I've had two Saabs: 89 900S 16V 5spd and 88 9000 Turbo Auto. The auto in my 9000 was shifting REALLY hard on the 1-2 upshift, so I brought it to a Saab dealer for diagnosis and they wanted $2700 to replace the trans. This was 8 years ago.
I called Autosports Unlimited in Michigan to get a price quote on a remanufactured trans and the guy asked me a few questions about the symptoms. He told me I probably had a broken solenoid accumulator spring, so he sent me the original Borg Warner parts kit for $25 (unavailable through Saab) and sure enough, the spring was sheared and 30 minutes later (valve body is on the top of that trans- easy to do) my 'broken' transmission was shifting like new.
I would guess that a Saab forum, like this one, would be able to provide that type of support, and save you money and frustration, and helping you enjoy Saab ownership.
You'll never find a site exactly like Pelican
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