Saab 900i autobox - low gearing?

[tonyw]

Hi all,

New on here, having just purchased from Ebay, a 4-door 1989 Saab 900i Auto with full Saab dealer service history and 76,000 miles for only £350!! PLUS, (to make you even more jealous) it has no rust, and is in superb condition!

Now that I've said this, I guess answers to my questions may be limited , but after picking the car up from the old gentleman in Clacton-on-Sea, I drove home to Bracknell. The car ran true, with no wobble, no odd noises, in fact it was absolutely superb apart from one thing; the engine noise seems quite loud above 65 mph. It seems to me as though there should be another 'cog in the box', although the revs are not extremely high (just over 3500 at 70mph).

Am I suffused with wishful thinking? After all (I keep telling myself) it is a 16 year old car! Its not the tyres, as they are fairly new Pirelli's .


Secondly, if anyone is looking for cheap car insurance, I shopped around today and of the 6 companies I tried, the average quote was £250 fully comp, and the best quote by far was £186 (with £250 excess), with More Than. Absolutely superb, £60 better than the next best quote! I have full no claims and am 38, with no claims accidents or convictions in the last 5 years.

[Matthew]

I think that 3500RPM@70MPH is about right for an automatic 900i... they're all three-speed 'boxes, so no cogs missing

We know the 900T had stronger automatic gearboxes than the NA cars, but did they have different ratios too?

[tonyw]

Originally Posted by Matthew

I think that 3500RPM@70MPH is about right for an automatic 900i... they're all three-speed 'boxes, so no cogs missing

We know the 900T had stronger automatic gearboxes than the NA cars, but did they have different ratios too?

Thanks Matthew, you never know unless you ask.

[Matthew]

I'm not certain though, as I'm going on what I can remember of past discussions on the forums. I've never driven an auto 900... someone else'll know for sure.

Welcome to SaabCentral BTW

[jetman]

Yeah, that's about right.

[ProfZ]

There were 2 different primary-drive gearsets available, but the difference in gearing was not significant.

Driving an autobox at highway speeds feels a lot like driving a 5-speed in 4th gear .

On my auto, I find that around 80 mph (when I'm able to do such speeds ) the drivetrain smooths out and that buzzy over-revving feeling fades. Might be something to do with the engine getting "on the cam" at 4000 rpm?