2004 SAAB 9-3 Owners Manual

17 Safety
Legroom adjustmentLift the lever under the front of the seat and
slide the seat to the desired position.
Backrest rake angleTo find the most comfortable position, turn
the knob to provide stepless adjustment of
the backrest.
Lumbar support, Sport SedanAdjust the firmness of the lumbar support by
turning the knob.
WARNING
Check that the seat is locked in the new
position. If not, it may move while the car
is being driven and it could result in injury
to the occupant in the event of a crash.
WARNING
The backrest should be upright during
driving, so that the safety belt, airbag and
backrest can provide optimum protection
in the event of emergency braking or a
crash, in particular a rear-end crash.Adjusting the backrest
Adjusting the legroom Adjusting the lumbar support
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18 SafetyElectrically adjustable front seats
(option)With the doors closed the seats can only be
adjusted when the ignition is ON.
However, there are two exceptions:
 To facilitate getting into the car, both seats
can be adjusted when either of the front
doors is open.
 The seats can be adjusted up to
2 minutes after both doors have been
closed (applicable only to cars without
window and sunroof pinch protection).
Height adjustment and seat angleAdjust the height of the seat with the rear
section of the front lever.
Adjust the angle of the seat with the front
section of the front lever.
Legroom adjustmentAdjust the legroom with the front lever.
WARNING
 The seats are actuated by powerful
motors. Bear this in mind when adjust-
ing the seat, and make sure that noth-
ing gets caught and damaged. Ensure
that nothing can be trapped behind the
seat when adjusting it.
 Bear in mind that children can be
injured if they play with the electrically-
operated seats.
Always remove the remote control
when you leave the car to prevent
personal injury caused by the electri-
cally adjustable seats, for example,
due to children playing. Electrically
adjustable front seats with memory
function, see page 19.
Adjusting the height and angle Adjusting the legroom
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19 Safety
Backrest rake angleAdjust the rake angle of the backrest with
the rear lever.
Lumbar support, driver’s seatAdjust the firmness of the lumbar support by
turning the knob.
Memory function (option)
WARNING
The backrest should be upright during
driving, so that the safety belt, airbag and
backrest can provide optimum protection
in the event of emergency braking or a
crash, in particular a rear-end crash.
WARNING
The legroom of the electrically operated
driver’s seat can always be adjusted,
whether or not a front door is open and
irrespective of the position of the ignition
switch.
Adjusting the rake angle Adjusting the lumbar support
Driver’s seat in Sport SedanMemory function buttons
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20 SafetyWhen the ignition is ON, all seat settings
can be adjusted. When the door is open and
before the remote control has been inserted
into the ignition switch, all seat settings can
be adjusted for up to 20 minutes.
The memory also includes the door mirror
settings.
Storing and restoring settings
1 Adjust the seat and the door mirrors.
The lumbar support is not included by
the memory function.
2 Press and hold the M-button and then
press one of the preselect buttons (1, 2
or 3). A chime will sound to confirm that
the settings have been saved.
To recall programmed settings, press and
hold the desired memory button until the
seat and door mirrors adopt their pro-
grammed positions. The memory function
also includes the door mirror settings.
To facilitate reversing, the passenger-side
door mirror can be angled down, refer to
page 128.
Head restraintsSport Sedan
Head restraint, Convertible, see page 66.
The front seats are equipped with Saab
Active Head Restraints (SAHRs). These
reduce the risk of neck injury if the car is hit
from behind.
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.
In the event of a rear-end crash, the body is
forced back against the backrest. This, in
turn, causes the mechanism to press the
head restraint forward and upward, thus lim-
iting the backward movement of the head.Therefore, the SAHR does not normally
need to be replaced or repaired after a rear-
end crash.
The front and rear head restraints can be
raised and lowered to a number of positions.
 Raising: grasp the head restraint on both
sides and pull it straight up.
 Lowering: Press the head restraint
forward and downward.
The rear head restraints can be lowered
fully to improve rearward vision when the
rear seats are unoccupied.
WARNING
 Adjust the head restraint so that the
head is optimally supported and the
center of the head restraint is at ear
height, thus reducing the likelihood of
neck injury in a crash.
 Raise the head restraints in the seats
that are occupied.
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21 Safety
Child safety
WARNING
 Children must always be suitably
restrained in the car.
 DEATH or SERIOUS
INJURY can occur
 Children 12 and under or
shorter than 55 inches
(140 cm) can be killed by the
airbag
 The BACK SEAT is the SAFEST place
for children
NEVER put a rear-facing child seat in
the front
 Sit as far back as possible from the
airbag
ALWAYS use SAFETY BELTS and
CHILD RESTRAINTS
WARNING
Never leave children unattended in a
car, even for a shor t time.
– Children can suffer heat stroke,
perhaps die, in a matter of minutes.
– Children can put the car into gear and
hurt themselves or others.
 At gas stations, take the remote
control out of the car while filling the
tank.
Never allow children to climb on top of
or under motor vehicles.
Always look for children before back-
ing your car out of a garage or drive-
way.
 To avoid carbon monoxide poisoning,
never let a car idle in the garage.
 Supervise young children around
buckets of water while washing your
car. Small children can drown in a
short time in less than an inch of water.
WARNING
Protect children from getting
trapped in the trunk of your car
 Teach children not to play in or around
cars.
 Watch children when loading or
unloading the car so they don´t get
locked in by mistake.
Always lock the doors and trunk of
your car, and keep the keys out of chil-
dren´s sight and reach.
 Keep the rear fold-down seat closed to
help prevent children from getting into
the trunk from inside the car.
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22 SafetyGeneral information on child safetyThe same attention must be given to child
safety in the car as is given to adults.
Children travel most safely when properly
restrained. However, the type of restraint
must be appropriate for the size of the child.
Always consult your Saab dealer before
fitting a child seat, child restraint or booster
cushion.
Make sure you are acquainted with the
legal requirements for seating children
in the car.
Make sure that it is possible to fit a child
restraint in accordance with the manufac-
turer’s child restraint instructions.
When fitting child restraints in cars you
must always read the instructions sup-
plied by the child restraint manufacturer.
Saab recommends the use of a rear-
facing child seat for as long as this is
possible - a minimum for all children
under the age of 3 (approx. 15 kg). Use a
child seat approved for the weight of the
child.
Saab recommends the use of a booster seat
for children up to the age of 10.
LATCHLATCH (Lower Anchorages & Top tethers
for CHildren) is a US/Canadian safety stan-
dard for a uniform method of fitting child
restraints without using the standard safety
belts. Only certain child restraints are
equipped to utilize the LATCH system.
The LATCH system is installed in the car to
facilitate proper fitting of child restraints
designed for and equipped with LATCH
attachments. The LATCH system consists of top tether
and lower anchorages (also called ISOFIX).
In this vehicle, LATCH is installed at the two
outboard seating positions in the rear seat,
and there is a top tether on the rear center
position (not Convertible). The top tethers
are located on top of the parcel shelf
(Convertible: behind the head restraints),
see page 25. They are covered by a lid with
a child seat anchor symbol. The lower
anchorages are located where the seat
cushion and seat back come together.
There is a label above the inner lower
anchorage, see picture on next page. Label
consists of a symbol of a child restrained in
a seat inside a circle.
When fitting child restraints in cars you must
always read the instructions supplied by the
child restraint manufacturer.
If you have any questions regarding LATCH
please contact your Saab dealer.
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23 Safety
Lower anchorages (ISOFIX) in the rear seat, Sport SedanLower anchorages (ISOFIX) in the rear seat, Convertible
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24 SafetyLATCH child seat installation
Before starting the installation, please read
through this instruction, and the child seat
installation instruction.
1 Place the child restraint on one of the
designated outboard rear seat cush-
ions.
2 Slide the attachment on the child
restraint in between the seat cushion
and backrest.
3 Press the child restraint down on the
seat, 1 in illustration.
4 Press the child restraint rearward, lining
up the inner restraint attachment arm
with the label, 2 in illustration.
5 Connect the restraint attachment arms
to the anchorages 3 in illustration.
6 Follow the child restraint instructions to
confirm that both restraint attachment
arms are properly attached to the bars.
7 Attach the top tether strap to the in-car
anchorage and tighten according to the
restraint instructions, see page 25 and
26.
8 Pull the child restraint to make a second
check that the restraint is securely
attached at both the lower anchorage
bars and the top tether strap.
Only use the belt supplied with the child
restraint.
For the top tether, only use the strap sup-
plied with the child restraint.
The availability of LATCH child restraints is
limited.When fitting child restraints in cars you
must always read the instructions sup-
plied by the child restraint manufacturer.
Rigid 2-point lower anchorage with top
tetherSemi-rigid 2-point lower anchorage with
top tether
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