Fixing Our Old Saab 900 Turbo Was Expensive, But At Least It Was Difficult ;)

(www.TFLcar.com )
Our 1991 Saab 900 Turbo goes in for major serving e. Can you guess how much it costs to get this car fully road worthy?( / tflcar ) Please visit to support TFLcar & TFLtruck.
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[@tonygersbach375]

Stick with that mechanic, he is worth his weight in gold 👍

[@VentureAHighway]

A good mechanic is so hard to find

[@bazabal1]

Looks like a good dude.

[@joeyscleaninglady2877]

lol doing my own work my finger nails and hands look like all the time... dude really is hands on you can tell from his hands...

[@WadeSmart]

I really like this mechanic. In todays world a person who looks for and fixes the problem is a rare thing.

[@MrBillsfishin]

He always seems like he goes that extra mile to take care of his customers. If I lived there I would totally trust him as my mechanic.

[@NOWAY-jw3iq]

This mechanic is cool.. He needs to been seen more on this channel, he has natural camera charisma.

[@rhull3939]

I love the fact that the mechanic is not intimidated by his speech impediment. He's great on camera. Shows you that confidence in what you do goes a long way.

[@wretchedrider2157]

I know this is the internet and all but I would have felt a strong desire to kick the ass of anyone who ridiculed the guy for it. Seems like a good dude and obviously a helluva mechanic.

[@zanej3825]

I honestly didn’t even notice it, he’s also cute

[@regsparkes6507]

Pretty rare to find a GOOD mechanic these days, one who is not there to sell parts and 'get that car out the door',....I wish I had a mechanic like Toby who I could turn to for repairs when I need them.

[@kevinbarry71]

Love that mechanic. He needs his own channel

[@The25soumitra]

A mechanic that fixes German car & doesn't rip you off.. Damm, you got a true diamond.

[@DesertSessions93]

Swedish

[@MrZane777]

@@DesertSessions93 Im guessing he was going off the German Auto sign in the back but yes Swedish Car

[@coryernewein]

Good honest mechanic with a good honest work ethic. Very refreshing!!!

[@kelleredward6153]

I have a 91 manual. These require work as they are old, but if you sort things out should be good for a while. Such unique fun cars! Would not trade mine for anything modern. Keep up the excellent work TFL! And please do keep this mechanic. He is a rare gem!

[@stuartbear922]

Where do you find transmission parts? Mine needed a new reverse gear and a rebuild.

[@andrewbrown1454]

@@stuartbear922 Try reaching out to Scanwest in the Seattle area, Best of luck!

[@RoverRacer913]

Happy you guys have such a humble mechanic to help with thses projects

[@nothingtoseaheardammit]

More videos with this mechanic. He's hilarious. Car Wizard Jr.

[@1985toyotacamry]

Yes yes definitely yes

[@zoefaith120]

He sounds like a keeper! Daddy Roman can we keep him!

[@TFLclassics]

Yes

[@richardkafka5625]

Saab's (pre gm) were great cars. Yes they are different. But they had VERY loyal owners who for the most part were very maintenance oriented. I worked as a Saab service advisor and they rarely said no to anything needed to keep the cars in great condition. And you found a good one! Great update.

[@tim1polman]

Even during the gm era they were pretty good. Love my 900ng convertible. 1994, 270bhp from the stock engine & turbo with now 360k km on the odo. After replacing the crankshaft seals etc, its bone dry and doesnt use any oil. Very sturdy engines, thats for sure.

[@massimostefani4409]

Respect to the mechanic awesome dude. Owned 2 Saab 900 Turbo with my last one being the 900 Ruby Edition which was the last UK production version of it. Loved my Ruby and so did my local garage for all the repairs it always needed. Your 900 Convertible looks great and you have found a good mechanic so hope you get to keep your 900 running well!

[@theirthereandtheyre2947]

This guy is gonna have a ton of customers. 👍

[@takiman1]

That mechanic is dope! Love it.

[@rickyloganjr.2362]

Awesome video update of the Saab 900 Tommy 🙂. Toby obviously loves and enjoys what he does, so great. As I listened to Toby, I was awestruck by his knowledge, wow. Keep him TFL. Looking forward to the finished result Tommy.

[@joespittle1]

Love a mechanic that goes the extra mile and knows about what happened to the car and can walk you through it, he seems like a great guy

[@rlgwoody8966]

Toby the mechanic is impressive. A keeper!

[@Torsee]

You should provide his address, so his business could increase.

[@indyzat0988]

Sounds like a smart, honest, and practical mechanic. Gold, TFL, gold.

[@joedirt8625]

That Dude Is a Instant LEGEND.

[@ohaggdah]

In Scandinavia, an old Saab is like an old Chevy with a 350 is in the US. The cheapest and easiest cars to work on and maintain. We used to say the old (non-turbo!) Saabs were broken in at 200k. They'll easily go 400k with decent upkeep (again, as long as it's not a turbo). These old 900's also tend to rust way less than the newer 90's "GM" Saabs.... Pretty much the cheapest car ownership you can have in Scandinavia is an old non-turbo 900. Pick one up for 1000 bucks and drive it another 100k with oil changes and tires. In the US.... not so much :-) Enjoy the car guys!!!

[@davidbauer1485]

On my 91 900S convertible I say Saabs have a 100K test drive followed by a 100K break in period! Non turbos are like the Energizer Bunny. They keep going and going, just not too fast. :)

[@altadutch]

Hard to find a mechanic like that! Troubleshooting instead of part changer.

[@paulburrows5022]

Its great to see a good young mechanic who is prepared to and is competent with old Saabs. Worth his weight in gold.

[@Johnathan_Waters]

I'm a German mechanic, and I can tell you this guy is a good mechanic.

[@Desertfox92308]

Everyone is looking for a Toby/Wizard/Ninja who isn't looking to bend you over for every last dime! Take care of that young man 😀👍💲

[@letsgobrandon1300]

I love the "bend you over" comment! Haha

[@ervinmezey7572]

FWIW, I've owned several convertibles.. When the rear window is loose or completely missing (glass or plastic), you should replace the entire top. It can be glued down. But its a Mickey Mouse fix that will last 3-4 years (maybe less because because Bolder is a 4 season climate). For an additional $500, you can replace the entire top (and that's considering everything here in Los Angeles costs 30% more then the rest of the country)..

[@R.Nelson]

Right on!!! TFL on at 6 am...Nice🏁🏁🏁

[@nathankestin1922]

Hey Ron, I've got the same vibe😃

[@JDL9615]

Yea, bring Toby back. He's a smart mechanic with great personality to add to the TFL team.

[@anticalgary]

I like this mechanic. Good guy, competent, communicative.

[@gertahnstrom784]

Definitely want more of that cool mechanic on the screen! Love the passion in his descriptions of what he has done.

[@alaindeul1333]

This is the most honest and coolest mechanic I've seen

[@eightosaurusspelunk1598]

It's great to see another saab repaired so it can stay on the road. It's great that you have a very good mechanic

[@KeithCars]

Been waiting for a 900 update. Awesome!

[@kewlbean]

Nice video. Toby is great. Looks like you found an awesome mechanic.

[@austinvitoux]

Just a heads up, sounds like he got it to work but for info, the second fan (the left one looking from the driver seat) is for the AC and will pop on when the AC/button is activated. The one on the right will come on to cool the engine, usually pops on between 3/5 to 3/4 on the coolant temp gauge on the bottom right of the dash. It seems weird that it isn't centered all the time (or at least I thought it weird) but it actually shows variations compared to newer cars. It will usually kick off between 2/5 and the center of the gauge. In the winter/colder months, you may see the needle never get to the center of the gauge at all if you're driving it on the highway. My '92 900S sits at the 2/5 area on days around freezing. Glad you found a great mechanic and he found parts. They're not entirely hard to find parts and they actually seem to be slowly coming back into production.

[@PRCORPSMAN13]

Yall are awesome

[@foolsperspective]

I love that mechanic! way to work hard young man!

[@RellPurnellakaCarshowRell]

Im rebuilding a 94 900s convertible right now. Great video. Mine has similar issues yours had.

[@dominickdepaolo6668]

Sweet ride! Glad Toby got your big issues straightened out...esp. that steering wheel column bushing.

[@ashpatel22]

Awesome video. Bought mine recently. Same car practically. But in black. Being shipped from Colorado also !

[@tim1polman]

I love how you can change the clutch on these without removing the gearbox.

[@icare7151]

Tommy, please consider doing a piece on Colorado’s Mountain towns Saab 900 “Saab Squads” of the 1970-1980’s

[@letsgobrandon1300]

That's awesome you found a good young mechanic to keep the Saab out of the cabbage!

[@1leggeddog]

I like this guy a lot. And his accent is AWESOME

[@skywalker2852]

An old-sage mechanic reincarnated in a younger body? He really seems to know this Saab like he was there when they were built.

[@briantomkins1284]

Nice Saab you have there! Great cars have owned mine since graduating uni 20 years ago, have changed 3 years ago to a 1993 Merc 500sl as my good car, but I couldnt part with my 1993 Saab convertible either so they share the garage now. A few things i wonder though... most mechanics run and hide when they see a classic Saab.. i dont know why they are pretty bullet proof and despite being back to front they arent that hard to work on when you have too... TBH I actually work on mine myself due to most mechanics refusing... so learn to do it myself.. i did all new timing gear, chain and transmission overhaul two years ago myself as the old girl is bushing 500,000 kms (Australia here) Pretty easy to take motor and trans out to work on ... like really easy can do it blind folded now if i had too. Ive also replaced the roof, as like yours the glass fell out and the Australian sun does a good job on the canvas... This was the part I found most interesting in your video.... the COST.. as i can order on line in the USA a complete new Solex German Canvas (as original) in blue with the glass attached shipped to Melbourne Australia for $968AUD, unscrew the cover panels rear, center and front, rip the old one off and bin it and flip the new one on, grab the staple gun (thats how they are attached) and go town with it and put the cover strips back on 3 hrs max.. you are paying $1100 US for your window to be glued back in! wow... you could do a video on it..... even better... The US is great for Saab parts usually where i buy them from. Good luck and enjoy Swedish Prestige

[@valdimicolchik7975]

This Mechanic it is young, but have good working brain, RESPECT ! Also in Atlanta area exist a Euro Motors Inc. (678) 641 - 5600. Know European cars pretty well.

[@davidbauer1485]

Make sure you have the larger rear window for a 91. The increased the size from the earlier gun split type.

[@sammyt3514]

Where do you find great mechanics like Toby? I'm jealous!

[@frozynsummer645]

Love older cars. We were all so sad when our friend bob gave up his saub 😂

[@DesertSessions93]

These cars are easy to work on.

[@chefdan87]

My best friend is a mechanic and he always told me Saabs are decent cars if you are okay with them being built ass backwards... Bunch of engineers designed this car but they were never in the same room together.

[@jlillieify]

The rear glass section of the top can be had for couple hundered off ebay. Its not a hard job to replace. the rear sail sections of the top have to be lifted including the 4th cross member. Then you can staple the new glass section in and re install the back sections of the top. you will need a power stapler but that can be had from home depot for about 50 bucks.

[@carlrubin4721]

I had an '89 900Turbo stick shift hatch for more than a decade. Fantastic car. Handled great. Super practical. Best mod was beefing up the wheel and tire package to plus one with Saab 9000 rims that looked exactly like my factory OEM rims with a little beefier tires and a better sound system. I miss that car. Some people saw an ugly duckling... I always saw a swan. Are parts hard to get?

[@lincolnlamballsmore543]

You should get the 1991 Saab 900 Turbo body to be painted red with inside interior black and get the Hollywood cast members from the 2004 movie called "Sideways" of "Paul Giamatti", "Thomas Haden Church", "Sandra Oh" and "Virginia Madsen" to autograph the Saab 900 Turbo in order to increase the value of the car.

[@jorgengabrielsson6660]

When Saab was Saab 😊

[@pudermcgavin4462]

Your mech needs his own channel!

[@TerjeNormann]

Better to replace the rear window piece of the top, then to reglue the old one. A new window piece cost about $350 USD + instalation.

[@eaglemihnea]

I love the title of the video, LOL

[@SaycoPworrell]

I like this mechanic. What interesting accent he has

[@martinkrautter8325]

Sympathetic guy! BTW, the time you have to spend changing belts you save again doing the clutch, which may be the most accessible clutch in car history...

[@nathankestin1922]

I bet he makes bank off you guys fixing all your projects 😂

[@andrewbrown1454]

Try doing a clutch/flywheel job on an e30 in 30 minutes or less. You do need a special tool for the oil pump, and a few other jobs (unless if you know the old dog tricks), but other than that its the usual sockets, wrenches, and torx bits.

[@zelenizub2036]

I don't know about the car but mechanic is a keeper definitely.

[@britishsecretagent0078]

Great video. Two words for Toby… Nitrile gloves

[@busybee2033]

Not trying to be funny, but I love a mechanic can work on a Saab 900 without complaining and keep it running well, I really would want him to come live with me...he's worth it

[@badgerpa9]

"Perfect" like you said at the end. Smart young man, hope the asshats stay away from his business so he can have fun too. How did you get through a video without eating? One of the better videos recently good job you three. Stay safe and healthy!

[@atomicorang]

Top notch mechanic.. let him know.

[@HoosierDaddy_]

I worked at a shop that only did Saab and Volvo many years ago. The shop made a good profit. This mechanic sounds like he knows his stuff. Do not go to someone who doesn't know these cars well.

[@DerRolkin]

Tobi is great! He moved there from Germany right? I can hear his germaness

[@stuartbear922]

Next repair, blown head gasket!

[@TheLordOfNothing]

I have a vw, service is darn expensive, but the quality is good after :) besides, I haven’t had the car for more than 200,000 miles which is where problems occur

[@TheLordOfNothing]

At 1:08, hey I have the same BMW, but different color

[@noahthompson7559]

You need to tell people where they can find toby! i would trust that man with any or my car! stand up guy.

[@kaeki]

Follow the driver's side hood crease to find the hood lock.

[@mikechan231]

If a Saab 900 isn’t leaking steering fluid, it’s because it’s out...as they say. The turbos were always too powerful for the automatic transmission and would blow them up.

[@turboseize]

The 3 speed slush box sucks up about half of the power this car is making. The auto gearbox is smooth though, and great for city driving or cruising along on a narrow country road at low speeds. Coupling it to the turbo engine, however, is a complete waste. With a naturally aspirated engine, the auto box *can* make sense if your driving scenario excludes being fast. Now this can be said for a lot of classic cars, but I've never experienced it more drastically than in a Saab 900.

[@davidbauer1485]

With the 3 speed Borg Warner and a naturally aspirated version you have to be an old dude wearing your pants up high and yelling at the kids to get off your lawn!

[@geoffreypereira8024]

Where can I get a "Toby" for my old SAAB?

[@brookeking8559]

Toby seems great, like the guys at Eurasian in Panama City, Florida. The area looks southwestern, and the car has a Colorado plate, but neither of those facts indicates the city. I’m sure some viewers would like to know in what city can one find Toby and German Auto.

[@NiteSpecial]

I need this mechanic's location.

[@cmbaker91]

Those steering column bushings disintegrate on these over time. The plastic/rubber material crumbles with age and they totally disappear. Common repair issue for these cars.

[@714beach]

You know Toby is good cause he gave himself a haircut no time to waste going to a barber

[@garbage854]

Nice 😀

[@zigzagrz]

Your mechanic, Toby, looks like Joaquin Phoenix from gladiator but thinner.

[@andrewsnow2605]

Number 3 boys

[@nickchannel5364]

Nice

[@jorgeconj]

Told ya!!! ✌️

[@YRA928]

I can see these two becoming the American wheeler dealers.

[@lordwinsbarthelemy205]

What state is this located in?

[@davidbauer1485]

Forget about the back window because the top never needs to go up. You are going to be flaming way too many dubies with Dad stoned in the back seat anyway. Party like its 1989!

[@jenssirbensonmam4822]

First i learned when i got in SAAB: Avoid the automatic!

[@joecool509]

Can’t believe you didn’t crush that car. Every engineer should spend a year fixing things before they put pencil to paper

[@davidbauer1485]

Crush it and put it in the firey furnace just like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang! Hahaha!'

[@shredahead1030]

Check out Indian Peaks Auto next time. Best SAAB, VW and Audi mechanics in Boulder.

[@palmermoe3303]

When is it going to be converted to a manual tho?

[@beb1527]

As someone who owned a 900 Turbo Automatic and a 900 Turbo 5 speed, I can’t agree with you more. That borg Warner 3 speed auto is geared to go 50 mph in first gear, which means an auto equipped Saab turbo can’t get out of its own way from 0-10mph. Maybe even 0-15 mph

[@palmermoe3303]

@@beb1527 Exactly! It was designed for Ford cars from the 50s so is extremely sluggish and makes any Saab dreadful

[@9-seven]

"Fixing Our Old Saab 900 Turbo Was Expensive, But At Least It Was Difficult ;)" is grammatically correct, but logically confusing.

[@johnknight9150]

I hate to be ghetto, but would it make more sense to replace the rear window with something like plexiglass or clear plastic cut to size?

[@datto240z]

240Z is background

[@lgunderso2117]

$5000. I love my Saabs but they take some maintenance.