Lighting laws and historic car spares

Cars / Motoring / Insurance
1

I recently acquired a French registered 1973 Saab 96V4 Sport for European rallying.
Our Volvo Amazon, being UK registered, would never make it through ANTS, and although we did two international events with it last year (fudging the you can only drive French registered rule) when the EES finally arrives we’d be stuck.

We couldn’t find any French based historic specialists with experience of building cars to international standard so have driven the Saab back to the UK, to the guy near Settle who looks after our Volvo.

The Saab hasn’t been used competitively for maybe 10 years and has some unusual modifications. Gone is the usual catch to open the bonnet - instead you bend down beside the front wing, reach under it for a piece of wire, and pull :thinking::rofl::rofl: A security device I was told. Why ? What’s wrong with a kill switch/cut-off switch in the cabin. Turn it, take it with you and all electrics, and fuel pump, are dead.
And the horn had been moved from the centre boss to a hard to reach switch on the top of the dash.
My “garagiste”, one of the UK’s top historic car builder eventually opened the bonnet, and looked twice, commenting “interesting, I’ve never seen that before” That wasn’t a complimentary comment either.

So there’s a bit of work before the first event (in Cheshire) on March 1.

One question he asked me, and which I couldn’t answer, was “are these lights legal in France?”
As in how many auxiliary lights are you allowed. I think in the UK it is two.

Can anyone answer that question?

The car is not collection, and just has a normal CG. By the time he’s finished with modifications (from non standard seats and harness to sump-guard and enlarged petrol tank, etc) it would never pass FFVE inspection.

And has anyone any idea where in France I could find a chrome front bumper, and one, or two, soccerball wheels (as shown). Are there any on-line shops, forums etc specialising in classic pares, etc.

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saab lights
saab lights1062×767 236 KB

saab wheel
saab wheel1280×535 212 KB

Existing lighting (which passed a CT in October but I’m not sure if that was correct) and soccerball wheels

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3

Feel your frustration, just going by french lorrys it seems you can have as many lights as your average Lambretta :joy: didnt we use to tape over our competion lights and numbers on the doors back in the day?
As to chome, most of the modern chrome are a paint finish with stunning results.

4

Love that car…bit of a Saabiste myself.
Mine are somewhat more modern…a 1995 900ng cabriolet and a 1993 900 Yacht Club coupe.
I’ve just sold a 9000CSE which I will never forgive myself for but I needed the.money. When the good times return I will be searching for a decent replacement.

5

By the way there is a Saab specialist in Nantes. Apparently they know their stuff. It was actually a friend of the owner who bought my 9000.

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6

Me too, having owned about a dozen and now with a classic 900 convertible.

7

Sounds like a wonderful project :star_struck:

There’s a very helpful English garagiste in Melleran, 79 (Deux-Sevres) called Tony Eyre - website here - who specialises in Saabs. If he can’t help you himself, he’ll know someone who can.

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8

Apres competition - yes. We are still supposed to take off the competition plates but nowadays most wait till they get home (in my case so I can put them up in the barn or garage, depending on the country!)

9

If you were in England there is a Norfolk Saab dealer with 200+ cars from 96/95s right up to the very last facelifted 9-5s. And most had ridiculously low mileage

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Thanks Highlander…when next I’m in the UK with a day spare and some readies I might pop up to Norfolk. The only obvious problem is that they are probably all rhd. Although I have a couple of right hookers I prefer the other side nowadays. Just seems easier all round.

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The trip is worth it just to be amazed. My wife bought a 2010 9-3 fully loaded turbo from them last year with just 50k miles as her uk car when returning for work
You come off a minor road into an old quarry and you suddenly see 220 Saabs all parked nose to tail, side by side.
Quite a sight
You give them your spec and they send you a potential list. Pick what interests you and they are brought out ready for inspection
When we were there they had 96, 95 and everything from 99 onwards. They’d also
old MGBs but the only LHD was a very early Renault Alpine being sold on behalf of a customer
Pre 1970s - I once navigated in a works car in 72/3 and recall we both couldn’t wear anoraks at the same time :rofl:. This one may have been early 60s

George Topp.

12

Hi George…is it Hagstrom Saab in Kimberley that you are talking about?

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Or…on further research it could be Robert Holden? His prices certainly seem to be more reasonable/realistic than Hagstrom.

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Hagstrom who claim to be the country’s largest Saab dealer - and a friend who runs a Saab centre in Scotland (and who used to be dealer principal for one of the country’s largest Saab dealerships) rates them. We found them by chance when my wife was looking for something to replace her Volvo. High spec, low mileage and prices cheaper than anyone else we found was her attraction.

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Okay…thanks.

16

If you found a man who will give you a CT, then keep going back there.
Some CT stations are more ‘sympathetic’ in respect of older cars than others.

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It had a CT just before I bought it - bought a few hundred kms away -so I’ve 18 months before I have to take it to a local guy

George Topp.

18

Please - do you have a name? Adress of the Saab specialist?
OH pride and joy is a 93 classic 900 convertible that might need some attention eventually.

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I haven’t used them personally but I believe they are well thought of.

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As I mentioned above, here’s a very helpful and knowledgeable Saab specialist:

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