2001 SAAB 9-5 height

15 Safety
Belt height adjustmentThe front safety belts and the outside belts
in the rear (9-5 Sedan) are equipped with
automatic height adjustment.
After fastening the belt, grasp it at chest
height, pull it out and, without letting go,
allow the slack to be taken up by the reel.
Make sure that the belt is well in on the
shoulder.
Safety belt use during pregnancyPregnant women must always wear a
safety belt to protect both themselves and
the unborn child.
The lap belt should be placed low, across
the hips and over the upper thighs.
IB414
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18 SafetyHead restraintThe front seats in the Saab 9-5 are
equipped with Saab Active Head Restraints
(SAHRs). These reduce the risk of whiplash
injury if the car is hit from behind.
In the event of a rear-end collision, the body
is forced back against the backrest. This, in
turn, causes the mechanism to press the
head restraint forward and upwards, thus
limiting the backward movement of the
head.
The SAHR is a mechanical system, actu-
ated by body weight. The mechanism is built
into the top of the backrest, where it is con-
nected to the head restraint.
The SAHR does not normally need to be
replaced after a rear-end collision. The head restraint can be raised or lowered
and is adjustable in various positions.
 Raising: grasp the head restraint on both
sides and pull it straight up.
 Lowering: press the catch on the left-hand
side of the attaching point and press down
the head restraint.
Rear-seat head restraints9-5 Sedan: The rear head restraints have
three adjustment positions for passenger
comfort.
They can also be folded down to increase
the driver’s rearward vision when the seat is
unoccupied.
9-5 Wagon: The height of the rear head
restraints can be adjusted to provide opti-
mum passenger comfort.
WARNING
 Adjust the head restraint so that the
head is well supported and the center
of the head restraint is at ear height,
thus reducing the likelihood of neck
injury in an accident.
 The rear head restraint should not be
folded down when the seat is occu-
pied.
IB460
IB400
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72 Instruments and controls
Temperature control The cabin is divided into two temperature
zones:
 The driver’s zone.
 The passenger zone (front and rear
seats).
The desired temperature can be set
between 58 and 82°F (15 and 27°C). In
addition, there are also HI and LO settings
(see below). The HI and LO settings for the
passenger zone can only be selected if they
are also selected for the driver’s zone.
The displayed temperature is not the abso-
lute temperature but corresponds to the
comfort level normally experienced at that
temperature after allowance has been
made for the air flow, relative humidity, solar
radiation, etc., currently prevailing inside
the car.
 The most usual temperature setting is
64-76°F (18-24°C), depending on per-
sonal preference and what clothing is
worn.
 It is recommended that changes in the
temperature setting be made in steps of
2°F (1°C).
 Once the desired climate has been
achieved, the rear center vents can be
closed to prevent warm air being distrib-
uted at face height.Settings when HI selected:
 Maximum heat.
 Air distribution to windshield and floor.
 Recirculation OFF (even if manually
selected before).
 Fan: high speed.
 Settings shown on ACC display.
Settings when LO selected:
 Maximum cooling (A/C compressor will
run even if ECON manually selected
before).
 Air distribution through panel vents.
 Fan: maximum speed.
 Recirculation ON.
 Settings shown on ACC display.
IB369
Air vent at rear side window
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120 Interior equipment and trunkSeats Both front seats are electrically operated.
On certain models the driver´s seat is
equipped with a memory function.
To facilitate getting into the car, both seats
can be adjusted when either of the front
doors is open.
For safety reasons, if the door is closed, the
seat can only be adjusted when the ignition
is ON.
Note, however, that both seats can be
adjusted for 30 seconds after both doors
have been closed. The following seat adjustments can be
made to achieve a comfortable driving
position:
Height.
 Legroom.
 Backrest rake angle.
 Lumbar support.
 Head-restraint height.
We recommend that adjustments to the
driver’s seat be performed in the following
order:
1Height.
2 Legroom.
3 Seat tilt angle.
4 Backrest rake angle.
Lastly, adjust the steering wheel (see page
124).
Side airbags (see page 28).Head restraint(see page 18).
Height To raise the seat, lift the lower control
straight up.
To lower the seat, press the lower control
down.
The same control can be used to adjust the
height of the front and rear edges of the seat
independently.
WARNING
The seats are actuated by powerful
motors. Ensure that nothing can be
trapped when adjusting the seat.
Bear in mind that children can be injured
if they play with the electrically-operated
seats
WARNING
Never adjust the driver’s seat except
when the car is stationary.
IB401
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138 Interior equipment and trunk
Folding the narrow section of the backrestThe folding is facilitated if the front seat is not too far back.
1 Make sure that the head restraint is in the down position.
2 Put the safety belt in the belt clip near the backrest.
3 Lift the seat cushion by pulling the loop located between the
cushion and the backrest.
4 Fold the narrow section (right) of the backrest forward by raising
the opening handle.
5 Adjust the front seat for optimal passenger comfort.
WARNING
 Do not travel in the back seat without ensuring that the head
restraint is set at a suitable height.
 Never allow anyone to sit on a folded backrest.
 Always be aware of the risk of pinching when handling moving
parts of the seating.
 Never place heavy objects on the parcel shelf. There is always
a danger of loose objects flying about and causing injury if the
car should brake suddenly or be involved in an accident.
 Make sure that the backrests are locked when they are folded
back upright. Check that the two red warning-indication flags
are fully down. This indicates that the backrests are locked.
 Check that the safety belt lock is not trapped under the seat
cushions when these are raised back up.
 If the car is equipped with a pull-out cargo net on the rear of the
backrest, take extra care when folding the rear seat so that no
one is injured by the net’s storage cassette on the right-hand
side.
NOTEThe safety belts for the outer seating positions should be put in
their respective belt clips near the back rest to prevent them being
pinched when the rear seat is raised to the upright position, see
illustration page 137.
IB1213
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188 Car care and technical informationHood release handleThe hood release handle is located under-
neath the instrument panel. To open the
hood:
1 Pull the release handle.
2 The front of the hood will now spring up,
providing access to the secondary
safety catch.
3 Push the catch upwards, lifting the hood
at the same time. The hood can now be
lifted right up.
To close the hood, release it from a height
of about 8 in (20 cm). Do not press down on
it.
In cold weather, when the mechanism is
stiff, the hood might need to be released
from twice the height to lock properly.
Check that the hood is now closed securely.
WARNING
Make sure not to hold your fingers
between the hood and the hood safety
catch if you lay the hood down but not
closing it.
IB487
IB486
Hood release handle Hood secondary safety catch
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222 Car care and technical informationRotating tiresBecause the car has front-wheel drive, the
front tires tend to wear faster than the rear
ones. New tires should always be fitted in
pairs, so that tires on the same axle have the
same amount of tread.
If swapping the complete set, e.g. winter
tires for summer tires, mark the tires
removed to ensure that they go back in the
same position (e.g. FL for front left, RL rear
left, etc.).
Store wheels lying flat or hanging – never
standing upright.
Tire markingsAn example of the meaning of the different
markings in a tire size is given below for a
tire size of:
205/65 R15 94 V
Winter tiresWinter (snow) tires are recommended for
winter climates where the majority of your
driving will be done on snow and ice. Winter
tires should be fitted to all four wheels to
maintain a proper balance. Your Saab
dealer can advise you as to the correct size
tire for your car (if different from the original
size) and also supply Saab approved winter
tires.Tire quality grading (cars sold in
U.S.)New tires must be graded and labeled in
accordance with new Federal regulations.
Standard tests are conducted to measure
performance in the areas of traction and
temperature resistance. Refer to the tire
sidewall for the specific quality grades of the
tires provided on your new Saab. Compact
spare tires are exempt.
DOT QUALITY GRADES
 Treadwear
 Traction AA, A, B, C
 Temperature A, B, C
All passenger car tires must conform to Fed-
eral safety requirements in addition to these
grades.
WARNING
When fitting just one new pair of tires,
these should be fitted to the rear wheels,
as these are more critical to the direc-
tional stability of the car (e.g. on braking
or in a skid). The existing rear wheels
should therefore be moved to the front.
Always move left rear to left front and right
rear to right front, so that the direction of
rotation remains the same.
205 Tire section width, mm
65 Aspect ratio, i.e. the section height
is 65% of the section width
R Radial ply
15 Wheel rim diameter 15 in at bead
seats
94 Tire load code
V Speed marking
Speed ratings S Tire approved for speeds up to
100 mph (180 km/h)
T Tire approved for speeds up to
118 mph (190 km/h)
H Tire approved for speeds up to
130 mph (210 km/h)
V Tire approved for speeds up to
150 mph (240 km/h)
W Tire approved for speeds up to
167 mph (270 km/h)
Y Tire approved for speeds up to
186 mph (300 km/h)
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228 Car care and technical informationIf a floor jack is used, it can be applied to the
standard jacking points used by the dealer.
A floor jack can lift both front wheels or both
rear wheels off the ground simultaneously.
A jack stand must then be applied under-
neath the front of the engine subframe (at
the fixing point for the towrope-attachment
eye) or to the rear towrope-attachment eye
(or under the trailer hitch, if fitted).
1 Put the car in 1st gear (automatic trans-
mission: move selector to the P position)
and apply the parking brake.2 Wind the jack up to a suitable height
before placing it under the recess in the
sill.
Make sure that the jack fully engages
the recess in the sill and that the base of
the jack is steady and flat on the ground.
3 Remove the wheel cover (where appli-
cable).
Loosen the wheel bolts by half a turn.
4 Wind the jack to raise the wheel clear of
the ground. Remove the wheel bolts and
lift off the wheel.
5 Fit the wheel and screw in the bolts in the
sequence shown (opposite pairs).
Tighten the bolts enough for the bolts
and wheel to be seated correctly.
6 Lower the car and tighten the wheel
bolts to the correct torque in the
sequence shown (opposite pairs).
Tightening torque
Light-alloy wheels: 80 ft.lbs. (110 Nm)
Steel wheels: 80 ft.lbs. (110 Nm)
Do not overtighten the bolts using a per-
cussion nut tightener: not only can this
damage the wheels but it can also make
it impossible to undo the bolts using the
wheel wrench in the car’s toolkit. 7 Check-tighten the wheel bolts after a
few miles.
Tightening torque
Light-alloy wheels: 80 ft.lbs. (110 Nm)
Steel wheels: 80 ft.lbs. (110 Nm)NOTEApply the jack only to the jacking points
indicated.
NOTEWhen refitting wheel covers (where
applicable), make sure that the valve
protrudes through the hole in the wheel
cover.
IB1130
Jacking points for a trolley jack
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