Guys,
This project has Tom Young written all over it.
I've been a Saab mechanic for about 5-6 years.
Some background: Since I haven't posted really yet.
I'm the other half(?) of Forever Young Racing. My father, Larry, and are
sort of undergoing our baptism-by-fire with the TR3 race car. Some of you might
remember us at Ohio, we were the ones sticking out from beneath the yellow
number 16 that was, er, in the trailer most of the time. Truth be told, I just
got through looking at the pictures my girl-friend got developed and realized
(like dad's been lamenting the whole time), that [whoa hey]
there was a ton of stuff going on at Ohio that we missed!
I've been a Triumph fan as far as I can remember, literally. The TR250 dad
bought new is the oldest fixture in our garage (been there the longest). I can
remember, and I don't think he knows this, when I had a slumber party my friend
and I would play like we were spies in that car. I even remember one time I
built up the balls to drop the top once when he wasn't around-I remember
distinctly he said "DON'T PUT THE TOP DOWN YOU'LL SCREW IT UP!".
He's not really like that but I admit it is a pretty difficult procedure to get
down when you're 10. The story of me learning to drive stick on that car has
already been mentioned for my initiation.
The sheer pleasure of the Triumph driving experience led me to go Euro when
I went to look for a car when I was roughly 15. I decided I was looking for an
'80s Audi Quattro or a Saab Turbo. The Saab showed up first, an '83 900 Turbo.
The rest, as they say, is history. Their connection to Triumph is a curiosity
to me.
Shortly thereafter I had stocked up some experience as a small engine tech
at a local shop and solving problems on my car as well as the stables at
Forever Young Restorations. I embarked on a short career fixing the imports.
In a town like Tulsa people who know what's going on under the hood of a
nonfbody-nonf150 can be a commodity.
About the TR7-99 combo:
This has always been an interest of mine considering the advantages of a
Triumph as a race car (no need to explain here ;) and the Saab's nasty tendency
to turn their funky FWD gearboxes into swiss cheese if they're worth a flip
power-wise.
AFA Saab history, the Triumph-99's were pretty buggy apparently, and this
wasn't just Triumph's fault. As mentioned already, the engines are in there
backwards going down through a transfer case to the gearbox, which is bolted
to the block where a normal oil pan would go. This makes for one heck of a
quick and easy clutch job, but it just doesn't hold up to the substantial
torque that these engines can really make. The 99's were the first to use
this setup, which requires a transfer case between the back of the clutch,
running down to the transmission underneath. The previous model 96 and the
Sonnetts both two-stroke and v4 engined, did not have a transfer case. The
early ones (ca. '68-'69) had the Triumph engine coupled to a gearbox with a
gear-driven transfer case. This was a disaster apparently and abandoned in
favor of a more reliable triple chain drive. Even so, pinion bearing
failures are common on turbocharged cars. In '72 Saab merged with the Swedish
heavy trucks giant Scania. With some of Scania's expertise, around '74 Saab
modified the early motor, bringing it to 2 litres and calling it the B motor.
This still had the nightmare water pump and starter on it. The B motor got
turbocharged on the '78 model 99. This was a big success but, not unlike the
Triumph TR250's, the turbo 99 was only available for one year,
being replaced by the larger 900 model in '79. Saab dropped factory rally
programs in '80, but in '81 introduced a further revised slant four known as
the 8valve H-motor. This had a proper water pump. In Saab circles the H-motor
block is really really similar to the B202, which is the famous 16valve turbo
from the '80s, whos heads reportedly bolt right up.
So back to the TR7 project, which I aim to accomplish before turning 30. What
I'm really concerned with is how much the engines changed from the Triumph to
the B-Motor. Most importantly, I'd like to figure out if or how a TR7 gearbox
will mate to these engines. Given the similarities, I think it's a doable job
for a newbie racecar builder/fabricator.
Anyhoo, great topic, but I have to get going as I've just taken on an
internship in Rome, NY with TRW Aeronautical Systems. When I return I hope to
discuss this further. Have fun y'all!
-Tom Young
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