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Two hours and 2,500 words later, I’ve decided to break this up into a few parts.
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I got an email from John K last week asking what might be the best path to take to upgrade his MY2000 Saab 9-3. Not just any Saab, 9-3, either. John was the guy who ended up buying the black 9-3 Viggen 5-door that I was looking at in Sydney, just before Christmas.
John writes:
I understand you owned a Viggen at some stage and I was hoping you could provide some guidance on some minor upgrades I was looking for the car. It’s starting to get a little confusing with all the sites, parts and part no’s available and seeing as most items would need to come from overseas I really don’t want to muck up an orders with incorrect parts etc.
Initially I was looking at installing the following and hope you can provide further details on the best option, where to buy from and relevant part no’s (if possible):
1) Shock absorbers – I would like to replace these with a quality set (front & rear). The current ones are leaking slightly and I’ve been told they are all pretty much due for replacement. Do you know which ones work well on the Viggen? (i.e. Koni, Bilstein, KYB or other). In your opinion where would be the best place to source these?
2) Poly Bushes – I’ve been told that replacing standard bushes with polyurethane assists in handling. Can you advise which bushes would be worthwhile changing (sorry, I’m not very mechanically minded and all the guys I know are not very well versed with the Viggen).
3) Performance Air-Filter – Any recommendations on a good element or filter kit?
4) Exhaust – Is it worthwhile purchasing an exhaust kit from a saab parts centre (i.e. genuinesaab or elkparts or would a made up one from an exhaust fitter be sufficient). I’m looking at going 3” with as many mufflers as possible to keep it quite.
5) Computer Upgrades – Again, any advice on what to upgrade here for more performance? Elk parts sell a BSR flash handset which plugs into the diagnostic adapter and upgrades the existing computer for more power….have you heard any good or bad things about this?
Sorry to trouble you with these questions.
No trouble at all!
There’s a lot there, and rather than write back an email, I thought it would be worth a post here. Others may be interested, and I’ll be going through almost all this stuff with the Monte Carlo anyway.
As you know, I’m no techie. In fact, I’m practically incompetent. But I have owned a Viggen previously and I have spent a bucketload of time checking out the things I could do to get a little more satisfaction from it.
So without further ado…..
The Viggen is one heck of a great car, but like almost all 9-3s of its vintage, it’s got too much engine for the chassis it sits in. That means it has some handling compromises in its normal state, compromises that only get magnified if you try to tap some of that plentiful power potential.
The first thing you need then, is stability.
Viggen Rescue Kit
The Viggen Rescue Kit (or fundamental parts thereof) made by Abbott Racing in the UK is the undisputed essential item for sorting out some of the inherent problems with the 9-3. It’s named for the Viggen that inspired it, but the VRK is appropriate for any upgraded 9-3.
The VRK is made up of four components: a steering rack clamp and bulkhead brace, polyurethane track control arm bushes, a support arm bearing kit and a stainless steel subframe brance. The components can be bought separately but it’s cheaper to buy the kit as a unit.
The magic pill here is the steering rack clamp and subframe brace, available for both LHD and RHD cars. The original Saab steering rack clamp is a flimsy rubber unit with a steel surround. The Abbott unit is made from billet alloy and along with the subframe brace, it holds the steering rack firmly in place and all-but eliminates the torque steer from the Viggen. As you get so much feedback from the steering wheel, this is a great upgrade.
I fitted the Abbott steering rack clamp and subframe brace to my Viggen and it was nothing short of a transformation in how the car felt.
Abbott Racing are the guys behind the VRK but if you’re in Australia, you have to buy your Abbott products through Swedish Prestige, in Melbourne. This is fine as Dean’s a great guy to deal with, but going through a middleman does increase the price and you won’t get much change out of A$1,500 for the VRK. I’m not sure of the purchasing arrangements in other countries outside the UK, but Abbott are pretty loyal to their distributors so I’d imagine a similar situation exists.
The good news is that there are now alternatives to buying the original VRK. Various Saab parts specialists are now manufacturing elemts of the VRK and at a substantial savings on the original Abbott parts.
Genuine Saab (Taliaferro) make a LHD version of the steering rack clamp and subframe brace. Elkparts distribute this in Europe. Parts for Saabs make a RHD version and if you want an indication of the savings – 
I got my steering rack clamp and bulkhead brace from Abbott in 2007 and it cost me around A$500. I just ordered the rack clamp for the Monte from PFS and it’s costing me $200 – delivered!
The stainless steel subframe brace is said to stiffen things up a bit. The Abbott unit it’s a two-point brance and there’s others who make this sort of unit as well. The Big Momma of subframe braces is the Taliaferro six-point brace, which is said to stiffen up the subframe considerably.
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12 responses so far ↓
1 Markac
// Jan 11, 2009 at 10:43 pm
Swade: I couldn’t see a sub frame brace at PFS, but they do recommend a 22mm rear anti roll/sway bar. I’m guessing the subframe brace looks nothing like the Taliaferro one?
2 swade
// Jan 11, 2009 at 10:48 pm
My mistake. I ordered the rack clamp and bulkhead brace (I mistakenly wrote subframe brace there, now corrected)
The subframe brace is a straight piece connecting two points only, unlike the Taliaferro one, which is a six point brace.
3 Markac
// Jan 11, 2009 at 11:06 pm
Swade: I can see that you buying a Monte is going to cause me to spend some money on mine! There’s a whole heap of bushes I can see myself replacing too.
4 Arild
// Jan 11, 2009 at 11:13 pm
Here’s a word of caution about various modifications and kits to help improving the ride. Remember that your Saab is designed with safety in mind. For instance, the engine is supposed to move in a certain direction in case of a head on collision. Altering the car may have a negative affect on the safety features of the car. And thus make it a more dangerous ride in case of a collision.
5 Andy Rupert
// Jan 11, 2009 at 11:16 pm
Swade, doesn’t the Monte need the main seal replaced? I hope you don’t invest a lot of moolah and then lose the engine! Yikes!
6 Swade
// Jan 12, 2009 at 5:30 am
Andy, I won’t be doing too much straight away and as mentioned in the final instalment, you’ve got to have things going well in stock condition before you consider building up.
7 ctm
// Jan 12, 2009 at 5:37 am
Swade, have you had the engine checked out and given a clean bill of health by some company that do those things?
8 Swade
// Jan 12, 2009 at 5:51 am
Not yet, ctm. I’m a bit skint after the purchase and associated travel. Am not driving it too much though, so should be OK.
9 ColorCode252
// Jan 12, 2009 at 8:51 am
To John, congrats on the recent if not a very nice purchase!
First of all, you must invest in two books: a) SAAB 900, A Swedish Story, by Anders Tunberg; and b) Saab 99 and 900: The Complete Story, by Lance Cole. The Lance Cole book will give you an excellent info that is meant to be read over and over again. The Tunberg book outlines the design, development/endurance testing of the GM 900. To be fair, I have learned a lot about the design and development of SAAB models from these two books, a very, very good read!
In response to your five bullet point items:
#1 – shock absorbers. Stick to the OEM Sachs/Boge. Page 53 from the Tunberg book shows a car going through a cobblestone test. When my car had lowering springs with Bilstein HDs, arrgghhhh, the roads/pot holes in sunny Southern California have claimed two strut mounts, left and right, and busted the plastic tabs/mounts that holds the instrument panel (speedo, tach, boost guage) to the fire wall. It’s fixed but I am thinking of getting a used panel as back-up. With the OEM springs and Bilstein HDs, the ride is ok but I am considering of getting the OEM shocks due to NVH considerations.
#2 – poly bushings. By all means, please do the front suspension bushing modification since the steering “feel” will be improved. NVH will be felt even more so but this is worth the time and effort. By the way, the VRK and a 22mm rear sway bar should be the first chasis mods that you need to do. Then, follow that up with the poly bushings. The last mod should be the subframe brace (two-point or six-point) since will limit the chasis flex during tight radius turns. When the car was lowered, along with the 25mm rear sway bar, the car’s tail end tends to dance a bit especially braking deep into a turn. The solution, I went back to the OEM rear sway bar.
#3 – Performace air filter. I used K&N and I was not satisfied albeit the induction noise/turbo spool was awesome during WOT! The drawback, from my humble experience, is that I do no think K&N does a good job of filtering the air. I say that since the boost pressure valve gets clogged; hence, cleaning that valve became a twice a month maintenance item. So, I went back to the OEM filter but the bottom part of the air filter housing was cut off. The benefit is that the I still get the induction noise (sounds like I the car is fitted with an atmospheric/blow-off valve) and I do not have to clean that valve.
#4 – Performance exhaust. Being that my car is a 1996 model, I have the T5 engine management system. Now, mate a full 3″ exhaust system, a viggen intercooler, and a Nordic stage 3 set-up, wow, the car is fun. Considering that you have a T7 system, a 2.5″ cat-back system from Abbott Racing, Remus, BSR would be fine since you do not need to remap the ECU. If you love to drive and take the long way home, then it would be beneficial for you to do the exhaust. How do you like the sound of the OEM exhaust? Is is loud or quiet. If quiet but can be a tad louder, well, you may want to cut off the OEM silencer. It has a nice sound/burble at idle and not that loud at cruising. Well, at WOT, that is another matter, of course.
#5 – ECU upgrade. No experience with BSR PPC. I went with Nordic since it was a one-stop shopping for me with Nordic’s US distributor.
John, my car has been fun too much fun for me to drive. In fact, I think that I really do not have the stretches of road that I need to really and fully appreciate the mods that I have done. The acceleration from 60-90mph is a hoot, and the car comes alive once I hit 90mph. Although, for daily or mundane driving, I admit that I only experience a fraction of the mods like the mid-range torque. Now, if I were to own a Viggen, I would capitalize on its torque and would do the following:
a) Retain the OEM air filter and ECU.
b) Improve the transmission with an LSD for traction.
c) A 2.5″ catback exhaust.
d) Improve the front suspension with poly bushings, a VRK, a 22mm rear sway bar, and a subframe brace. For reliability, I would also upgrade to the poly transmission and engine mounts.
e) Use good summer tires with stiff side walls and good hydroplance resistance. Tire pressure should be set to 38 psi at front while the rear should be at 36 psi.
f) Fit the 300mm rear brakes from the 9-5 Aero.
Hey, keep us posted!
10 AEROPILOT
// Jan 12, 2009 at 5:42 pm
Hi .
I have lot of experience with BSR. (4 cars)
Their PPC is simply great.
You can program the original ECU in minutes, AND go back to original settings anytime you like. And, -you have free access to new firmware versions and upgrades from BSR. Simply by download from their server.
They have a great support -if needed- i.g. shifting patterns by auto tranny’s.
BSR can only be recommanded !!
11 TRBXWD
// Jan 12, 2009 at 5:44 pm
l am supporting Arild and his comments, l personally have doubts about 6 point sub frame braces, car floor pans and supporting structures are usually developed using finite engineering analysis to model stresses liking bending , stretching and compaction that you would normally have in everyday car life. This technique allows engineers to model stresses on metals via a computer program and dictates shape and form of the platform ( floor pan ) You stiffen one area and you may move the point of stress ( less resistance ) to another area and fail that area. Be careful really careful if you are considering a 6 point brace l doubt if any of these have been modeled by FEA engineers.
12 Aussielars
// Jan 21, 2009 at 8:26 am
I think TRBXWD is right about the 6-point brace.
I recently had a bulkhead crack in my Viggen which Brisbane SAAB repaired under warranty. They did a very good job. However, the chassis began making loud popping noises soon after, so I took the car to the SAAB Master Technician, Kelby, at Zupps, Brisbane.
He found that the stiffener plate between the floor pan and the bulkhead had popped a couple of spot welds and deduced that it was most likely a result of transferred stress caused by the bulkhead crack. He had never seen anything like it so he contacted SAAB in Sweden to tell them about it. Kelby then got this repaired, also under warranty.
The front end still makes noises but it’s nothing like that popping noise so I hope it’s not related to the bulkhead. I then fitted a 2-point sub frame brace and although it has improved handling it hasn’t eliminated the noise from the front end.
Anyway, I’ve been searching high and low on the net for handling upgrades when I came across this site: http://www.kyankton.net/saabng900/saabng900.htm about WaSaabi, the 500hp SAAB 900 with a 2-point brace. I think Kelby was right when he told me that a 6-point might be an overkill.