Super helpful video! It took a bit of searching to find the upper screws on the air box cover, but otherwise went smoothly. The best tip was to place the foam around the pipes first, then the filter. Definitely makes it easier to install and get a proper fit. Thanks!
Love your guy's easy to follow Saab tutorials! I can only imagine what's going to come out with mine since when I changed the air filter it was chewed from mice with dropping and acorns.
Great video, many thanks. I changed mine without disconnecting cooling hose/cable as didn't want to break the hose which felt a bit brittle. foam is easy to put in by hand as there is enough space Unless you are Goliath :-)). Good tip to avoid using the sticky tape, mine did come without btw. The old filter was really dirty and the foam was rolled up like a ball so I guess never was installed properly in the first place.
Nice video, I have never seen a cabin filter come out without some sort of horror story....I once bought an old saab 9000 that had a plant growing in the filter!
I had to replace the fan control blower resistor 2005 9-5 and used this video.On the 2005 and up the resistor is in the cabin filter cover.2 screws but while you're there might as well replace the filter
Thank you very much! With wishes for all prosperity and happiness - from Poland, from Krakow Antoni - Owner of SAAB 9-5 AERO 2002 named - Ragnar 😀 Dziękuję Ci bardzo! Z życzeniami wszelkiej pomyślności i szczęścia - z Polski, z Krakowa Antoni - Właściciel SAAB 9-5 AERO 2002 o imieniu - Ragnar 😀
This job is a fiddly pain in the rear. Mostly due to the stupid foam piece with cutouts for the two lines. The only engineer at Saab worse than the guy who designed this setup is the guy who designed a plastic dipstick that takes on the color of oil and goes right down the place where you pour the oil so that you can't tell if you have a good level or not until the oil drains all the way down the tube and into the pan. Like they say remove the two punchouts and put it around the lines first then slide the filter in. Don't try to use the adhesive strip or you will never get it in. Leave the release liner on the adhesive. Take your time and work the filter a little in at a time to allow the foam to compress before you slide it a little further. Keep working a little bit at a time, and you will eventually get there. The other thing to note is the car shown is an earlier model. Later models have a heat sink that sits in the air flow on the back side of the air filter box cover, and it is a live circuit through the heat sink. Be sure to remove the positive side from your battery before working on this job. If the heat sink shorts to the metal box the fan will run or you could get a nasty shock. Would also like to add that this is a good time to blow out the Air Conditioning condensate drain lines. They are right there and it will help keep you from getting wet feet in the future. The drain line is the rubber hose that connects to the bottom of the plastic housing where you just put in the filter. Just pull back the floor carpeting, and use a pair of pliers to unclamp the clamp and remove the rubber hose. Blow compressed air through the rubber line or run a piece of wire down the hose to clear out any muck. Be sure to bend the end of the wire over first so that you don't puncture the line with a sharp wire end.
Sir could you please tell me where those tubes are as I am ankle deep in water in the back seat and i went thru the tube the other way from under the car and now my line is stuck in the car???? hollisterdiane@comcast.net
This sounds like an issue with the sunroof drains, you must partially remove the headliner to access them and clear them out. The drains get clogged with debris and the sunroof cannot drain out the bottom of the car so they overflow into the cabin. They need to be blown out with compressed air.
My SAAB mechanic didn’t want to do this PITA job, so I am giving it a go. My ‘08 has a massive electrical obstruction on the back wall of the glove box which makes it very difficult to remove the old filter, and nearly impossible to install a new filter without damaging it. Still working on it, and am not sure how to install the new filter and foam. First time the filter was changed in ever and the old one is. . . real bad.
Thanks for the video really helped. Another Saab/Europe engineering flaw. Should have designed this without having the foam to replace. If you have worked on other things with this car manufacture, you will come to realize many replacements are not so easy or could have been improved. They failed to look into the future, anticipating replacement of parts that have to be maintained or replaced. I see why GM dropped the saab division.
How in the world do you get the foam piece into the cavity and around the pipes by hand before inserting the filter? No way is my hand going to fit into that narrow cavity. What was the method/trick used. Thanks for the help.
I think you need a trained orangutang. I had enough trouble getting the last of the old foam out, I'm going to struggle to get the new back in, though I know I managed it years ago with my old 9-5. Just wish I could remember how :(
What year and trim is this car? I'm doing an '07 Aero automatic, and there is a lot of extra stuff in the way that make it almost impossible to slide the filter in correctly.
Trevor, the pre-facelift 9-5s have an easier access. I had the same issue with my ‘06 9-5, but I managed to slide it in with a lot of patience and holding the wiring harnesses out of the way. Apparently there is an easier way though I haven’t seen it lol. Also, it is very common for the new filter to not go in all the way...I guess it hangs up on the far pipe that the foam insert covers. You have to fiddle a bit with that by readjusting the filter...taking it out part way and reinstalling. I think it took me 2 hours, but I’m not super mechanically-inclined lol. Patience is key.
And this is why I love SAAB, they placed that filter in so far like they never wanted you to replace it I guess that why I made a lot of money working at a SAAB dealership Vs Gm other brands plus they had the most loyal customer ever people who could afford to buy any car they wanted but they would always returned and we had our share of lemons our running joke at the dealership was the only people who buy SAAB was people who was looking to get towed to the dealership I guess that's why I own a 99 and 03 95s.
First you show which tools are needed for the job and then when you start working the first step is a tool not shown in the first needed tools section 🤔
Hey, I was gentle! Plus, it's a 13 year old car with 180k miles on it, it's by no means in perfect shape. Simply existing outside puts more wear and tear on it than gently setting a pair of pliers down :)
Good one, kind sir! I lay my tools all over the hood and roof when I work. Like the guy in the video, I can place them properly without damaging the paint. I have the wagon so it works well to line up your beer cans against the cargo rack.
The only way i could get this same filter into the box was cut the horns off the top front with a hacksaw, then attaching the foam onto the gluestrip 1st.
Pisspoor design. No wonder people never change this filter. Thanks Saab!
Super helpful video! It took a bit of searching to find the upper screws on the air box cover, but otherwise went smoothly.
The best tip was to place the foam around the pipes first, then the filter. Definitely makes it easier to install and get a proper fit.
Thanks!
You're welcome!
Great video, thanks! Can't believe that they made it this time consuming to change one air filter.
Do it on a bmw E90 😅
Thanks for the great video just got my 9 5 a week ago and want to go through it!!!
Love your guy's easy to follow Saab tutorials! I can only imagine what's going to come out with mine since when I changed the air filter it was chewed from mice with dropping and acorns.
Clear and instructive! I'll attempt it based on the video. Thanks!
THANKS, from Copenhagen - that was what I needed, it really helped. Simple operation when saw the video. It has Hey from Henrik.....:)
Thanks! Great video!
Great video, many thanks. I changed mine without disconnecting cooling hose/cable as didn't want to break the hose which felt a bit brittle. foam is easy to put in by hand as there is enough space Unless you are Goliath :-)). Good tip to avoid using the sticky tape, mine did come without btw. The old filter was really dirty and the foam was rolled up like a ball so I guess never was installed properly in the first place.
Thanks! Just follow the steps shown in the video and everything works fine :)
Nice video, I have never seen a cabin filter come out without some sort of horror story....I once bought an old saab 9000 that had a plant growing in the filter!
I know this is an old comment but that reminded me of the time I found a mushroom somehow growing on the factory horn off my dsm
Great video and comments as well. Esp when you say by now the 7 screws you haven't lost as of yet LOL
I had to replace the fan control blower resistor 2005 9-5 and used this video.On the 2005 and up the resistor is in the cabin filter cover.2 screws but while you're there might as well replace the filter
Thanks it was helpful
Who's idea was this funky music? I highly approve. Great video :D
Thank you very much! With wishes for all prosperity and happiness - from Poland, from Krakow
Antoni - Owner of SAAB 9-5 AERO 2002 named - Ragnar 😀
Dziękuję Ci bardzo! Z życzeniami wszelkiej pomyślności i szczęścia - z Polski, z Krakowa
Antoni - Właściciel SAAB 9-5 AERO 2002 o imieniu - Ragnar 😀
Belive it or not I pulled the evap core through that same location to replce it.
This job is a fiddly pain in the rear. Mostly due to the stupid foam piece with cutouts for the two lines. The only engineer at Saab worse than the guy who designed this setup is the guy who designed a plastic dipstick that takes on the color of oil and goes right down the place where you pour the oil so that you can't tell if you have a good level or not until the oil drains all the way down the tube and into the pan.
Like they say remove the two punchouts and put it around the lines first then slide the filter in. Don't try to use the adhesive strip or you will never get it in. Leave the release liner on the adhesive. Take your time and work the filter a little in at a time to allow the foam to compress before you slide it a little further. Keep working a little bit at a time, and you will eventually get there.
The other thing to note is the car shown is an earlier model. Later models have a heat sink that sits in the air flow on the back side of the air filter box cover, and it is a live circuit through the heat sink. Be sure to remove the positive side from your battery before working on this job. If the heat sink shorts to the metal box the fan will run or you could get a nasty shock.
Would also like to add that this is a good time to blow out the Air Conditioning condensate drain lines. They are right there and it will help keep you from getting wet feet in the future. The drain line is the rubber hose that connects to the bottom of the plastic housing where you just put in the filter. Just pull back the floor carpeting, and use a pair of pliers to unclamp the clamp and remove the rubber hose. Blow compressed air through the rubber line or run a piece of wire down the hose to clear out any muck. Be sure to bend the end of the wire over first so that you don't puncture the line with a sharp wire end.
Sir could you please tell me where those tubes are as I am ankle deep in water in the back seat and i went thru the tube the other way from under the car and now my line is stuck in the car????
hollisterdiane@comcast.net
That is a great tip, thank you
This sounds like an issue with the sunroof drains, you must partially remove the headliner to access them and clear them out. The drains get clogged with debris and the sunroof cannot drain out the bottom of the car so they overflow into the cabin. They need to be blown out with compressed air.
My SAAB mechanic didn’t want to do this PITA job, so I am giving it a go. My ‘08 has a massive electrical obstruction on the back wall of the glove box which makes it very difficult to remove the old filter, and nearly impossible to install a new filter without damaging it. Still working on it, and am not sure how to install the new filter and foam.
First time the filter was changed in ever and the old one is. . . real bad.
Thanks for the video really helped. Another Saab/Europe engineering flaw. Should have designed this without having the foam to replace. If you have worked on other things with this car manufacture, you will come to realize many replacements are not so easy or could have been improved. They failed to look into the future, anticipating replacement of parts that have to be maintained or replaced. I see why GM dropped the saab division.
How in the world do you get the foam piece into the cavity and around the pipes by hand before inserting the filter? No way is my hand going to fit into that narrow cavity. What was the method/trick used. Thanks for the help.
I think you need a trained orangutang. I had enough trouble getting the last of the old foam out, I'm going to struggle to get the new back in, though I know I managed it years ago with my old 9-5. Just wish I could remember how :(
What year and trim is this car? I'm doing an '07 Aero automatic, and there is a lot of extra stuff in the way that make it almost impossible to slide the filter in correctly.
Trevor, the pre-facelift 9-5s have an easier access. I had the same issue with my ‘06 9-5, but I managed to slide it in with a lot of patience and holding the wiring harnesses out of the way. Apparently there is an easier way though I haven’t seen it lol. Also, it is very common for the new filter to not go in all the way...I guess it hangs up on the far pipe that the foam insert covers. You have to fiddle a bit with that by readjusting the filter...taking it out part way and reinstalling. I think it took me 2 hours, but I’m not super mechanically-inclined lol. Patience is key.
And this is why I love SAAB, they placed that filter in so far like they never wanted you to replace it I guess that why I made a lot of money working at a SAAB dealership Vs Gm other brands plus they had the most loyal customer ever people who could afford to buy any car they wanted but they would always returned and we had our share of lemons our running joke at the dealership was the only people who buy SAAB was people who was looking to get towed to the dealership I guess that's why I own a 99 and 03 95s.
saab 97x how can change filter sir
First you show which tools are needed for the job and then when you start working the first step is a tool not shown in the first needed tools section 🤔
I CANNOT believe this bozo put the tools directly on the painted surface of the car!!
+F Thomas Crowley Jr Yeah, and where is your video Bozo?
Hey, I was gentle! Plus, it's a 13 year old car with 180k miles on it, it's by no means in perfect shape. Simply existing outside puts more wear and tear on it than gently setting a pair of pliers down :)
How do you know that or there another vid somewhere with the plate showing
Good one, kind sir! I lay my tools all over the hood and roof when I work. Like the guy in the video, I can place them properly without damaging the paint. I have the wagon so it works well to line up your beer cans against the cargo rack.
You are too kind, Tailspin. Thank you for the video.
What a total pain in the ass. The 9-3 is a cinch to replace compared to this cluster f*ck...
Profi vid but no need that music in backgroud....
The only way i could get this same filter into the box was cut the horns off the top front with a hacksaw, then attaching the foam onto the gluestrip 1st.
Love my Saabs but this is a stupid stupid design.
Why the annoying music? At what point did you think that was a good idea?
Yup annoying as f' ghetto music too! Could have done w/o it.