Replacing the serpentine belt and tensioner on a 2001 Volvo S60 T5 is an easy DIY that takes about 1 hour to complete. It also helps if you have small hands to maneuver in tight quarters. Parts & Tools You’ll Need: Serpentine belt kit Sockets, ratchet Torque wrench Volvo belt tensioner...

Replacing the front lower control arms on a 2004 Saab 9-3 Arc is a fairly-easy DIY that takes about 1-2 hours to complete. Parts & Tools You’ll Need: Front Right Lower Control Arm (passenger side) Front Left Lower Control Arm (driver side) Floor Jack, Jack Stands + Wheel Chocks Ratchet...

Flushing the brake system on a 2001 Volvo S60 T5 is an easy DIY that takes about 1 hour to complete. I’ll show the traditional way below where you recruit a friend to pump the brakes while you bleed each corner’s brake caliper. You can opt to buy a 1-person brake bleeder system like the Motive...

During a morning drive I noticed that the Saab’s headlight switch was dangling from the dashboard like if it was hinged at the top as it swung back and forth at the bottom. I carefully pulled it out and I noticed that the 3 metal tabs which were supposed to hold it in place were loose on the...

Many times I’m asked how to address paint imperfections such as scratches, fading, peels, bubbles and flakes. Covering that whole spectrum would be like writing a book so I’ll specifically tackle paint scratches as that was a recent fix on my daily driver, currently a Volvo S60. What level of...

A vehicle maintenance log is incredibly valuable and doesn’t take much to set up. Benefits include: Easy tracking of completed work to avoid costly duplication or missing important service Easy reference to dates, mileage, parts used, costs, etc Typically increases the private-party value of...

Are you getting a constant slow drip of coolant near the passenger firewall on a Saab 9-3? Is your water pump ~100k miles old? If the answer is yes to both then there’s a good chance your water pump needs to be replaced. Luckily FCP Euro has you covered with all the Saab parts you need. Here’s a...

Spark plugs should be replaced every 60k miles on a 2004 Saab 9-3 Arc. It takes about 30min and your car will get better fuel economy versus that from worn out plugs. For this DIY write-up I’ll be using NGK G-Power spark plugs (part # BKR6EGP) which cross-references correctly for the car. I...

Have one of your low-beam headlamp bulbs gone out? Your Saab 9-3 likely has daytime running lights that use low-beam bulbs which means this may be a frequent maintenance item to replace. After hearing from other Saab owners having to replace bulbs multiple times a year I would go for “extended...

If hitting a bump is loud inside the vehicle, you may be dealing with struts that have failed or are failing. You’ll need to confirm though as it could be a number of things in the suspension. In my case I could tell it was the struts simply by looking at it and considering its age. One side’s...