Saab FM55

Saab's FM55 five-speed manual transaxle, in the 9-5 and the later 9-3.

⚑ Saab mounted its gearbox UNDER the engine, not beside it, with the drive taken down through a chain — a layout it kept from the 99 onward and that almost nothing else uses. Access, mounting and service procedure all differ from any conventional transaxle, and a technician meeting one for the first time should expect that before starting.

The consequence owners meet is that engine and gearbox share their oil space in the earlier designs — not on the FM55, which is separate, but the reputation follows the marque and gets applied to gearboxes it does not describe.

Its standing complaint is a notchy or blocked second when cold, which on this family is usually fluid: Saab specified its own and the generic substitute changes the feel measurably.

Saab closed in 2011 and the parts network went with it, so a rebuild depends on specialists and the owners' clubs rather than on a supply chain — which is the real constraint rather than any difficulty in the work.