2006 SAAB 9-2X four wheel drive

Starting and operating
7-5
7
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State emission testing (U.S.
only)/Canadian Provincial Emission TestingAt state inspection time, remember to
tell your inspection or service station
in advance not to place your Saab AWD
vehicle on a two-wheel dynamometer.
Otherwise, serious transmission dam-
age will result.
Some states/provinces have started using
dynamometers in their state inspection
programs in order to meet their obligation
under federal law to implement stricter ve-
hicle emission standards to reduce air pol-
lution from vehicles. A dynamometer is a
treadmill or roller-like testing device that
allows your vehicle’s wheels to turn while
the vehicle remains in one place. Depend-
ing on the severity of a state’s air pollution
problems, the states must adopt either a
“basic” or “enhanced” vehicle emission in-
spection test. Normally, a portion of the
basic emission test consists of an emis-
sion inspector inserting an analyzer probe
into the exhaust pipe of an idling vehicle
for a short period of time. States with more
severe air pollution problems are required
to adopt an enhanced vehicle emission
test. This test simulates actual driving
conditions on a dynamometer and permitsmore accurate measurement of tailpipe
emitted pollution than the basic emission
test.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agen-
cy (EPA) and states using two-wheel dy-
namometers in their emission testing pro-
grams have EXEMPTED Saab AWD vehi-
cles from the portion of the testing pro-
gram that involves a two-wheel dynamom-
eter.
There are some states that use four-wheel
dynamometers in their testing programs.
When properly used, that equipment will
not damage an AWD Saab vehicle.
Under no circumstances should the rear
wheels be jacked off the ground, nor
should the driveshaft be disconnected for
state emission testing.
The EPA has issued regulations for in-
specting the On-Board Diagnostic (OBD)
system as part of the state emissions in-
spection. The OBD system is designed to
detect engine and transmission problems
that might cause vehicle emissions to ex-
ceed allowable limits. These inspections
apply to all 1996 model year and newer
passenger cars and light trucks. Over 30
states plus the District of Columbia have
implemented the OBD system inspection.

The inspection of the OBD system con-
sists of a visual operational check of the
“CHECK ENGINE” warning light/malfunc-
tion indicator lamp (MIL) and an examina-
tion of the OBD system with an electronic
scan tool while the engine is running.

A vehicle passes
the OBD system in-
spection if proper the “CHECK ENGINE”
warning light/MIL illumination is observed,
there is no stored diagnostic trouble
codes, and the OBD system readiness
monitors are complete. Testing of an All-Wheel Drive vehi-
cle must NEVER be performed on a
single two-wheel dynamometer. At-
tempting to do so will result in un-
controlled vehicle movement and
may cause an accident or injuries to
persons nearby.
Resultant vehicle damage due to im-
proper testing is not covered under
the Saab Limited Warranty and is
the responsibility of the state in-
spection program or its contractors
or licensees.
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Driving tips
8-5
Driving tips for AWD vehiclesAll-Wheel Drive distributes the engine
power to all four wheels. AWD vehicles
provide better traction when driving on
slippery, wet or snow-covered roads and
when moving out of mud, dirt and sand. By
shifting power between the front and rear
wheels, AWD can also provide added
traction during acceleration and added en-
gine braking force during deceleration.
Therefore, your Saab AWD vehicle may
handle differently than an ordinary two
wheel drive vehicle and it contains some
features unique to AWD. For safety pur-
poses as well as to avoid damaging the
AWD system, you should keep the follow-
ing tips in mind:
An AWD vehicle is better able to climb
steeper roads under snowy or slippery
conditions than a two wheel drive vehicle.
There is little difference in handling, how-
ever, during extremely sharp turns or sud-
den braking. Therefore, when driving
down a slope or turning corners, be sure
to reduce your speed and maintain an am-
ple distance from other vehicles.

When replacing a tire, make sure you
use only the same size, construction,
brand, and load range as the original tires
listed on the tire label. Using other sizes,
circumference or construction may result
in severe mechanical damage to the drive
train of your vehicle and may affect ride,
handling, braking, speedometer/odometer
calibration, and clearance between the
body and tires. It also may be dangerous
and lead to loss of vehicle control.

If you use a temporary spare tire to re-
place a flat tire, be sure to use the original
temporary spare tire stored in the vehicle.
Using other sizes may result in severe
mechanical damage to the drive train of
your vehicle.

Always check the cold tire pressure be-
fore starting to drive. The recommended
tire pressure is provided on the tire label,
which is located under the door latch onthe driver’s side on U.S. vehicles or in the
glovebox on Canadian vehicles.

Tire chains should always be placed on
the front wheels only.

There are some precautions that you
must observe when towing your vehicle.
For detail information, see the “Towing”
section in chapter 9.
800004

Always maintain a safe driving
speed according to the road and
weather conditions in order to
avoid having an accident on a
sharp turn, during sudden braking
or under other similar conditions.

Always use the utmost care in
driving – overconfidence because
you are driving an All-Wheel Drive
vehicle could easily lead to a seri-
ous accident.
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Driving tips
8-9
8
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Snow tires
Your vehicle may be equipped with “all
season tires” as original equipment, which
are designed to provide an adequate
measure of traction, handling and braking
performance in year-round driving. In win-
ter, it may be possible to enhance perfor-
mance through use of tires designed spe-
cifically for winter driving conditions.
The optional 215/45R17 tires for the Aero
model are summer tires. Compared with
winter and all-season tires, summer tires
give significantly less grip on snowy and
icy road surfaces. Therefore, use of winter
tires is strongly recommended when driv-
ing with such road conditions.
When you choose to install winter tires on
your vehicle, be sure to use the correct tire
size and type. You must install four winter
tires that are of the same size, construc-
tion, brand and load range and you should
never mix radial, belted bias or bias tires
since this may result in dangerous han-
dling characteristics. When you choose a
tire, make sure that there is enough clear-
ance between the tire and vehicle body.
Remember to drive with care at all times
regardless of the type of tires on your ve-
hicle.
Tire chainsDriving on snowy grades or icy roads may
require the use of tire chains, in whichcase put the chains on the front wheels
only. Use only SAE class S type chains
that are of the correct size for your tires so
as not to damage the vehicle body or sus-
pension.
When driving with tire chains, drive at
speeds below 19 mph (30 km/h).
When a temporary spare tire is on a front
wheel, replace the temporary spare tire
with the rear tire on the same side of the
vehicle, and then fit chains on the front
tires.
Always use the utmost care when driving
with tire chains – overconfidence because
you are driving with tire chains could eas-
ily lead to a serious accident.

Rocking the vehicleIf you must rock the vehicle to free it from
snow, sand, or mud, depress the acceler-
ator pedal slightly and move the selector
lever back and forth between “D” and “R”
When replacing original tires with
winter (snow) tires, make sure you
use only the same size, construc-
tion and load range as the original
tires listed on the tire label. Using
other sizes and construction may
affect speedometer/odometer cal-
ibration and clearance between
the body and tires. It also may be
dangerous and lead to loss of ve-
hicle control.

You must install four winter tires
that are of the same size, con-
struction, brand, and load range.
Mixing other sizes or construc-
tions may result in severe me-
chanical damage to the drive train
of your vehicle and may affect
ride, handling, braking and speed-
ometer/odometer calibration. It
also may be dangerous and lead
to loss of vehicle control.

Do not use a combination of radi-
al, belted bias or bias tires since it
may cause dangerous handling
characteristics and lead to an ac-
cident.Tire chains cannot be used on tires
listed in the following because of
lack of clearance between the tires
and vehicle body.

Optional 215/45R17 tires for Aero
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11 - 3 0
Maintenance and service
Parking brake strokeCheck the parking brake stroke according
to the maintenance schedule in the “Saab
Warranty and Service Record Booklet”.
When the parking brake is properly adjust-
ed, braking power is fully applied by pull-
ing the lever up seven to eight notches
gently but firmly (approximately 44 lbs
[196 N, 20 kg]). If the parking brake lever
stroke is not within the specified range,
have the brake system checked and ad-
justed at your Saab dealer.
Tires and wheels
Types of tiresYou should be familiar with type of tires
present on your vehicle.
The factory-fitted tires are all-season tires
except for the 17-inch tires that are option-
al on the Aero (those are summer tires).

All season tires
All season tires are designed to provide
an adequate measure of traction, handling
and braking performance in year-round
driving including snowy and icy road con-
ditions. However all season tires do not of-
fer as much traction performance as win-
ter (snow) tires in heavy or loose snow or
on icy roads.
All season tires are identified by “ALL
SEASON” and/or “M+S” (Mud & Snow) on
the tire sidewall.

Summer tires
Summer tires are high-speed capability
tires best suited for highway driving under
dry conditions.
Summer tires are inadequate for driving
on slippery roads such as on snow-cov-
ered or icy roads.
If you drive your vehicle on snow-covered
or icy roads, we strongly recommend the
use of winter (snow) tires.When installing winter tires, be sure to re-
place all four tires.

Winter (snow) tires
Winter tires are best suited for driving on
snow-covered and icy roads. However
winter tires do not perform as well as sum-
mer tires and all season tires on roads oth-
er than snow-covered and icy roads.

Tire inspectionCheck on a daily basis that the tires are
free from serious damage, nails, and
stones. At the same time, check the tires
for abnormal wear.
Contact your Saab dealer immediately if
you find any problem.NOTE
When the wheels and tires strike
curbs or are subjected to harsh treat-
ment as when the vehicle is driven on a
rough surface, they can suffer damage
that cannot be seen with the naked eye.
This type of damage does not become
evident until time has passed. Try not
to drive over curbs, potholes or on oth-
er rough surfaces. If doing so is un-
avoidable, keep the vehicle’s speed
down to a walking pace or less, and ap-
proach the curbs as squarely as possi-
ble. Also, make sure the tires are not
B00379
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11 - 3 4
Maintenance and service
bel and to have a speed symbol and load
index matching those shown on the tire la-
bel.
Using tires of a non-specified size detracts
from controllability, ride comfort, braking
performance, speedometer accuracy and
odometer accuracy. It also creates incor-
rect body-to-tire clearances and inappro-
priately changes the vehicle’s ground
clearance.
All four tires must be the same in terms of
manufacturer, brand (tread pattern), con-
struction, and size. You are advised to re-
place the tires with new ones that are
identical to those fitted as standard equip-
ment.
For safe vehicle operation, Saab recom-
mends replacing all four tires at the same
time.
NOTEUnidirectional tires: Some tires have a
specified direction of rotation. A tire of
this type has an arrow or other mark on
its side wall to indicate the direction of
rotation. Install it so that the direction
of rotation is correct when the vehicle
is driven forward.

Wheel replacementWhen replacing wheels due, for example,
to damage, make sure the replacement
wheels match the specifications of the
wheels that are fitted as standard equip-
ment. Replacement wheels are available
from Saab dealers.
B00480

All four tires must be the same in
terms of manufacturer, brand
(tread pattern), construction, de-
gree of wear, speed symbol, load
index and size. Mixing tires of dif-
ferent types, sizes or degrees of
wear can result in damage to vehi-
cle’s power train. Use of different
types or sizes of tires can also
dangerously reduce controllabili-
ty and braking performance and
can lead to an accident.

Use only radial tires. Do not use
radial tires together with belted
bias tires and/or bias-ply tires. Do-
ing so can dangerously reduce
controllability, resulting in an ac-
cident.
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