2009 SAAB 9-3 overheating

86 Instruments and controlsThis light comes on when there is less than
about 2.5 gallons (10 liter) of fuel left in the
tank.
This light indicates that the headlights or
parking lights are on.
This light comes on when the system is
engaged.This symbol lights up when the system is
operative.
Operation of the ESP
® indicates reduced
cohesion between the tires and the road,
and that extra care should be taken by the
driver.This symbol lights up when the system is
disengaged, see page 176.
If there is a malfunction, the symbol cannot
be turned off by pressing the ESP
® button.
The following message is shown on the
Saab Information Display (SID):
If so, have the system checked at a Saab
dealer.
See also Electronic Stability Program ESP
®
on page 175.
Indicator, fuel
NOTICE
If the car runs out of fuel, air can be drawn
in with the fuel, which, in turn, can cause
the catalytic converter to be damaged by
overheating.
Headlight and parking
light indicator
Cruise control indicator
light
ESP
® indicator
ESP® OFF indicatorWARNING
The system improves stability and
maneuverability under slippery road and
extreme driving conditions. It must how-
ever not be regarded as a system
to enable the driver to maintain higher
speeds. The same precautions as
normal for safe cornering and driving
on slippery roads must be adopted (see
pages 173/ 175).
Stability control failure.
Contact service.
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125 Interior equipment
If the indicator light blinks rapidly for two
seconds and then turns to a constant
light continue with "Programming"
steps 7-9 to complete the programming of
a rolling code equipped device (most
commonly a garage door opener).
7 At the garage door opener receiver
(motor-head unit) in the garage, locate
the "learn" or "smart" button. This can
usually be found where the hanging
antenna wire is attached to the
motor-head unit.
8 Firmly press and release the "learn" or
"smart" button. (The name and color of
the button may vary by manufacturer.)
Note: There are 30 seconds in which to ini-
tiate step nine.
9 Return to the vehicle and firmly press,
hold for two seconds and release the
programmed button. Repeat the
"press/hold/release" sequence a
second time, and, depending on the
brand of the garage door opener (or
other rolling code equipped device),
repeat this sequence a third time to
complete the programming process.
The garage opener should now activate
your rolling code equipped device.
Note: To program the remaining two but-
tons, begin with "Programming" - step
three. Do not repeat step two. Gate Operator / Canadian Programming
Canadian radio-frequency laws require
transmitter signals to "time-out" (or quit)
after several seconds of transmission -
which may not be long enough for the
garage opener to pick up the signal during
programming. Similar to this Canadian law,
some U.S. gate operators are designed to
"time-out" in the same manner.
If you live in Canada or you are having diffi-
culties programming a gate operator by
using the "Programming" procedures
(regardless of where you live), replace
"Programming " step 4 with the following:
Note: If programming a garage door opener
or gate operator, it is advised to unplug the
device during the "cycling" process to pre-
vent possible overheating.
Continue to press and hold the button while
you press and release - every two sec-
onds ("cycle") your hand-held transmitter
until the frequency signal has successfully
been accepted by the garage opener. (The
indicator light will flash slowly and then rap-
idly.)
Proceed with "Programming" step five to
complete.Reprogramming a single button
To program a device to the garage opener
using a button previously trained, follow
these steps:
1 Press and hold the desired button. DO
NOT release the button.
2 The indicator light will begin to flash after
20 seconds. Without releasing the
button, proceed with "Programming" -
step 3.
NOTICESwitch off the power supply to the garage
door or gate (or park the car beyond the
range of the remote control) while pro-
gramming using the "cycling" method to
prevent damaging the electrical motor.
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155 Starting and driving
To ensure that the catalytic converter con-
tinues to function properly, and also to avoid
damage to the converter and its associated
components, the following points must be
observed:
 Have the car serviced regularly in accor-
dance with the service program.
 Always be alert to any misfiring of the
engine (not running on all cylinders) and
any loss of power or performance. At the
first sign of a malfunction, reduce speed
and take the car to a workshop. We
recommend that you contact a Saab
dealer. If the engine fails to start (in severe cold or
if the battery is flat), the car can be bump
started (manual transmission only) or
started using jump leads to a donor
battery. However, as soon as you have
started the engine, it is important that it
runs on all cylinders. If it is misfiring, allow
it to idle for up to 5 minutes to give it time
to settle and run smoothly. If, after this
time, the engine still fails to run properly,
switch off the engine to avoid serious
damage to the catalytic converter. We
recommend that you contact a Saab
dealer for advice.
 Never park the car on dry grass or other
combustible material. The catalytic
converter gets very hot and could there-
fore start a fire.
 Never drive off if the engine is misfiring.
 If you bump start the car when the engine
is already at normal working temperature,
the engine must start to run on all cylin-
ders. Abort bump starting if the engine
fails to start immediately.
Failure to strictly follow these instructions
can result in damage to the catalytic con-
verter and associated components, and
could represent a breach of the warranty
conditions.
NOTICEIf the car runs out of gas, air may be drawn
in with the fuel, which, in turn, can cause
the catalytic converter to be damaged by
overheating.
WARNING
If the engine is being run with the car on a
rolling road or dynamometer, to ensure
adequate cooling, air must be blown into
the engine compartment and under the
car at a rate equivalent to the ram-air
effect that would obtain at the corre-
sponding road speed.
93_US_MY09.book Page 155 Tuesday, April 15, 2008 10:30 AM
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164 Starting and drivingThermal transmission protectionThe transmission has built-in protection
against overheating. If the temperature of
the transmission fluid exceeds 302 °F
(150 °C), engine torque will be limited to
147 ft.lbs. (200 Nm).
The following message is shown on the SID:
If this message appears, stop the car as
soon as it is safe to do so and allow the
engine to idle until the message has gone
out. The selector lever should be in
position P.
Lock-upThe transmission’s torque converter has a
lock-up function. This can lock the torque
converter, thus reducing the engine speed
and fuel consumption.Kick-downWhen the accelerator is pressed down fully,
a down change is made to optimize acceler-
ation, e.g. for overtaking.
Following this, the next higher gear will be
selected at the optimum engine speed,
unless you ease off the accelerator before
reaching this.
Driving in hilly country with a
heavy loadThe transmission fluid can overheat when
the gearbox is strained, for example, when
driving with a trailer on hilly roads. To avoid
the transmission fluid overheating, always
drive with the selector lever in the D posi-
tion. The adaptive gear change patterns are
then active.
High air temperatures or a faulty oil cooler
can also cause the transmission fluid to
overheat. Overheating reduces the service
life of the fluid. Gearbox too hot. Make a
safe stop. Open hood.
WARNING
Remember to use the braking effect of the
engine (1st, 2nd or 3rd gear) when you
are descending long or steep hills to
spare the brakes.
Overheating can cause the brakes to
fade!
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171 Starting and driving
ABS brakesThe Antilock Braking System (ABS) modu-
lates the brake pressure to each wheel. The
pressure is automatically reduced just
before the wheel locks up and then
increases again to the point at which the
wheel is just about to lock. The wheel sen-
sors send information to the brake system’s
electronic control module for every 4 or so
inches (decimeter) that the car rolls. This
information is processed continuously to
ensure that the adjustment of the brake
pressure will be as exact as possible.
Adjustment takes place up to 12 times per
second.The brake system provides Electronic
Brakeforce Distribution (EBD). This distri-
butes the brake pressure between the front
and rear wheels, in such a way as to achieve
optimum braking performance irrespective
of the car’s speed or load.
The ABS has a built-in diagnostics function
which will switch on the ABS warning light
if a fault is detected in the system (see
page 82).
Note. The following message will appear
on the SID (and corresponding symbol
on main instrument unit) if a fault is
detected:
WARNING
 It is prudent to try your brakes from
time to time, especially when driving in
heavy rain, through water collected on
the road, in snow, on a wet road sur-
face or in salty slush. In such condi-
tions, the brakes may take longer than
normal to take effect. To rectify this,
touch the brake pedal periodically to
dry the brakes out.
 The same applies after the car has
been washed or when the weather is
very humid.
 Avoid parking the car with wet brakes.
Before parking, and if the traffic condi-
tions allow, brake quite heavily so that
the brake discs and pads warm up and
dry.
 The brakes are power assisted and it
should be kept in mind that the servo
unit only provides the power assis-
tance when the engine is running.
 The brake pressure required when the
engine is off, (e.g. when the car is
being towed) is roughly four times the
normal pedal force required. The
pedal also feels hard and unrespon-
sive.
 Overheating can cause the brakes to
fade!
WARNING
 The additional safety afforded by the
ABS system is not designed to allow
drivers to drive faster but to make
normal driving safer.
 To stop as quickly as possible, without
loss of directional stability, whether
the road surface is dry, wet or slippery,
press the brake pedal down hard
without letting up (do not pump the
pedal), declutching simulta-
neously, and steer the car to safety.
Antilock brake malfunc.
Contact service.
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190 Starting and drivingWhen continuing your journey, manually
select a low gear in which the engine speed
is about 3,500 rpm until the incline eases
(see page 168).
Recommendations for cars with
manual transmissionRises in coolant temperature are indicated
by the temperature gauge in the main instru-
ment panel.
When the needle is just outside the red
zone, the A/C compressor will be switched
off and, on certain engine variants, the max-
imum engine torque will be limited.
When continuing your journey, select a low
gear in which the engine speed is about
3,500 rpm until the incline eases.
Trailer hitch loadThe weight distribution on the trailer makes
a lot of difference to the handling properties
of the car and trailer combination. With a
two-wheel trailer, concentrate the load over
the wheels and keep it as low as possible.
The trailer should be loaded so that the load
on the towball is 110–165 lbs. (50–75 kg).
Note that this load must be included in the
total load for the car. If this now exceeds the
specified load capacity, the load in the trunk
may have to be reduced by the correspond-
ing amount.
WARNING
Remember to use engine-braking (selec-
tor position M1, M2, or M3) to spare the
brakes when you are driving on a long or
steep downhill slope.
Overheating can cause the brakes to
fade!
WARNING
Remember to use engine-braking (selec-
tor position 1, 2, or 3) to spare the brakes
when you are driving on a long or steep
downhill slope.
Overheating can cause the brakes to
fade!
Distribution of load in trailer
aLight
b Moderate
c Heavy
93_US_MY09.book Page 190 Tuesday, April 15, 2008 10:30 AM
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240 Car careTiresYour new vehicle comes with high-quality
tires made by a leading tire manufacturer. If
you ever have questions about your tire
warranty and where to obtain service, see
your Saab Warranty and Service Record
Booklet for details.
Inflation - Tire PressureThe Tire-Loading Information label shows
the correct inflation pressures for your tires
when they’re cold. “Cold” means your vehi-
cle has been sitting for at least three hours
or driven no more than 1 mile (1.6 km).
Notice: Don’t let anyone tell you that
underinflation or overinflation is all
right. It’s not. If your tires don’t have
enough air (underinflation), you can get
the following:
 Too much flexing
 Too much heat
 Tire overloading
 Bad wear
 Bad handling
 Bad fuel economy.
If your tires have too much air (overinfla-
tion), you can get the following:
 Unusual wear
 Bad handling
 Rough ride
 Needless damage from road hazards. Adjust the tire pressure
to match the current
load and speed of the car (see page 291).
The stated tire pressure s apply to cold tires,
i.e. tires that are t he same temperature as
the outside air temperature. Tire pressure
increases as the tires become warm (e.g.
during highway driving) by approximately
4 psi (28 kPa). When the temperature of the
tires changes by 50°F (10°C), the tire pres-
sure will change 2 psi (14 kPa).
Never reduce the pressure of a hot tire. If the
tires are hot when you check them, only
increase the pressure, if necessary.
WARNING
Poor maintained and improperly used
tires are dangerous.
 Overloading your tires can cause overheating as a result of too much
friction. You could have an blow-out
and a serious accident. See “Loading
Your Vehicle” on page 250.
 Underinflated tires pose the same danger as overloaded tires. The
resulting accident could cause serious
injury. Check all tires frequently to
maintain the recommended pressure.
Tire pressure should be checked
when your tires are cold.
 Overinflated tires are more likely to be cut, punctured or broken by a sudden
impact – such as when you hit a pot-
hole. Keep tires at the recommended
pressure.
 Worn, old tires can cause accidents. If your tread is badly worn, or if your tires
have been damaged, replace them.93_US_7carcare_MY09.fm Page 240 Tuesday, April 15, 2008 11:26 AM
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