The Bargain Saab 9-3 of fail.

Saw Karl tonight theres something awesome about an old school die hard saab fan with saab parts in his garage / man cave and wires everywhere that is epic.

Karl was very knowledgeable on all things saab. Remap done and the car is hilariously quick compared to standard and a total spend of £840 for the car and map is awesome for a 250hp car that weights just over 1400kg
 
Tom|Nbk said:
Karl was very knowledgeable on all things saab. Remap done and the car is hilariously quick compared to standard and a total spend of £840 for the car and map is awesome for a 250hp car that weights just over 1400kg
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Interesting article on fifth gear about power loss on an older turbo car - unfortunately they did not give an explanation.

It was a 9 yr old corsa vxr, turbo upgrade promised +40bhp, but car on rolling road was down since new from 197->160, upgrade then took it to ~200bhp.
I never realised 20% loss since new was possible, makes you wonder what is typical.
 
jpaul said:
Interesting article on fifth gear about power loss on an older turbo car - unfortunately they did not give an explanation.

It was a 9 yr old corsa vxr, turbo upgrade promised +40bhp, but car on rolling road was down since new from 197->160, upgrade then took it to ~200bhp.
I never realised 20% loss since new was possible, makes you wonder what is typical.
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This is utter rubbish and is just down to how well maintained the car is or how rubbish it is. My 1994 Celica GT-Four dynoed 270ish BHP stock with just a air filter and they are 255BHP from the factory. This was 4 years ago when it was 18 years old. Likewise my Saab 9-5 Aero makes 270BHP after its remap and the engine is on 140k. Both however are well maintained with all fluids and perishable electronic components only a couple of years old.
 
Many (most?) manufactures lie about what their cars make in the first place, + not every example will be the same even when new.

Then you have the fact that car manufactures quote what the car makes at the flywheel (I think) but the dynos measure whats made at the wheels, then just make a guess about what the transmission losses were and add that on.

Also, the temperature and even the height above sea level can noticeably effect the power the car makes.
 
I watched the Fifth Gear episode as well, I think it was a simple case of them getting flywheel and wheel dyno figures mixed up :o
 
jpaul said:
Interesting article on fifth gear about power loss on an older turbo car - unfortunately they did not give an explanation.

It was a 9 yr old corsa vxr, turbo upgrade promised +40bhp, but car on rolling road was down since new from 197->160, upgrade then took it to ~200bhp.
I never realised 20% loss since new was possible, makes you wonder what is typical.
Click to expand...

Those 'does my car make its factory power now' kind of dyno stories are junk. The figures are meaningless, or an extremely rough guide at the very best, and often misinterpreted. All a dyno does is give you a set of data on the spot that can serve as a benchmark for any future upgrades.

Unless the car was tested when new, and then X years later you went back and tested it on the same dyno with the same operator in the same conditions, you're just guessing.
 
- did not update - but as @melchy had said they/5th confused KW wheels vs flywheel - short series only had maybe 6 shows.

but folks spending $$ without a rolling road, just seat of the pants feeling seems a lottery, you just have the firms reputation,
and for newer cars gambling with its longevity.
 
Tom|Nbk said:
Saw Karl tonight theres something awesome about an old school die hard saab fan with saab parts in his garage / man cave and wires everywhere that is epic.

Karl was very knowledgeable on all things saab. Remap done and the car is hilariously quick compared to standard and a total spend of £840 for the car and map is awesome for a 250hp car that weights just over 1400kg
Click to expand...

A lot of torque as well for that power! Must surprise a lot of people :D :D
 
True. Corolla was nearing 170 a tonne but I was getting bored of its speed levels.

So I bought something much slower to replace it.

... Wait
 
Loved my saab. I had a 2005 vector, 2.0t. Turbo went in the first month, swapped it out for a aero turbo and bigger injectors, then popped the intercooler so new one of those. Then silicone hoses, sent it off to Karl to work his magic, then the clutch went very quickly so new clutch. After that it ran for about 2 years trouble free
 
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