Car D.I.Y.

[CXRAndy]

My god they don't make it easy do they nowadays

Dealer would charge you £150 to fit bulb!

 

[CXRAndy]

I've got the parts to do all the rotors and pads on the wife's Model 3. I will have to wait till sometime next week when I have a little more time to get on my knees for a few hours.

 

[raleighnut]

I had to go and check but it is a 95

View attachment 753496

It is my favourite car too, and I think the nicest to drive and most comfortable car of anything I've owned or even had a go in. Not bad for a 10 year old stop gap I bought cheaply 12 years ago when I dropped out of the company car scheme.

I take it the later 9-5 isn't as nice?

Nah the 95 was a 'station wagon' with 7 seats dating from the early 70's with a Ford 1,500 cc V4 engine, the 96 was a saloon version.
Don't get me wrong, the 95/9-5 was a good car but Vauxhall derived after GM bought SAAB so not the quirky unique cars that SAAB had built previously. I'd post a link but not do-able with this crap thing but as someone who worked at a SAAB main dealership from 75 to 79 I loved the older cars

 

[Profpointy]

Nah the 95 was a 'station wagon' with 7 seats dating from the early 70's with a Ford 1,500 cc V4 engine, the 96 was a saloon version.
Don't get me wrong, the 95/9-5 was a good car but Vauxhall derived after GM bought SAAB so not the quirky unique cars that SAAB had built previously. I'd post a link but not do-able with this crap thing but as someone who worked at a SAAB main dealership from 75 to 79 I loved the older cars

I didn't like the modern(ish) 93 at all. I think it maybe a vectra underneath. I tried the soft top which wasn't a patch on the much earlier 900 convertible.

My 95 is the 2.3 litre turbo petrol. 2.3t as opposed to the 2.3T (capital T) hooligan model with more boost, but even mine goes quite well. I'd find an estate more useful too, as despite the saloons being rather big cars, you can't get as much in it as you can a hatch back, albeit the estates are a bit ugly

 

[mikeIow]

Ahhh, reminds me of the 313k miles I put on my 9-3 Aero, 9-5 Aero saloon & 9-5 “Limited Edition” estate.
The comfiest seats, and decent performance.
Only real issues were one sensor going (sorted at Indy dealer), & the infamous DI cassette on one of them.

Happy days!

 

[Drago]

It started life as a Vectra but by the time SAAB had finished its Mother wouldn't recognise it. Even the wheelbase is different. And to be fair there was nothing wrong with the very potent GM engines.

I think the issue by that time wasn't so much the source material, but that safety, emissions, economy concerns etc were causing designs across manufacturers to converge a bit (physics only gives the one right answer to each problem) and that made cars of the era feel a little homogenised.

 

[mikeIow]

I expected my next motor to be the ‘new’ 9-5….but by the time they were coming, the writing was on the wall, & I didn’t fancy an expensive ornament if some electrickery bricked it….so I moved an hour south to get a Volvo XC60.

Well spec’d (adaptive cruise, heated everything, active main beam), the (then new!) 8spd auto with the D4 FWD engine……now over 10 years in use here, it’s a keeper 😎👍

 

[november4]

Just bought next years oil changes on amazon sales, very satisfying

 

[Bristolian]

I had a 95 estate for a while. 2.9ltr turbo petrol engine, super comfy seats and loads of room in the back. Somebody made me a silly offer that I wish I'd had the sense to say no to

 

[Profpointy]

I had a 95 estate for a while. 2.9ltr turbo petrol engine, super comfy seats and loads of room in the back. Somebody made me a silly offer that I wish I'd had the sense to say no to
View attachment 753539

Was that the V6? I would quite like upgrading mine to an estate in one of the quicker versions
Some engines were only sold as autos which wouldn't suit me. Mines 20+ years old now so whilst still basically reliable a lot of the lesser things are a bit flaky (radio, window winders etc) and leaking a fair bit of oil so a newer one has a lot of appeal, though it would still be a bit big for our narrow street

 

[Bristolian]

Was that the V6? I would quite like upgrading mine to an estate in one of the quicker versions
Some engines were only sold as autos which wouldn't suit me. Mines 20+ years old now so whilst still basically reliable a lot of the lesser things are a bit flaky (radio, window winders etc) and leaking a fair bit of oil so a newer one has a lot of appeal, though it would still be a bit big for our narrow street

Sorry, I just checked; it was 2.3 litre not 2.9 - my bad. The engine was a GM straight 4 with a manual gearbox. It was really fast too with a tendency to burn out clutches if you weren't careful. I overcame that by fitting one from an Aero model

 

[Richard A Thackeray]

You should be able to change a bulb with no fuss....side of the road,not having to dismantle the car and remove the skin from your hands and knuckles !
Drives me nuts that the car manufacturers make it so difficult to do.

The Octavia was easy, but the headlamp had to come out
The Kodiaq....... well, there's a space about the size of a matchbox, which is absolutely awkward to get a hand in, twist to unlock the holder, & have the leverage in your fingers to re-lock it

 

[Profpointy]

Sorry, I just checked; it was 2.3 litre not 2.9 - my bad. The engine was a GM straight 4 with a manual gearbox. It was really fast too with a tendency to burn out clutches if you weren't careful. I overcame that by fitting one from an Aero model

Very similar to mine then. There's 2.3t (like mine) and a 2.3T which has more boost from the turbo. Potentially the lower power one is nicer to drive and more flexible as the "low pressure turbo" was stated as a feature rather than it being less desirable. Not driven the hooligan version so can't confirm

 

[Bristolian]

Mine said 2.3t on the back

 

[Drago]

Very similar to mine then. There's 2.3t (like mine) and a 2.3T which has more boost from the turbo. Potentially the lower power one is nicer to drive and more flexible as the "low pressure turbo" was stated as a feature rather than it being less desirable. Not driven the hooligan version so can't confirm

A bit like the Volvos. The 2.4T LPT of about 200BHP was a lot smoother and easier to get the power down than the true T5's of 240-300+ BHP. Indeed, the last T5s were based on a warmed over 2.4T unit, and it is these thet Ford stolemfor the Fucus.

It's the difference between being fairly quick all the time, or being brutally quick but only when road, weather and traffic all align.