[Dward]

I posted in the 9-3 Parts Wanted category but with all 7 entries it doesn't look like a good visibility place to ask:

I need some 16" rims for my 2000 9-3 Vert. I went to have my tires rotated / balanced and the guy said all four have some problems. I can confirm that--there's a rolling up-and-down as well as a whir-whir-whir. City driving has done my rims in! I'll take any style rim--I'm not stuck on keeping the SE style that came with the car.

Anybody have any extras?

Also need a switch for the powered mirrors. Mine lost a couple of directions. It's for sure the switch--I switched it with the switch from my 9-5 and all is well.

 

[Dward]

9-5 rims same bolt pattern as 9-3?

Can you interchange 9-5 and 9-3 rims from MY2000?

 

[99Saabnut]

Yes, I am pretty sure 9-3 and 9-5 rims are interchangeable, Pre 2002 or 3. The bolt pattern is the same, only thing that may change is the offset.

 

[earthworm]

Several years ago we paid about $90 to have a rim damaged alloy (Viking ?) repaired.
A place in York, Pa did the work..
They do make the wheel look as new; but I do not know about the truing of the wheel.
This is something to look into.....
New alloys are now $200 apiece ??

 

[Jeremy R.]

The mirror switch can be rebuilt if you have some spare time. The grease inside it congeals and keeps the contacts from making a good connection. Take it apart, clean out the old grease, and repack it. I used Sil-Glyde, which is a silicone grease that NAPA sells.

 

[abaton6]

I have the same problem with my 98 900 vert. I bought the car on Ebay and the seller "forgot" to mention that all 4 wheels were bent.

Check the tire rack. They have some nice looking painted wheels for around $100.00 each.

 

[Dward]

grease thickness?

Re: repacking the grease in the power mirro switch... Since this is something I've never done before I can use a little guidance.

I was able to get the switch apart without breaking the tabs. How much and where does the grease go? It's pretty dry in there--can't see or feel any grease except for at the very bottom of the side-to-side switch contacts. I assume the grease goes directly on the board--I'm just not sure of the thickness.

Also, there's a rubber piece between the board and the round rocker switch. Should there be grease on the contact points or should the grease applied to the board take care of it all?

 

[Jeremy R.]

The switch should come apart a little further. The rubber part on the piece to the left should come off, and below that are several brass cones and some springs. The grease goes down in there. You pretty much just coat all of the cones with a thick coat of it, which prevents them from touching each other or the contacts below until you press on the button.

 

[Dward]

Hm... don't see the brass springs you speak of unless I'm missing some parts. I took out the rubber piece and flipped it over--just rubber on rubber. The little white piece also comes out (ref. my previous picture for its 'home' location) though I wasn't previously having trouble with that selection switch.

About the grease--is this just plain old insulating di-electric grease? I called around to the close-by auto parts stores and they didn't have anything else. There is one NAPA but it's all the way across town.

So I assume there should NOT be grease on the contact (silica) board.

I'll try some plain old contact cleaner on the board and see if that does the trick.

 

[Jeremy R.]

You're right, it's not the same as mine. I was helping a friend with a 9-3 take his door panels off this afternoon and noticed that the mirror switch is completely different than the one on the NG900. Contact cleaner's a good idea. Spray some around in there and see if that does the trick.

 

[Dward]

Tried the contact cleaner; no luck. However, there is some hope, perhaps. The original problem was that the power mirrors would not move left (both sides). Now left works fine but they won't move right. I'll post if I figure out a do-it-yourself fix.