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142 Interior equipment
WARNING
Lay heavy bags on the floor. Place smaller and lighter bags on
top.
Elastic cargo net3: WARNING. Avoid eye injury. DO NOT
overstretch. ALWAYS keep face and body out of recoil path.
DO NOT use when strap has visible signs of wear or damage.
Secure heavy and bulky items using the lashing eyes provided
in the trunk. This will avert the danger of luggage flying around
if the car should brake suddenly or be involved in a crash.
Secure small items if the backrest is folded down. Small items
can also be thrown around inside the car and cause personal
injury.
Do not exceed the load capacity of the car, as this will alter its
handling characteristics (see page 284).93_US_MY09.book Page 142 Tuesday, April 15, 2008 10:30 AM
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143 Interior equipment
Load-through hatch, SportCombiA load-through hatch is incorporated in the rear seat backrest to
enable long, narrow items to be carried inside the car.
Before loading or unloading long items, switch off the engine and
apply the parking brake. This avoids the danger of the car moving
off if a long item were to knock the gear or selector lever into gear.
Fold down the armrest and open the hatch by lifting the handle.
WARNING
Always secure the load firmly, for example using the middle
safety belt. This reduces the danger of personal injury result-
ing from the displacement of the load on hard braking or in the
event of a crash.
Do not exceed the load capacity of the car, as this will alter its
handling characteristics (see page 284).93_US_MY09.book Page 143 Tuesday, April 15, 2008 10:30 AM
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Page 144 of 304
144 Interior equipmentTie down eyes, SportCombiThere are tie down eyes in the trunk that
should be used to secure loads. In general,
loads should be placed as far forward and
as low down as possible in the trunk.
Driving with the trunk lid open, see
page 193.
WARNING
Put heavy loads as low down and as
far forward as possible in the luggage
compartment, i.e. against the back of
the rear seat.
Never stack cargo so high that any
part of the cargo lies above the edge
of the backrest, if a cargo guard3 is
not being used.
Always tie down the cargo so that it
cannot be thrown forward during
heavy braking or in the event of a
crash.
Unsecured and heavy cargo can
increase the risk of injury during hard
braking, sudden avoidance manoeu-
vres and in the event of a crash.
Use the lashing eyes and suitable
anchorage straps3 for optimum
securing of loads.
Provide protection on sharp edges to
prevent damage to the cargo straps.
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145 Interior equipment
Cargo net3
If possible, avoid having the rear seat
folded down when driving with a heavy
load, because the anchoring possibili-
ties are restricted when the rear seat
is in this position. That the rear seat
is in the upright is a basic require-
ment for protection against cargo
displacement in the event of a
crash.
Improve safety by fastening the outer
safety belts. Check that the red "indi-
cator-flag" next to the opening han-
dles is not visible. If the red "indica-
tor-flag" is visible the backrest is not
locked.
Match your speed and driving style to
how the car is loaded. The handling
characteristics of the car can be
affected since a load in the trunk will
alter the car’s center of gravity.
An object weighing 55 lbs. (25 kg) cor-
responds to a weight of 2200 lbs.
(1,000 kg) in a front-end collision at
32 mph (50 km/h).
Adjust the car’s load (passengers and
luggage) so that the gross vehicle
weight and the axle weight are not
exceeded, see page 284.
WARNING
Never overload the cargo net3. If the
elastic breaks this may cause per-
sonal injury. Do not use a cargo net
that shows signs of wear.
Never use the elastic floor net3 and
elastic side net3 when the rear seat is
folded down. These nets are only
intended to keep light objects tidy, not
for the anchoring of loads.
Secure the load in the luggage com-
partment firmly. Using a cargo net is
not considered as load securing.
The only purpose of a cargo net is to
prevent light objects from being
thrown forward into the cabin during
heavy breaking.
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146 Interior equipmentCargo net, vertical3, SportCombi
Fit the net behind the rear seat backrest.
1 Remove the rear cover panels in the
roof.
2 Fit the net’s upper fasteners into the two
rear attachment points in the roof.
3 Secure the net’s hooks in the two
anchorage eyes closest to the rear seat.
Tension the straps.
The cargo net can also be fitted behind the
front seats when the whole rear seat is
folded.
1 Remove the front cover panels in the
roof.
2 Snap the net’s upper fasteners into the
two front attachment points in the roof.
3 Lengthen the straps with the enclosed
extra straps. Secure the hooks in the two
outer eyes furthest back on the front
seats’ rails down by the floor. Tension
the straps.
Storage
When the cargo net is not in use it should be
stored in the bag supplied. Position the bag
on the floor in the luggage compartment,
closest to the backrest and secure it in the
front anchorage eyes using the Velcro fas-
teners.
Attaching the cargo net to the roof
Cargo net fitted in front anchorage eyeStoring the cargo net
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147 Interior equipment
Cargo net, floor mounted3, SportCombi
1 Fold up the floor. Position the edges of
the floor in the slots in the side pieces.
2 Fit the bag/carrier on the lower floor and
secure the net’s hooks in the folded-up
floor.
Cargo net, floor mounted, SportCombi1 Upper bracket. Make sure that the rubber
bands are not twisted
2 Lower anchorage point
Cargo net, floor mounted, SportCombi
with subwoofer31 Upper bracket. Make sure that the rubber
bands are not twisted
2 Lower anchorage point
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163 Starting and driving
Park Brake Shift LockThe transmission has a security function
known as Park Brake Shift Lock. To move
the gear selector lever out of the P or N posi-
tion, the gear selector lever detent (catch)
must be pressed in at the same time as the
brake pedal is held depressed.
The detent button on the selector lever has
to be pressed in before the lever can be
moved between certain positions.
Temporary override of Park Brake Shift
Lock, see page 166.
Adaptive gear change patternsThe adaptive gear change pattern function
adapts gear changing to the prevailing driv-
ing conditions. The transmission control
module senses the engine load, vehicle
speed and temperature of the transmission.
A suitable gear change pattern is then
selected automatically to avoid unneces-
sary gear changes and undesired increases
in transmission temperature.
Certain variants use a special change pat-
tern for the first few minutes after a cold start
so that the catalytic converter reaches its
working temperature more quickly.
Sport modeSport mode is selected using the
button, while the word SPORT illuminates
on the SID . Changing up occurs later
and changing down occurs earlier at the
same accelerator pedal position.
Sport mode will deselected if:
The Sport button is depressed again
The engine is switched off.
Selector lever detent93_US_MY09.book Page 163 Tuesday, April 15, 2008 10:30 AM
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Page 188 of 304
188 Starting and drivingTowing a trailer3Make sure you are familiar with the legal
requirements regarding speed limits for
towing, maximum trailer weights, trailer
braking requirements, and also any spe-
cial driving licence provisions.
Trailer hitch attachment3Trailer hitch attachments are available as
accessories. These are designed for a max-
imum trailer weight of 3500 lbs (1588 kg),
with trailer brakes.
The towbar must not be installed on certain
models. Contact an authorised Saab dealer
for information.
An electrical connection3 for the towbar
and an electrical unit are provided in the
electrical center on the left-hand side of the
luggage compartment.
If the car has a 13-pin Saab genuine electri-
cal socket then it is possible to supply a
trailer/caravan with rear fog lights and
reversing lights. The caravan can also have
interior and exterior lighting even when the
car’s ignition is switched off. In which case,
remember not to load the battery for too
long so that it is discharged and pre-
vents the car from starting.
There is also access to power in the caravan
during a journey, the caravan battery can be
charged for example.
Also, if the car has SPA, this is deactivated
automatically if a trailer is hitched up and
correctly connected to the Saab genuine
trailer socket.
Saab recommendations:
Use a genuine Saab trailer hitch that is
designed and tested for your Saab.
WARNING
Do not drive with a trailer on inclines
steeper than 15 %. The load on the
drive (front) wheels will be so low that
the wheels can start to spin and pre-
vent further progress.
In addition, the car’s parking brake
may not always be sufficient to hold
the car and trailer securely, as the
wheels may start to slide.
Always apply the trailer’s parking
brake when unhitching it. There is oth-
erwise a risk of personal injury or
damage to the bumper should the
trailer start to roll.
When you hitch up the trailer be sure
to attach its safety chains to the holes
by the hitch.93_US_MY09.book Page 188 Tuesday, April 15, 2008 10:30 AM
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