I have a 1996 N Saab 900SE Turbo pushing out 185bhp as standard. Having seen a few car programs where theyve stripped out a motor and NOS'd it for some cheap 1/4 mile fun.

What I wanted to ask was what sort of power would the standard Saab drivetrain happily put up with?

Should I uprate / strengthen anything?

Was going to strip the leather interior, dashboard (possibly), air con (possibly) - what else should I be ripping out (carefully of course!)???

 

The dearbox is the weak link; Aero version with 205hp already has problems. I would imagine you won't be able to run much more than this with standard gearbox.

Kristijan

 

So what would I need to do - fit a stronger box or upgrade the internals?

 

all depends upon the condition of the engine & how much giggle gas you are ramming in to it

 

Answer is stronger box with driveshafts; then you'll get problems with lower suspension arms. I would say not exactly the car to tune, it's a SAAB; and an old one produced in GM times!! which is not good!

Kristijan

 

you want the early 900 with the triumph logditudinal fwd engine..

but as already explained the pinion bearing is the weak link..

later models had the bearing uprated after around g/h reg and later ,,, although they may have improved it further later

once you hit the gm models it gets a bit vague

is it a full pressure torbo, or a lpt?

full pressure = max fun

Mart

 

As far as I know it should be normal pressure turbo max boost 0,8 bar. There were also LPT engines with 0,5bar and 154hp, and 205hp 1,0bar pressure engines.

Saab 900 with triumph engine!? Never heard of it

It was though Saab 99 with 1,7l triumph engine until 1972.
Next was Saab 99 with 2,0 litre engine in various forms; 100hp (carburator), 110hp (fuel injection), 145hp Saab 99 turbo... and so on...

Kristijan

 

Its the fully blown turbo (HOT?) kicking out 185 healthy horses, possibly a few more since the head was skimmed!!