh engines as described above, and a freshened 4-speed
transmission to replace the original 3-speed box that was still in
the race car.
With all the trips to Iowa to drop off
and pick up race car goodies, I took another look at a rusty Saab 96
ice racer in southern Minnesota. The drivetrain had come out of a
former racer that had gotten too rusty to continue. The original car
had been a bullnose 850GT used for D-Sedan racing in SCCA. In
addition to the short nose 850GT engine, the transmission was said to
have gears from Saab Sport and Rally. The drivetrain, including the
front disc brakes and rear 4-hole brake drums, had been transferred
to a 1966 body, which now looked as though it had been hit on all
sides and rolled. The windshield and rear window glass was intact,
but the door and rear side windows had been replaced with Plexiglas,
which was now very scratched and cloudy. It eventually followed me
home, along with a hood from the 1964 GT that had Safari vents in it.
The GT engine was seized, but I hoped
with some persuasion it might break loose again. Hopes were dashed
when I removed the spark plugs. There was what appeared to be
fiberglass insulation in the #2 cylinder. The head was removed, and
sure enough, there was a mouse nest made of insulation. The cylinder
walls were pretty rusted as a result.
Once the GT engine was out and
disassembly begun, a hole was found in the bottom of the engine where
the rear (#1) connecting rod had broken through. In addition there
were pieces of piston ring in the #1 cylinder that had done a bit of
damage to the combustion chamber on the head. The inside of the
engine had decades of accumulated crud inside and there was a coating
of rust on some of the internal pieces. The oil pump was seized, and
I thought the distributor shaft was as well, but I gently tapped the
distributor out and the shaft turned just fine. For the moment, that
engine has been set aside until I can get it to a machine chop for
further evaluation.
The original radiator looked good, and
a local radiator shop confirmed that it held pressure and had decent
flow. A fresh paint job to the brass tanks and it was ready to
install.
As anyone who has played with the early
Saabs will know, the water pump was located on the back end of the
generator. This car had that unit replaced with an alternator and a
12-volt electric water pump. A small (very small) electric fan
replaced the overhead fanshaft.
Several auto manufacturers now use a
12-volt pump to assist the heating system on newer cars. I was able
to find one that was unused and sitting on the shelf from another
Saab restorer for a fraction of the cost of new. Electric radiator
fans are commonplace in new cars, and one was strapped to the back
side of the radiator. A small racing alternator was installed to
replace the one that was on the engine as the old one did not really
fit well, and locating a suitable belt was nearly impossible.
Transmissions
The standard gearbox in 1960 was only
three speeds. The spider gears in the ice racer had been welded to
defeat the open differential, so both drive wheels would continue to
grip under acceleration. My preference was to add a 4-speed for
racing. I took several gearboxes to Tom Donney in hopes he could
build me one good one. However, I wanted to retain the cable clutch,
which meant locating the correct bell housing that could accept a
cable mount. The 3-speed housing is apparently slightly smaller and
won't fit any of the 4-speed transmissions. Jerry Danner said he had
one and offered it for use in my project.
In addition, I wanted to convert to
front disc brakes from a later 96, which meant using the inner
drivers and axles from the later gearbox.
The 4-speed gearbox that came from the
850GT ice racer seemed to turn okay, so I was hopeful it could be
saved. To figure out the gear ratios I put the clutch disk back onto
the input shaft, made a mark on the disk and on the bell housing,
then made marks on the inner driver and corresponding marks on the
case. By counting the number of turns on the input shaft it took to
make one revolution at the axle, I determined that 1st and
2nd gears were the stock ratio for a GT gearbox, but 3rd
and 4th were different. Apparently the story about having
factory racing gears was correct. The result is closer ratios between
3rd and 4th. This table shows the difference
between the factory specs and the gears that are in the gearbox that
I have.
|
|
GT850 factory spec
|
GT850 observed
|
|
1st gear
|
18.3:1
|
18.3:1
|
|
2nd gear
|
10.7:1
|
10.7:1
|
|
3rd gear
|
6.6:1
|
7.6:1
|
|
4th gear
|
4.3:1
|
5.3:1
|
|
Reverse
|
16.7:1
|
16.7:1
|
|
Pinion/Crown ratio
|
5.1:1
|
|
|
Pinion/Crown teeth
|
7 to 36
|
|
The 850GT gearbox has the earlier
rubber inner drivers, which means a return to the earlier axles as
well. But the 850GT had disc brakes, so the brake assemblies could be
transferred. According to those in the know, an MGB caliper was used
so parts should be readily available. Rotors can be purchased from
the Swedish Saab Club, though shipping costs are high.
Wheels
From the beginning in 1950, Saab wheels
had a unique 5-bolt pattern. That wheel design was used on all Saab
92s through the 96 and Sonett, until end of production on the 96 in
1980. For much of the first twenty or so years, the wheel size was
4Jx15”. The early Sonetts came with steel wheels that were 4.5”
wide. All use wheel bolts that have a 9/16”-12 UNC thread and 3/4”
head. The steel wheels are generally not considered structurally able
to withstand the rigors of racing. There are many reports of early
Saab racers having wheel failures.
There are only a few alloy wheels that
will fit the 5-bolt hubs on the early Saabs. The Sonett Soccerball
style are the most common, followed by the earlier Sonett Cromodoro
JP alloys, and the rare 10-spoke wheels of the Minilite design.
Back in the 1960s, ice racers who drove
Saabs often used a modified wheel, featuring the Saab 5-bolt centers
welded into Corvair 13”x5” rims. The offset was also moved to
widen the track. At that time 13-inch tires were easier to come by.
This usually also made modification of the fenders necessary to
accommodate the wider wheels.
The wheels and hubs on the GT and Monte
Carlo 96s are exclusive to those sport models. They have four bolts
instead of five. The bolt circle is 4-1/2 inches, same as the 99s and
early 900s, and several other cars as well. The GTs and MCs came with
steel wheels only, but 99/900 alloy wheels should fit those hubs.
Therefore the 99 Soccerballs, 99 Turbo Incas and Shelby 8-spoke alloy
wheels could be used.
Over the years I have accumulated
several sets of Sonett Soccerball wheels. All were a bit rough in
appearance, but ran round and true. I blasted them with glass beads
to get rid of excess dirt and paint. Since paint does not adhere well
to aluminum alloys, the wheels were given a coat of Etching Primer, followed by a Satin White, which was also used on the front
grille and grill trim.
Tires
There are a few choices of vintage
tires to fit the elderly Saab. The factory specified 5.00x15 bias ply
or 155x15 radial tires. Most Saab owners these days choose a 165x15
radial tire. For racing, I wanted something with a little bit wider
tread, but still easy to fit the limited space under the Saab
fenders.
Vredestein offers a tire called the
Sprint Classic in size 175/70HR15. Most street tires have an “S”
speed rating, which means they are considered safe up to 112 MPH (180
kph). The Sprint Classics have an “H” speed rating, meaning good
to 130 mph (210 kph). While I doubt the 93 will ever achieve speeds
near 100 mph, the speed rating is an indicator that the tires should
be able to take the abuse of racing. In addition, the treadwear
rating (Uniform Tire Quality Grading or UTQG) on these tires is 200.
The lower number indicates a softer rubber compound which will wear a
bit faster, but should also provide more grip in cornering.
Interior
Since this particular 93 had already
been used for racing, the interior had been stripped. A roll bar was
installed, but it was very basic, just a bolt-in hoop with a couple
of bars angled back to support it. There were three gauges – water
temp, ammeter and tachometer. None of them worked any longer. The
seat that had been in the Saab for racing was a fiberglass bucket on
Saab sliders. Even though I weighed 100 pounds lighter back in 1977,
my butt would not fit, so we located a stock Saab seat and raced with
that. All of the wiring went through a very nicely built switch panel
immediately to the right of the driver. However, there was not a fuse
panel.
Most vintage racing sanctioning bodies
require only a roll bar and not a full cage. Besides, a roll cage in
a Saab is redundant. I did, however, want something a bit more
substantial, and that would bolt the racing seat to the rollover
structure instead of to the floor. That project went to Chris Adams, Marty's brother,
whose father had owned Meyer Garage in Iowa. Chris builds tube frame
chassis for dirt track racing, so I figured he would have a good idea
on how to create a safe structure.
The various vintage racing group rules
range from “suitable roll bars” to a high of 1.50” mild steel
with a 0.120” wall. Chris keeps a stock of steel tubing to build
complete chassis, but would have had to order some in the specified
size to meet the minimum specs. Instead he used 1.75” mild steel
tubing which exceeds all of the rule book specs. In addition to the
bar which fits nicely in the contours of the interior, there are two
bars going back to the floor, and two bars that go forward to help
protect the seat in case of a side impact.
The Racequip racing seat is FIA rated,
extra wide, and it fits my bulk nicely. The seat is bolted directly
to the roll cage, with some added holes on plates within the cage to
adjust for height.
Some compromises were made to prep the
car for Put-In-Bay, which has fewer rules than most other groups.
Their safety harness rules specify “racing
or aircraft quality seat belts having metal to metal latches” so I
was able to use a harness that was barely out of date under the
regulations of other groups, but still in very good condition.
Updated belts are on the shopping list for 2022.
I
had a few gauges in the garage from other projects, and was able to
come up with a suitable VDO Voltmeter and Water Temp pair. None of
the Tachometers that I had seemed to work, but I didn't figure I
would be pushing the Saab that hard with a new motor on a short
track. Installation of a working tach is another task for the 2022
season. An Exhaust Temperature gauge is also a good idea on any car,
but especially so with a two-stroke engine, to determine efficiency
in each cylinder. That feedback helps in the choice of carburetor
jetting and choice of spark plugs. The switch panel was left intact
for now, but will eventually be replaced by a panel on the dashboard,
with a fuse panel.
On to The Saab Owners Convention
The bright blue 93F was loaded onto the
trailer again in July, for the trip to the Saab Owners Convention in
Albany NY. Along the way, I stopped at Claude Hutchings' Tired Iron
Repair in New York. With Claude's help the 93 was readied for the SOC
Track Day at New York Safety Track. Though the event was really just
a bunch of parade laps, it gave me a chance to see how well the car
ran.
It did pretty well, considering it
still had the 850 engine that we ran at the 1977 St. Paul ice race. A
quick mental calculation says the car turned about 60 miles at that
race on an engine built from good used parts. It probably didn't add
another 10 miles during the ensuing 44 years.
The 93 had a stock single Solex F40 BI
carburetor when we ran that long ago ice race. The purchase price of
the racer back then included a manifold with a Solex P40-II
two-barrel downdraft carb, essentially the upgrade carb for the
750GT, which had later been installed by one of the previous owners,
and was on the car when I bought it. After a few fun laps at NYST I
decided to load back up for the trip to Albany. As I was about to
drive the 93 onto the trailer, one of several Saab enthusiasts who
were guiding me shouted “FIRE!” I shut everything down and the
fire went out immediately. The problem was the screws that held the
top of the carb in place had fallen out and gas was dumping into the
engine compartment. Fortunately there was no damage, and several
bystanders helped to push the car onto the trailer.
Upon arrival in Albany for the
convention, several volunteers again stepped up to help unload the 93
and push it into its parking spot. There were plenty of visitors,
including many long time friends, who had questions or offered
comments about the blue racer, parked among the largest field of
two-stroke Saabs I can recall seeing at a convention. Imagine my
surprise that it won the People's Choice in the SAAB 92-93 (1950-60)
category. Further surprise came when I was given the Walter Kern
Award, for contributing to the knowledge of other owners shared in my
Facebook posts as I discovered the mechanical side of the early
SAABs.
Goal
number 2 complete with an A+.
