2009 SAAB 9-5 headlight aiming

187 Car care and technical information
IB3888
Hood ________________ 188
Engine compartment __ 189
Emission control
systems ____________ 190
Engine ______________ 192
Engine oil ____________ 192
Transmission fluid ____ 193
Coolant ______________ 193
Brake and clutch fluid__ 194
Power steering fluid ___ 196
Air filter _____________ 196
Battery ______________ 197
Drive belts ___________ 199
Wipers and washers ___ 200
Changing bulbs _______ 202
Fuses _______________ 214 Tires ________________ 220
Automatic tire pressure
monitoring system ___ 232
Compact spare tire ____ 235
Safety belts __________ 240
Upholstery and trim ___ 241
Textile carpeting ______ 241
Washing the car ______ 242
Waxing and polishing __ 243
Engine compartment __ 243
Touching up the paint _ 243
Air conditioning (ACC) _ 244
Anti-corrosion treatment 246
For long trips _________ 247
Recovery and/or
recycling of automotive
materials ___________ 248
Headlight aiming ______ 248
Car care and technical information
3 Asterisk means: equipment not fitted in all cars
(can depend on model variant, engine variant,
market specification, options or accessories).95_US_MY09.book Page 187 Tuesday, April 15, 2008 11:03 AM
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202 Car care and technical informationChanging bulbs
Check that the new bulb is working when
finished.
Use only "Long Life" bulbs.
Headlight aiming, see page 248.
Xenon headlight3Xenon headlights produce roughly twice as
much light as halogen bulbs and have a sig-
nificantly longer service life.
The lamp units consist of a gas discharge
lamp containing xenon. When the lights are
switched on a very high voltage activates
the xenon gas. The lamps soon reach full
intensity.
Cars with xenon headlights have automatic
levelling. The levelling system comprises
two sensors, one on the front axle, one on
the rear axle and a control unit under each
of the two headlight housings. Headlight
alignment is regulated automatically to pre-
vent dazzling oncoming traffic. Alignment is
also adjusted during braking.
WARNING
Before changing a bulb in the engine bay,
switch off the engine to avoid danger of
fingers and hands being injured by
moving parts.
The radiator fan can start up even when
the engine is switched off.
Xenon headlights3 are high voltage
and must therefore be changed at a
workshop. We recommend that you
contact an authorized Saab work-
shop. Work involving high-voltage
components is potentially lethal.NOTICE Since the headlight lenses are made
of plastic, rinse dried-on dirt with
water and allow it time to soften up
before cleaning the lenses. Avoid
rubbing the lenses when dry and
never use solvents.
 Use de-icer spray instead of scraping
the ice off.
NOTICE Do not fit bulbs with a higher rating
than 55 W, since the headlight reflec-
tor and the wiring of the car are not
designed for a higher wattage.
 Switch off the ignition before chang-
ing a bulb, to avoid possible short-cir-
cuiting.
 Do not touch the glass of the bulbs
with your fingers. The oil on your skin
can shorten the life of the bulb.
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248 Car care and technical informationRecovery and/or
recycling of automotive
materialsInformation on the scrapping and recycling
of car materials is available on
www.saab.com.
Headlight aimingThe vehicle has a visual optical headlight
aiming system equipped with vertical
aiming device. The aim has been preset at
the factory and should normally not need
further adjustments.
If your headlights are damaged in a crash,
the headlight aim may be affected. If you
believe your headlights need to be
re-aimed, we recommend that you take it to
your Saab dealer for service, however, it is
possible for you to re-aim your headlights as
described in the following procedure.To check the aim, the vehicle should be
properly prepared as follows:
 The vehicle shall be placed so that the
headlights are 25 ft (7.6 m) from a light
colored wall or other flat surface. The
aiming area should be darkened, this will
improve your ability to see the beam of the
low beam headlight being aimed.
 The vehicle must have all four wheels on
a perfectly level surface which is level all
the way to the wall or other flat surface.
 The vehicle should be placed so it is
perpendicular to the wall or other flat
surface.
 The vehicle should be unloaded and fuel
tank full, and one person or 160 lbs.
(75 kg) on the drivers seat.
WARNING
Before checking/adjusting the headlight
aiming, switch off the engine to avoid
danger of fingers and hands being injured
by moving parts.
The radiator fan can start up even when
the engine is switched off.NOTICETo make sure that your headlights are
aimed properly read all instructions
before beginning. Failure to follow these
instructions could cause damage to
headlight parts or a not correctly aimed
headlight.
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249 Car care and technical information
 The vehicle should be fully assembled
and all other work stopped while headlight
aiming is being done.
 The vehicle should not have any snow, ice
or mud attached to it.
 Tires should be inflated to the prescribed
pressure.
 Close all doors.
 Rock the vehicle to stabilize the suspen-
sion.
Headlight aiming is done with the vehicle
low beam lamps. The high beam lamps will
be correctly aimed if the low beam lamps
are aimed properly.
If you find that the headlight needs adjust-
ment follow these steps:
1 Open the hood and locate the vertical
aiming device.
2 Locate the marker on the lens.
3 Measure the distance from the ground to
the aim marker on each lens.
Subtract 2 inches if the vehicle is
equipped with halogen lamps, record
this distance.
Subtract 3 inches if the vehicle is
equipped with xenon lamps, record this
distance.4 At the wall or other flat surface, measure
from the ground to the recorded
distance (see point 4) and draw a hori-
zontal line the width of the vehicle.
IB1950
2
14
3
1 Wall or garage door
2 25 ft (7.6 m) between wall and headlight lens.
3 Measurement from the ground to the low beam aiming marker on the headlight lens.
4 Same measurement as (3) but substract 2 inches for vehicles with halogen lamps and
3 inches for vehicles with xenon lamps.
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250 Car care and technical information5 Turn on the low beam headlights and
place a piece of cardboard or equivalent
(although not directly on the lens) in front
of the headlight not being aimed. This
should allow the beam cut-off of the
headlight being aimed to be seen on the
flat surface.
6 Turn the vertical aiming screw until the
horizontal cut-off of the headlight is
aligned with the horizontal line on the
wall.NOTICEDo not cover a headlight directly on the
lens to improve beam cut-off when aim-
ing. Covering a headlight may cause
excessive heat build-up which may cause
damage to the headlight.
IB1951
Vertical aiming device
IB1952
Aiming marker on headlight lens
IB1953
Horizontal line on wall or other flat surface
IB1954
Correctly adjusted low beam
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