A bad timing belt or timing chain can be a serious issue. If it jumps a tooth, or breaks entirely it can lead to permanent engine damage. It’s important to know the symptoms of a bad timing belt or chain, so this doesn’t happen to your Saab 9-3. Timing belts are made out of … Read more
There are a few easy to fix reasons why your Saab 9-3’s key might get stuck in the ignition. It’s often easy to unstick the key. Whatever you do, don’t start trying to rip it out of the ignition. That can cause bigger problems. This article is written with the assumption that your key is … Read more
If your Saab 9-3’s steering wheel is hard to turn, it’s almost always going to be caused by an issue with the power steering system. The power steering system is responsible for taking energy from the engine, converting it to hydraulic pressure, and using that pressure to decrease the amount of force that you need … Read more
A very common problem that affects all vehicles (including the Saab 9-3) is blue smoke coming from the exhaust. Reasons for blue exhaust smoke include bad valve seals, valve train wear in general, the PCV valve, burning transmission fluid and more. Blue smoke indicates that your 9-3’s engine is burning oil. The question is … Read more
If your Saab 9-3 is experiencing a whining noise, its is often going to be caused by something in the engine compartment. The likely cause of whining noise will be determined by when you hear the noise, and under what conditions With that in mind, this page is divided by when you hear the whining … Read more
Every time you start your Saab 9-3, the computer system runs a self diagnostic check on all major systems. If any of these checks fail, you will see a diagnostic warning light on the dash for the corresponding system. When the airbag system fails this check, you’ll see the airbag light. Depending on the model … Read more
If your Saab 9-3 smells like gas, you should treat it as though you have a fuel leak until you for sure there isn’t one. The smell of gas is typically going to be caused by a bad gas cap, evaporative emissions system, overfilling the gas tank, or an actual fuel leak. But there are … Read more
If your Saab 9-3’s battery is draining, it’s something that’ll need addressing right away. If it is draining while your 9-3 is off, it’s usually caused by something that is drawing current that shouldn’t be. If the battery is draining while you’re driving, that is probably going to be the alternator or battery. There … Read more
If your Saab 9-3 won’t accelerate, that is a serious cause for concern. There are a lot of different reasons that can cause this. Diagnosing the issue can be narrowed down by whether the engine is still revving when you push the gas or not. There is a section for each scenario with likely causes … Read more
A vehicle that is pulling to the left can be dangerous to drive. In the US, left is the direction of oncoming traffic. This makes pulling to the left even more dangerous than pulling to the right. Keeping straight when your Saab 9-3 wants to veer into traffic makes driving stressful. If your 9-3 pulls … Read more