[David Miller]

As mentioned in Arrghh help! thread, car safely back home and going like the clappers once more , although being driven rather sedately at the mo.

Whilst the head was off for the h/gaskett I contemplated doing the Timing Chain etc also (even though it doesn't actually need doing), however nearly fell over when I heard the price from Saab for all the components......£500+!!

Does anyone know of an alternative supplier of proven well engineered components for Saab?

 

[ylee coyote]

abbott (not famed for their cheep prices )menu charge for doing the chains inc all the bits and pieces was less than £500 !!

no wonder there are so many alternate suppliers and specialists !!

 

[gelcoat]

Hi ya, a good source of spare parts is eurocarparts.com. it is advisable to telephone them a the site does not always come up with the parts. saab wanted 200 pounds for oil pump gears I got them from these people for 65

 

[billj]

And tell them that Andy Smith, the Saab product manager, says you can have a 10% discount because you are a Saabscene member (see this thread). If you're spending quite a bit, ask if you can have a bigger discount, as mentioned in the thread.

 

[DaveS]

According to my reckoning, Eurocarparts charge around £130 for the chain, guides, tensioner and lower sprocket on a non-balancer engine.

Don't forget Saab parts come with gold-plating, though

 

[mutungi]

Eurocarparts the best bet for "realistic" prices, the parts are genuine SAAB as well! Did a complete overall on my B204 engine recently and cost me around £600 all inc! (Gaskets, chains, tensioners, guides, sprockets, oil, coolant, water-pump, alternator regulator, manifold studs, etc.)

 

[gilbert]

AS WE ALL SEEM TO BE PLUGIN WHO WE SEEM TO USE FOR OUR BITS ON THIS ONE, GERMAN & SWEDISH ALSO DO THE TIMING CHAIN BITS,I WAS GOING TO REPLACE THEM ON MY FIRST 2.3 9000 JUST BEFORE SOME LITTLE 'NON NICE PERSON' DECIDED I DIDNT WANT IT & TORCHED IT ! BEST RING AROUND FOR A QUOTE PLEAD POVERTY & CRY A LITTLE,WORKS FOR THE GIRLFRIEND WHEN SHE WANTS SOMETHING
GOOD LUCK WHICHEVER WAY U GO
HAPPY HUNTING
G.

 

[gelcoat]

Sorry to disagree with gilbert, but german and swedish do not carry a lot for SAABs every time I have visited I have had the reply "dealer parts"
the parts that they do have are normally "powertrain" which anyone with a high mainenance car will avoid like the plague.

 

[johncc]

I use GSF sometimes since there is a branch about two minutes from where I work! This avoids ECP's minimum postage charge of a tenner, which is annoying when you just want a couple of bits and bobs.

I find their range is not bad, but bear in mind that there seems to be more than one outfit with similar names.

The lot I use is a chain and they are here http://www.gsfcarparts.com/

I would say ECP is a better quality supplier though and certainly preferable if you are going to spend a fair bit!

The people at my branch are miserable s*ds too

Oh, and don't be tempted by their "non-genuine" stuff because most of it seems to be rubbish.

They do seem quite competitive for brake stuff, and I get parts for the wife's Golf there (you think Saab dealer parts cost, try VW!)

On this topic, a VW service manager told me a TV investigation exposed someone like ECP or GSF for selling cheap Eastern European copies as genuine parts. To an extent, he would say that wouldn't he? But can anyone shed any light on this allegation?

 

[saabscene]

This seems like a good moment to remind everybody that the comments posted on Saabscene are those only of the individual contributor himself and in no way represent the views of Saabscene Staff or its other contributors.

 

[SAABYRITE]

John, t.v. investigation you referred to was on a programme called 'Lifting the bonnet'( sounds, like automotive version of 'Tipping the velvet!) and was recently repeated on 'Sky'. The company it mentioned was GSF who were alledgedly buying some of their stuff from Turkey (iffy). I was really chuffed to hear this having placed my first mail order with them that very morning. I'm afraid it's the old cliche - 'you get what you pay for!'

 

[StephenA]

GSF who were alledgedly buying some of their stuff from Turkey (iffy)[/b]

Yes but the same program also pointed out that some companies (I think it specifically mentioned Mercedes) actually use the same manufacturing companies in Turkey to provide offical parts.

Steve

 

[markcanderson]

Kinda wondering why it is we suddenly think bad thoughts about the quality of parts if they are manufactured in the middle east/ eastern europe...

Didn't us Brits and Americans during the 50s and 60s have the same problem when we thought everything from Japan was crud... and laughed at the efforts of Honda, Toyota, Datsun and Sony ?

 

[ms08]

Before finding this forum i ran my 9000T as an everyday workhorse. I obtained 95% of my parts from EC Parts including a complete exhaust system which is now three years old and still in one piece. I had also bought parts from them for my previously owned Volvo's. The only problem i ever experienced was when i replaced a front hub/bearing on the 9000 and the machining was slightly different (wider) throwing the disc out enough to rub on the brake carrier which i evetually manged to rectify. Other than that can only say i am a satisfied customer and have recently replaced last two sections of my GM900T exhaust with EC parts. Nice to know now that i can ask for discount as well! We know that main dealers do mark up spares as a way of making money but sometimes there prices cannot surely be justified.

 

[adrian]

Didn't us Brits and Americans during the 50s and 60s have the same problem when we thought everything from Japan was crud... and laughed at the efforts of Honda, Toyota, Datsun and Sony ?[/b]

Point was, it was crud. Unfortunately (for our car industry) the Japanese listened to some American quality guru (can not remember his name off hand) and introduced SPC and TQM etc and the rest as they say his history. The Yanks and ourselves didnt start to do something along the same lines until the the late Seventies.

 

[billj]

Originally posted by Mark_A:
[qb]Didn't us Brits and Americans during the 50s and 60s have the same problem when we thought everything from Japan was crud... and laughed at the efforts of Honda, Toyota, Datsun and Sony ?[/qb][/b]

Brits and Yanks of the day had reason to laugh at the [expletive deleted] - they did produce crud. However, the big mistake the British and Americans made was to assume the [expletive deleted] wouldn't eventually learn how to make better cars, hi-fis, etc. than them and to rest on their laurels. Much as the British, French and others did after the first world war, when they assumed that if the Germans attacked again, they would fight another trench war using the same tactics that lost them the first war

I remember seeing an old clip from a TV interview of a representative of the British motorcycle industry, when it was at the height of its success, early 60s, perhaps. When asked his opinion of the threat posed by Japanese imports, his response was (forgive me if I don't get it quite right), "The British sporting gentleman will always prefer to buy his motorcycle from his traditional source".

Must have been all those dashed foreigners who bought the Japanese machines, then...

 

[tbaysal2000]

Maybe too late to post a report but I found this thread while I was making a search if any other Turkish guys were around. And I noticed a note next to the Turkish! part.

I am myself working for the biggest transportaion systems and components company Delphi. There are about 3000 people working in 4 factories and delivering parts all over the world. Our biggest competitor Bosch has one of their biggest investment in Turkey for Common Rail injectors which is about 1/3rd of their total global sales. One of our customers Ford moved all commercial light vehicle productions to Turkey. Renault, Fiat, Toyota have their plants in Turkey and some models are choosen as base to export EU and others. Airbus is purchasing very important components from a plant just few hundred meters away from my factory.

Just imagine how this can be without a proper local sourcing for parts.

Now all OEM's are pushing their suppliers to move into China. Delphi started sponsoring University programs to ensure future skilled labor. Another University is named after Delphi in Poland.

I just wanted to open eyes for the globalisation of the world. Competition is pulling sources to low cost locations with qualified workforce and local supplies. It takes lonf time for improvement but you get the reward in the end.

I am not sure if you will be able to see this note but at least I did what have to on my part with absolutely no bad feelings for the past notes. We all have our jugements, sometimes wrong, sometimes wright. This forum helps to find what actually is more close to reality by experience.