[lespaulstrata]

help !
cruising M1 north - hot knife through butter.
then heard highh pitched whine / hiss, followed by knocking sound from engine compartment (only a few second tho'), gradual loss of acceleration, lumpy ride like a bucking bronco then total power loss - electrics, everything.
at no point did ANY warning lights come on during my 400 mile journey.
slipped into neutral and coasted into motorway service station and stopped in a clear parking bay - greater odds than winning the lottery.
anyway, turned engine off, then on - all power resumed - dash, lights the lot.
but engine cranks for a few seconds and then labours and i turn it off incase i'm damaging something.
checked under bonnet - no leaks, all coolant & oil levels are correct, 1/4 tank o fuel, no burning smells and no pistons hanging out the engine !.
timing belt is on and in good nick.
recovery arrived - trailered home.
left overnight - cranked again this morn with same result - engine wont fire.
no dash or SID warning and everything works when switched on.
only had car 5 days !!!!!!!!
appreciate any assistance.
cheers.

 

[CHUNK66]

Mybe not all is lost i had a v6 turbo 1999 it did the same thing but not at high speed it was a di cassette its worth taking them off you can smell a little burn or crack/chip on them when one has gone. the knocking you my have heard could have been the unburned fuel being forced through the engine and cat. if you get stuck and it is a di i have one you can try to test on your car if it helps this is a common fault on v6 engines aswell as 4 pot ones. chin up saabs are great cars when thing are on form.

 

[harryO]

Welcome to the Forum. Complete power loss (electrics) a bit mystifying - ignition switch? Could be a DI cartridge, but should not cause complete loss of electrics. Cambelt failing/ jumping a tooth common on this engine. You are referring to the cambelt (hidden under cover) when you say that the timing belt is in good nick?

 

[imkenny]

I would do a compression test. It sounds like a timing belt could have jumped (loud whine could have been a timing belt idler failing)) and you lost some valves (interference engins).

 

[snackum]

Oh the joys of owning a griffin. I've had all the problems listed above but I had exactly the same symptoms (I'm no petrol head to apologies if I describe things wrong) and it was the "ancillary drive belt" which I think powers all the electrics, power steering, brakes etc. One of the "guides" has seized and so the belt stopped before finally shredding and falling off !!

Mine went on an 8 mile stretch of roadworks on the M25 at 5pm. Boy was I popular !!!

My DI cassettes failed slowly and so the engine gradually ran on fewer and fewer cylinders, mis-firing as she went.
It could be the timing belt jumping but then I kept all the electrics and the engine light came on in a second and I had a burning smell.

If it's none of those then I guess I have another failure to look forward to !

 

[lespaulstrata]

hi all,
thanks for the comments.
cam belt / timing belt - forgive me; looking at engine from front of vehicle, there is a large Poly-V belt on left hand side that wraps around a number of pulleys, it is not covered, i assumed this was the timing / cam belt.
i notice there are 2 plastic covers that are shrouding what looks like some form of pulley system but i just took them as being just that, covers to prevent your fingers getting caught as the depth of the covers dont look wide enough to have a belt attached -
if ti is DI Cassette, any links to where i can get re-con or new (sounds expensive - gulp) - general parts links are also useful (i notice this engine has 2 DI Cassetts - would both have failed ??), and any guides on how to fit them.
not dabbled in mechanics for years due to having company cars but i do have a calibrated hammer and sparks for my grinder.......
really appreciate all advice.
cheers.

 

[harryO]

The belt you can see is the Serpentine or Snake belt which runs the alternator P/S and water pump etc. The one under the cover is the cambelt. You cannot see much without a fair bit of work, but undoing the top few bolts and bending the cover slightly, will give you a view of the belt and it's condition and whether on not it is in place.

By the way, this is a GM engine similar to that found in a Vauxhall Omega - which is the only Haynes handbook which will be of any use. Obviously, it has been adapted by Saab and turned through 90 degrees, but the basic engine parts (pistons, valves cambelt) are the same.

 

[sgould]

DI units just unscrew and lift out. Correct star screwdriver should be in the tooling in the boot.

 

[CHUNK66]

IF ITS THE DI CASSETTE YOU ONLY NEED TO CHANGE THE ONE THATS GONE THERE ARE TWO ON A V6 ONE FOR EACH SIDE THAT MIGHT BE WERE YOUR LUMPY SHAKE ENGINES IS COMING FROM AS IT IS ONLY RUNING ON ONE BANK OF PISTONS. SOME FAIL SLOWLY SOME GO SUDDEN MINE FAILED SUDDEN CAUSING TOTAL LOSE OF ALL ELEC & ENGINE POWER WITH NO ENGINE LIGHTS AT ALL. SOMTIMES WHEN THEY FAIL THEY CAN THROW A MASSIVE AMOUT OF POWER OUT IN ONE GO WHICH IN TURN CAN TEMP KNOCK EVERY THING OUT. NOT SAYING IT IS THE DI BUT YOU SAID ALL WATER OIL ARE OK SO IT SHOULD NOT HAVE DROPED A PISTON OR CAMBELT BECAUSE AT MOTORWAY SPEEDS IT WOULD HAVE KNOCK THE ENGINE INTO SMALL BITS WITH PLENTY OF OIL AND WATER ON THE FLOOR IF YOU NEED TO TRY A DI I HAVE ONE YOU CAN TRY IT IF IT SOLVES IT YOU CAN PAY ME FOR THE DI IF IT DOES NOT JUST BRING IT ME BACK I'M IN DERBYSHIRE YOU CAN CALL ME ON 07542587789 HOPE THIS HELPS YOU OUT I KNOW HOW STRESSFULL IT IS WHEN A CAR YOU'VE JUST HAD GOES WRONG. ALL THE BEST ADY.

 

[lespaulstrata]

hi all,
very much appreciate all the advice - great stuff.
however, a local indy saab specialist has had a quick look and says there is no compression and associated repairs may cost more than the car itself !!!
its going back to the dealer i bought it from this coming wednesday and i'm getting a full refund.
so, my membership of this forum is a short lived affair.
if its of any interest, this car is in immacualte condition, no exaggeration, not a mark on it inside or out - showroom condition, everything works, the saab guy said its the best 95 of its age he's ever seen - unthinkable that it may be broken for parts - i'm gutted.
i could have a word with the dealer to make contact on this forum if he's breaking for parts etc.
again, amazing response from all you guys.
thank you.

 

[harryO]

Almost certainly cambelt failure. You are lucky that it went so soon after buying it and bought from a dealer with no argument over a refund. Damage (apart from cambelt kit) will probably be confined to the heads/valves and that "shouting bloke" CHUNK66 may still have a pair.