2006 SAAB 9-3 Cover

25 Safety
General 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.
We recommend that you 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 - at 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 . In this vehicle,
LATCH is installed at the two outboard seat-
ing 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 28. 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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28 SafetyChild tether anchorages for
forward facing child seatsSport Sedan
Convertible, see page 30
Child restraints with a tether strap must be
attached according to Canadian and U.S.
safety standards.
If you have any questions regarding child
anchorages please contact your Saab
dealer.The car is provided with three top tether
anchorages. Use the one that is right behind
the seating position in which the child
restraint is to be installed and attach the
restraint as follows:
1 Open the cover that is right behind the
child restraint, 1 in illustration.
2 Place the child restraint in the rear seat.
3 Secure the lower part of the child
restraint by means of the lower anchor-
ages or the safety belts as described in
the child restraint installation instruction.
4 Lower the headrest and route the tether
over it.
5 Attach the tether to the anchorage, 2 in
illustration.
6 Close the cover to the middle position, 3
in illustration.7 Tighten the tether so that the back of the
child restraint is pressed hard against
the backrest.
8 Pull the child restraint to make a second
check that the restraint is securely
attached at both the lower anchorages
bars on the safety belts and the top
tether strap.
WARNING
Child top tether anchorages are designed
to withstand only those loads imposed by
correctly fitted child restraints.
Under no circumstances are they to be
used for adult safety belts.
Child tether anchorages in parcel shelf, Sport Sedan
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39 Safety
The passenger sensing system is designed
to enable (may inflate) the right front
passenger’s frontal airbag anytime the
system senses that a person of adult size is
sitting properly in the right front passenger’s
seat. When the passenger sensing system
has allowed the airbag to be enabled, the on
indicator will light and stay lit to remind you
that the airbag is active.
For some children who have outgrown child
restraints and for very small adults, the pas-
senger sensing system may or may not turn
off the right front passenger’s frontal airbag,
depending upon the person’s seating pos-
ture and body build. Everyone in your vehi-
cle who has outgrown child restraints
should wear a safety belt properly —
whether or not there is an airbag for that per-
son.If a person of adult-size is sitting in the right
front passenger’s seat, but the off indicator
is lit, it could be because that person is not
sitting properly in the seat. If this happens,
turn the vehicle off and ask the person to
place the seatback in the fully upright posi-
tion, then sit upright in the seat, centered on
the seat cushion, with the person’s legs
comfortably extended. Restart the vehicle
and have the person remain in this position
for about two minutes. This will allow the
system to detect that person and then
enable the passenger’s airbag.Aftermarket equipment, such as seat
covers, can affect how well the passenger
sensing system operates. You may want to
consider not using seat covers or other
aftermarket equipment if your vehicle has
the passenger sensing system. See Adding
Equipment to Your Airbag-Equipped Vehi-
cle for more information about modifications
that can affect how the system operates.
WARNING
If the airbag readiness light in the instru-
ment panel cluster ever comes on and
stays on, it means that something may be
wrong with the airbag system. If this ever
happens, havethe vehicle serviced
promptly, because an adult-size person
sitting in the right front passenger’s seat
may not have the protection of the frontal
airbag. See Airbag warning lamp on
page 43 for more on this, including impor-
tant safety information.
WARNING
Stowing of articles under the passenger’s
seat or between the passenger’s seat
cushion and seatback may interfere with
the proper operation of the passenger
sensing system.
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40 SafetyHead protectionThe pillar trim and headlining (not Converti-
ble soft top) are designed to absorb energy,
softening possible blows to the head. After
a crash, these items must be changed in the
seat positions that were occupied. Never fit
accessories to the pillar trim or headlining
as these could reduce the effectiveness of
the head protection and inflatable curtain
(Sport Sedan and SportCombi).
Side-impact protection
The side airbags, which help protect the
upper body (head also in Convertible), are
integrated in the outside edges of the front
seat backrests. The side impact protection
of the Sport Sedan also includes inflatable
curtains (see page 42).
The side impact protection will be activated
if certain predetermined conditions are met
such as the force and angle of the impact,
the speed of the car on impact, and at which
point on the car´s side the impact occurs.
WARNING
 This car is equipped with side airbags
and no extra seat cover should be
fitted. Failure to observe this warning
could result in the side airbags not
inflating as intended and thus not
providing the intended protection
either.
 Never place any object in the area that
would be occupied by the inflated air-
bag.
 For optimum protection, sit upright in
the seat, with your safety belt correctly
fastened.
 The side-impact protection will only be
activated in the event of a side-on
crash and not in the event of a rear-
end crash or the car rolling over. For
the Convertible’s Roll-over protection
see page 78.
 Damage or wear to the seat cover, or
the seat seam, in the area of the side
airbag must be repaired immediately.
We recommend that you contact a
Saab dealer.
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43 Safety
For optimal protection, do not sit too close to
the door. Bear this in mind, for example, if
someone is sleeping in the car. The inflat-
able curtain comes down from the headlin-
ing and covers a large portion of the side
windows.
Airbag warning lamp What Will You See After an
Airbag Inflates?
After an airbag inflates, it quickly deflates,
so quickly that some people may not even
realize the airbag inflated. Some compo-
nents of the airbag module - the steering
wheel hub for the driver's frontal airbag, the
instrument panel for the right front passen-
ger's frontal airbag or the ceiling of your
vehicle near the side windows - will be hot
for a short time. The parts of the bag that
come into contact with you may be warm,
but not too hot to touch. There will be some
smoke and dust coming from the vents in
the deflated airbags. Airbag inflation does
not prevent the driver from seeing or being
able to steer the vehicle, nor does it stop
people from leaving the vehicle.
WARNING
 If the airbag readiness light stays on
after you start your vehicle, it means
the airbag system may not be working
properly. See page 87.
 The airbags in your vehicle may not
inflate in a crash, or they could even
inflate without a crash.
 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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44 SafetyIn many crashes severe enough to inflate an
airbag, windshields are broken by vehicle
deformation. Additional windshield break-
age may also occur from the right front pas-
senger airbag.
 Airbags are designed to inflate only once.
After an airbag inflates, you will need
some new parts for your airbag system. If
you do not get them, the airbag system
will not be there to help protect you in
another crash. A new system will include
airbag modules and possibly other parts.
The service manual for your vehicle
covers the need to replace other parts.
 Your vehicle is equipped with a crash
sensing and diagnostic module which
records information after a crash. See
Vehicle Data Collection and Event Data
Recorders on page 292. Let only qualified technicians work on
your airbag system. Improper service can
mean that your airbag system will not
work properly. See your dealer for
service.
Notice:
If you damage the covering for
the driver's or the right front passenger's
airbag, or the side impact airbag cover-
ing on the ceiling near the side windows,
the bag may not work properly. You may
have to replace the airbag module in the
steering wheel, both the airbag module
and the instrument panel for the right
front passenger's airbag, or side impact
airbag module and ceiling covering for
the roof-mounted side impact airbag. Do
not open or break the airbag coverings.
Servicing the airbag systemThe airbag system must be inspected as
part of the normal service program but oth-
erwise may be regarded as maintenance-
free.
WARNING
When an airbag inflates, there is dust in
the air. This dust could cause breathing
problems for people with a history of
asthma or other breathing trouble. To
avoid this, everyone in the vehicle should
get out as soon as it is safe to do so. If you
have breathing problems but can not get
out of the vehicle after an airbag inflates,
then get fresh air by opening a window or
a door. If you experience breathing prob-
lems following an airbag deployment, you
should seek medical attention.93U S M 06.book Page 44 Friday, February 18, 2005 1:15 PM
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45 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.93U S M 06.book Page 45 Friday, February 18, 2005 1:15 PM
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64 9-3 ConvertibleAdvice on soft top
operation Once you have raised the soft top and
before driving off, always check that the
soft top is properly engaged with the wind-
shield rail.
 Once you have folded the soft top and
before driving off, check that the soft top
cover is locked.
 Do not operate the soft top in tempera-
tures below 23°F (–5°C).
 Note that certain automatic car washes
can damage the soft top. This applies to
car washes that use mechanical feelers
bearing against the body. Saab advises
against washing the Convertible in an
automatic car wash.
 After rain or washing the car, allow the soft
top to dry completely before folding it.
Folding a wet or damp soft top can cause
water damage in the car and mildew to
form on the soft top. Roof racks and ski holders must not be
mounted on the soft top.
 On no account should anything be put into
the stowage space of the soft top (under
the soft top cover) since this could cause
an obstruction when the soft top is being
folded away.
 Do not place any objects on the covers
over the roll bars as this can hamper their
function.
 When operating the soft top, raise or fold
it fully until notified that operation is
complete by the SID. Do not leave the soft
top partially open/closed. If the soft top is
left in an intermediate position it will
collapse progressively after 20 seconds
to prevent overloading the drive system.
 Washing the soft top, see page 277.
WARNING
 Never touch the hinges and struts of
the soft top nor the upper rail of the
windshield while operating the soft
top.
 Do not operate the soft top while there
are bystanders close to the car.
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