Oh man, look what this has: those fantastic push-pull headlight wipers! Ever see these in action? It’s weirdly satisfying. Here, look, this is a video of them on a Saab 99 – a bit newer but essentially the same:
So good. I’d drive through huge mud puddles just for an excuse to use these.
The rear of these retains the traditional early-Saab teardrop shape, along with a pair of Hella-made taillights that are like strange brothers to old VW Beetle taillights. I feel like either car could have used the other’s taillights and made them work just fine. Also, see that V4 badge? These used a Ford of Germany-sourced V4 from the Taunus, which was originally developed as part of American Ford’s Cardinal small-car project. Also, I recently learned that Saab’s testing program for four-stroke engines to replace their two-stroke ones included Volvo’s B18, the air-cooled VW flat-four, Lancia’s V4, the Hillman Imp engine, and the Triumph 1300. Oh, and the Ford V4 they eventually settled on.
One more detail: this indicator repeater with its subtle herringbone pattern and vaguely boat or perhaps fish-like shape. I like it. I never found out what happened to the old Saabs, they just disappeared when the owner of the farm died. Would have been fun projects. I’ve always kinda wanted one of the 2-cycle ones as I have plenty of childhood memories riding in one belonging to close friends, but mostly because of the CarTalk puzzler years ago about racing a Corvette backwards. Claim is that you can push-start one backwards, then theoretically be able to go as fast that direction as you could forward. Would be fun to verify. Now I’m hungry for sushi… So I tend to have the hots for one of the “triples,” even if mixing oil and fuel sounds like a dicey proposition. Not sure how the trail of blue smoke from the exhaust would sit in today’s world, though. Yeah, he was a German. https://live.staticflickr.com/2861/13450695943_3ccef07c0d_b.jpg The one I had for a couple years made it from ‘dragged home/some assembly required’ to marginally driveable around town by the time I finished with it. Once running, the dogs on my block would charge the fences when it drove by, and nearly every female friend I had wanted a ride, or more, wanted to buy it. However, I couldn’t sell it in good conscience to anyone I knew… Ultimately, I ended up calling the buddy who gave it to me and asked him to re-home it. A week or so later, another Saab nut drove seven hours each way to pick it up; I drove it onto the trailer, and a chapter closed. It was a rusty SOB that I ultimately sold to a guy a few states over that wanted it for it’s clean interior, intact glass, and most importantly, clean VIN tags. He had one he couldn’t register because his vehicle (and thus VIN) was stolen soon after it was originally sold. Apparently he couldn’t clear up the issue of a then ~40 year old car no longer being stolen and getting a clean title. Interesting that SAAB considered the Hillman Imp engine. That’s a wonderful engine. following web »> https://googleworksoffer96.blogspot.com/
