Saab B204e to Calibra SE5 - & So It Begins.....!

[DanSE4]

*cough* 'tis an F18 though.

*Swiftly edits posts*

It won't take long to get the engine in tomorrow & at least on the front two mounts (subframe is optional, may mean a stand under the rear of the box for now) as the main thing really now is getting the loom sorted & I need power at some point to chase the live(s) & the ignition switching live.

Happy plumbing!!

[DanSE4]

Saab flywheel, Saab pressure plate & Calibra (F18) friction plate.

I think the final measurement was that the Calibra friction plate is about 7mm smaller in diameter but it's what we had to hand & the only thing that'll fit the splines on the input shaft of the F18.

I even looked at the old friction plate from (which was still kicking around) my F25 which was better in diameter but again wouldn't have fitted on the F18 input shaft.

[DanSE4]

Another day & another step closer.

Like it or lump it, I had to do something with the Saab loom adapter to make sense of it all & turn it into something that will connect up nicely so I set myself up a nice bit of working space & blew the cobwebs off the soldering iron!



It wasn't actually that bad (it's pretty much what Nige did to Bens adapter as Ben had supplied him with the 3 small connectors when he had his made) & the guide supplied by Nige was very clear & the colour coding of the Vauxhall wiring to connect was supplied (let's hope it's correct)!

Ended up with this.



Essentially, to the fuse block, you need to connect two permanent lives, two ignition switching lives & the fuel pump supply. The fuel pump supply is the thicker red/blue wire from the small black connector & I harvested some additional wires from the loom (the ends for the fuse block were supplied with the adapter) so I'm only left to find a permanent live & an ignition switching live to those.

The other wires to connect to the Calibra loom were the RPM signal, speedo signal, OBD & the MIL (Engine management light). These four were labelled on the adapter & then I joined those to the equivalent coloured wires from the small connectors I cut from the old Calibra engine loom (are you all still with me........).

There's a few wires remaining from the Calibra connectors which I believe to be redundant now but I haven't chopped those back yet just in case, once I got the Saab ECU in place, the Saab engine loom through the bulkhead & all connected up in the footwell it makes more sense.



Now you can see that all I have to connect is a permanent live to the two red wires coming out in the bottom of the picture & an ignition switched live to the two red/blue wires at the bottom. The spare (redundant) wires are the ones tucked under the floor mat for now.

Now, I wouldn't have been able to get the engine loom into the drivers footwell if this hadn't happened first!





The engine is in!!! (Yes, James does have another cam cover to be painted but for now we use what we have).

The engine probably took 30 mins to get in & is currently on it's front two mounts with a jack under the bellhousing awaiting the subframe to go back in.

Andy, James, Wayne & Waynes son (todays apprentice) got on with the engine plumbing whilst I was doing the wiring & realistically we're now very close to the first turn of the key. Andy & James have next Saturday to get the subframe in & properly secure the radiator, oil cooler & intercooler (plus a little more plumbing) then on Sunday I'll be back to hopefully chase the two wiring feeds I need, hook it all up then back the f**k off while someone else turns the key!!

Exciting times.

[Chavtastic]

Excellent work all round

[craigyboy]

Dan i've had the same work to do when fitting the xe.when I bought it the loom
had been attacked by Mr scissor hands,so there was a lot of sussing out to do
I feel your pain

[DanSE4]

Question (if anyone has the answer)?

The Saab ECU needs a speedo signal, the SE5 has a cable driven speedo. The wire for the speedo signal is present on the Calibra loom (& now connected to the Saab adapter) but does anyone know if it is actively connected at the ABS end (ie has anyone fitted electronic clocks into a Calibra that had cable driven ones & tapped into this existing wire for the speed signal)?

[DanSE4]

We're sticking with the F18 for now which is a mechanically driven speedo & therefore the existing mechanical clocks (the original set up in the SE5).

You've lost me slightly there (maybe it's a Monday morning thing), the blue/red wire for the speed signal is present on the current Calibra loom & that's the one that needs to be connected to the Saab adapter (which I've done). What I'm asking is, is that just a dead wire & if it is, where do I get the speed signal from to connect to the Saab ECU?

[DanSE4]

Ah, gotcha.

If I'm understanding you correctly then, the speedo will get it's input from the speedo cable & then output that as an electrical signal to that blue/red wire which is the one I've attached to the Saab loom adapter.

[DanSE4]

Cheers, should work then!

[Miscbrah]

Sounds like what we'll need and should save us from the orange relay business (posted for future googlers.)



Also gotta say thanks again to Dan, Wayne and Kyle who came up Sunday and worked like beasts on the car. Very very grateful guys.

[rips]

I'll be driving it like it's a milk float anyway.

Interesting project, but that comment makes me wonder why?

[Miscbrah]

I'm certainly bowing to your electronics knowledge on that front! A few folks have done it this way. Interestingly enough, so did Vauxhall (some Corsa and Meriva also iirc) but I can well imagine it was a 'make do' moment rather than their finest design hour.

I'll be driving it like it's a milk float anyway.

Interesting project, but that comment makes me wonder why?

It's genetics I think, can't help it. Got into the habit of driving very conservatively early on. Doesn't mean I won't appreciate the beautiful machine I'll have at the end that a LOT of love and good will has built from MANY people. It's been a hugely useful project for me as I've learned things. Like, handy things, and got some mechanic-ing confidence and experience where I had precious little before.

I should imagine it'll get the cobwebs blown out on occasion though, but at least initially I'll go very easy on the F18. Short term replacements will be the front brakes for a v6 setup. After that, exhaust section or cat back making up, along with F20 I should think. After after that, APC wiring in to bring me to 185bhp.

[Rangie1]

(Miscbrah here, posting from Andy's PC.)

For ref, the following is the correct aux belt diagram with no centre idler:



Rest of the confusing diagram salad can be found HERE.

*mumble mutter bought the wrong pulley grumble.*

[DanSE4]

Not 100% sure where things got to this weekend as I only popped up briefly today to get the power cables for the ECU etc connected up, needed a battery in the car so I could find a permanent live & an ignition switched one.



I spliced directly into the leads at the back of the ignition barrel so the brown one is a perm live & the red one is ignition switched.

The engine bay certainly looked more complete today & the subframe is in, I'll let Andy & James fill in here as I'll be back to it next Saturday where hopefully an engine start is on the cards (unless that happened after I left today & Andy ain't answering his phone at the mo so I can't find out)!

[Miscbrah]

Just a quickie, having meant to reply Sunday.

Not started yet and still a few problems with the long driveshaft. Maybe. Or maybe we didn't try wiggling it in enough (let's dearly and earnestly hope for the latter.)

Also the bonnet won't close as the rocker cover and oil filler cap sit too high. Bum. Will explore this with homemade engine mount bits and if I need a hole and a bonnet scoop then I need them.

I think we'll all need a well-earned break after this weekend, and return to it in the new year.