2003 SAAB 9-3 wheel

32 Safety
Inflatable curtains
The inflatable curtains, which protect the
head, are concealed along the lengths of
the headlining (all the way from front to rear
roof pillars).
The inflatable curtains inflate at the same
time as the side airbags in the front seats in
case of a side-on impact.
The inflatable curtains reduce the risk of
head injuries to the occupants of the car’s
outer seats. The inflatable curtains deploys
into the window area between the front and
rear roof pillars.
If the airbag system registers forces equiv-
alent to a high-speed frontal crash (Stage II
for the steering wheel and passenger
airbags), the inflatable curtains will also be
deployed.
WARNING
 Do not sit with your head rested
against the side window. The inflat-
able curtain is designed to inflate
between the window and the head.
Resting the head against the window
could prevent the inflatable curtain
from providing the intended
protection.
 Hang only light clothes from the hooks
on the rear seat courtesy handles. The
items of clothing must not contain
heavy or sharp objects. Do not use
wire coat hangers.
 Do not position a sun visor or similar in
the area that would be filled by the
inflatable curtain.
 To reduce the risk of head injuries in
the event of a crash, the roof pillars
and headlining incorporate cushioning
material. Do not attach anything to the
car’s headlining, roof pillars or side
panels as this could prevent the side-
impact protection from providing the
intended protection.
 Do not stack loads so high that they
could encumber the inflatable curtain
in the event of a crash.
Inflated side airbag
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35 Safety
Scrapping or working on airbag and
belt pretensionersFrequently asked questions on
function of the airbag
Do you still need to wear a safety belt if air-
bags are fitted?Yes, always! The airbag system compo-
nents merely supplement the car’s normal
safety system. Moreover, the front airbags
will only be actuated in a moderate to severe
frontal, or near-frontal crash, which means,
of course, that they provide no protection in
minor frontal crashes, major rear- or side-
crashes or if the car rolls over.
The safety belts help to reduce the sideway
movement of the body in a crash.
But they also ensure that, if a crash occurs
in which the airbags are inflated, the airbag
will make the optimum contact with the
occupant, i.e. square on from the front. If the
occupant meets the airbag in an offset posi-
tion, the protection afforded will be reduced.In addition, airbags provide no protection
against a secondary impact occurring in the
same incident. So there is no doubt about
the benefit of wearing safety belts at all
times.
Do not sit too close to the airbag: it needs
room to inflate.
The airbag inflates very quickly and power-
fully in order to protect an adult , before they
are thrown forward, in a serious frontal
crash.
How do I position the seat to leave room for
the airbag to inflate?Don’t have your seat too far forward.
Recline the seat back to increase the dis-
tance between you and the airbag. For short
drivers, special accessory pedal extensions
are available through your Saab dealer.
Airbags inflate extremely rapidly and with
great force – to be fast enough to protect an
adult in the seat.
WARNING
 Under no circumstances should any
modifications be made that affect the
steering wheel or the airbag’s electri-
cal circuitry.
 During any welding, both battery
cables must be disconnected and
covered.
 Before quick drying paint in the vicinity
of the electronic control module, the
module’s grounding points and wiring
must be covered.
 Airbags and safety belt pretensioners
must be deployed under controlled
conditions before the car is scrapped
or any of the system’s components are
removed. Airbags or belt pretension-
ers that have been deployed as a
result of a crash must be replaced by
new ones.
 Airbag-system components must
never be transferred for use in another
vehicle.
 All work involving the scrapping or
replacement of airbags or belt preten-
sioners must be carried out by autho-
rized personnel only.
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36 SafetyWhen do the airbags in the steering wheel
and passenger side of the dash board
inflate? The airbag will only be inflated under certain
predetermined conditions in a moderate to
severe frontal, or near-frontal crash,
depending on such factors as the force and
angle of the impact, the speed of the car on
impact, and the resistance to deformation of
the impacting object.
The airbag can only be activated once in the
same incident.
Do not attempt to drive the car after an
airbag has been inflated, even if it is possi-
ble.What won’t trigger the airbag? The airbag will not be activated in all frontal
crashes. For instance, if the car has hit
something relatively soft and yielding (e.g. a
snow drift or a hedge) or a solid object at a
low impact speed, the airbag will not neces-
sarily be triggered.
How loud is the inflation? The noise of the inflation is certainly loud,
but it is of an very short duration and will not
damage your hearing. For a short time after-
wards you could experience a buzzing
noise in your ears.
Most people who have experienced it
cannot remember the noise of the inflation
at all – all they remember is the noise of the
crash. Can you still use a child seat in the front if a
passenger airbag is installed? Definitely not!
Children 12 and under or shorter
than55 inches (140 cn) can be killed by the
airbag.
The back seat is the safest place for chil-
dren.
Never put a rear-facing child seat in the
front.
Sit as far back as possible from the air bag.
Always use seat belts and child restraints.
What should I do if the AIR-BAG warning
light comes on? If the warning light is on, it means that a fault
has been detected in the system. The
airbag cannot be relied on to operate as
intended and it might even be activated
erroneously. You should therefore take the
car to an authorized Saab dealer as soon as
possible.Are the dust and fumes given off when the
airbag operates at all harmful? Most people who have remained in a car
with little or no ventilation for several min-
utes complained only of minor irritation of
the throat and eyes. Avoid as much as pos-
sible getting dust on your skin as there is a
risk of skin irritation.
If you suffer from asthma, the incident may
bring on an attack, in which case you should
follow the normal procedure advised by
your doctor. It is advisable to consult a
doctor afterwards.
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40 SecurityLocking/unlocking the carRemote locking and unlocking also control
the car alarm.
Remote locking
Press the button once: all doors and
the trunk lid locked.
The hazard warning lights will flash once to
confirm.
The car will be locked automatically
3 minutes after it is unlocked unless a door
or the trunk lid is opened.Remote unlocking
Pressing the button once: the driver´s
door and the fuel filler door is unlocked.
Press a second time to unlock the rest of the
doors and enable the trunk lid switch.
The hazard warning lights will flash twice to
confirm.
If a fault arises in the locking system, the
Saab Information Display (SID) will display:
Saab Information Display (SID), see page
64.
Intermittent malfunctioning
Equipment in the vicinity of the car that uses
the same frequency as the remote control
may cause interference to the remote con-
trol signal. In this case, retry from another
angle and aim at the receiver located by the
steering wheel.If remote unlocking should fail to work
1 Remove the traditional key from the
remote control by pressing the emblem
on the reverse of the remote control.
(This key only fits the front left-hand
door.)
2 Carefully remove the cover plate from
the keyhole in the door.
3 Unlock the door with the key.
The car alarm will be tripped. To silence the
alarm, insert the remote control into the igni-
tion switch.
WARNING
Leaving children or pets unattended in a
locked car is dangerous. It is also danger-
ous to leave children in a vehicle with the
ignition key. A child or others could be
badly injured or even killed.
Never lock anyone in the car.
Lock system failure.
Contact Saab dealer.
Locking/unlocking the front left-hand door
with the traditional key1 Lock
2 Unlock
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41 Security
Locking a car with dead batteryThe steering wheel lock requires sufficient
battery voltage to lock and unlock. If the bat-
tery voltage drops below a certain level
while the remote control is in the ignition
switch, you will not be able to remove the
remote control.
If you must leave the car, proceed as
follows:
1 Lock the car by pressing down the lock
buttons on the doors.
2 Lock the front left door from outside with
the traditional key (see page 40). The
car is now locked but the car alarm will
remain inactive.
Trunk lidOpening
The trunk lid is unlock and slightly opened
when the button on the remote control
or driver’s door is pressed once.
The hazard warning lights will flash three
times to confirm.
The movement sensor in the cabin will be
disarmed.
Closing
The trunk lid is locked when closed.
If the doors are locked when the trunk lid is
closed it is armed and the movement sensor
in the cabin will be armed.
Opening button on driver’s door
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56 Instruments and controlsThis light indicates when the front fog lights
are on (see page 74).
The front fog lights are switched off auto-
matically when the engine is switched off.
When the fog lights are next needed, they
will have to be switched on manually.
This light indicates when the rear fog light is
on (see page 74).
The rear fog light is switched off automati-
cally when the engine is switched off. When
the fog light is next needed, it will have to be
switched on manually again.This light should come on briefly when you
turn the ignition key to ON. If it doesn´t come
on, have it fixed so it will be ready to warn
you if there is a problem. This light indicates
when the brake fluid level is too low (see
page 180).
The following message is shown on the
Saab Information Display (SID):For safety reasons, stop the car and check
the level of the brake fluid (see page 180).
If the level is normal, depress the brake
pedal firmly two or three times. Now check
the level again. If the level is still normal, you
may drive the car, with considerable cau-
tion, to the nearest Saab dealer to have the
brake system checked.
The brake system provides Electronic
Brakeforce Distribution (EBD). This distrib-
utes the brake pressure between the front
and rear wheels, in such a way as to achieve
optimum braking performance irrespective
of the car’s load.
If a fault arises in the EBD function, the ,
and lights will come on. Also, the fol-
lowing message will appear on the Saab
Information Display (SID):
If this is the case, drive carefully and contact
a Saab dealer as soon as possible. Refer to
Brake warning light on page 56, Antilock
braking warning on page 54 and TCS OFF
or ESP OFF indicator (certain variants only)
on page 63.
Front fog lights
Rear fog light Indicator
Brake warning lightBrake fluid level low.
Make a safe stop.
Contact Saab dealer.
WARNING
 Never drive the car if these two lights
are on at the same time. Danger of
brake failure!
 If the level of brake fluid in the reser-
voir is below the MIN mark, the vehicle
should be transported on a recovery
vehicle.
 Have the brake system checked
immediately at a Saab dealer.
Brake malfunction.
Make a safe stop.
Contact Saab dealer.
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57 Instruments and controls
This light reminds the driver to buckle up.
This light comes on when the parking brake
is applied (see page 148).
The parking brake is mechanical and oper-
ates on the rear wheels.This light comes on if a potentially serious
fault has occured in the airbag system.
The following message is shown on the
Saab Information Display (SID):
This light will come on for about three sec-
onds when the ignition switch is turned to
the Start or Drive position. It should go out
after the engine has started.
Seatbelt reminder
Parking brake warning
light
WARNING
Always apply the parking brake when
parking, see page 148.
Always apply the parking brake
before removing the remote control.
Do not apply the parking brake while
the car is moving.
Airbag warning lightAirbag malfunction.
Contact Saab dealer.
WARNING
 If the airbag readiness light stays on
after you start your vehicle, it means
the airbag system may not be working
properly. One or more of the following
conditions may occur:
- Non-deployment of the airbags in the
event of a crash.
- Deployment of the airbags without a
crash.
- Deployment of the airbags in crashes
less severe than intended.
 To help avoid injury to yourself or
others, have your vehicle serviced
right away if the airbag readiness light
stays on after you start your vehicle.
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60 Instruments and controlsSpeedometer (U.S. speedometer
shown)The speedometer displays the speed of the
car in miles per hour (mph). It receives infor-
mation about vehicle speed from the ABS’s
wheel sensors.
Temperature gaugeThe temperature gauge shows the temper-
ature of the coolant. The needle should be
in the middle of the scale when the engine
is at normal operating temperature.
If the needle goes into the red zone (which
can occur at high outside air temperatures
or under heavy engine loads), choose the
highest possible gear ratio and the lowest
possible engine speed, and avoid shifting
down.If the needle repeatedly enters the red zone,
stop the car as soon as it is safe to do so and
check the coolant level (see page 179).
NOTICEIf the needle, despite the above action,
enters the red zone, stop the car in a suit-
able place and allow the engine to idle. If
the needle continues to rise, switch off the
engine.
WARNING
Never open the cap of the expansion tank
completely when the engine is hot, open
with care. The pressure in the cooling-
system can cause hot coolant and steam
to be released. Failure to heed this warn-
ing may result in personal injury.
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