SAAB 9-3 2008 Owners Manual
Manufacturer: SAAB, Model Year: 2008, Model line: 9-3, Model: SAAB 9-3 2008Pages: 320, PDF Size: 56.39 MB
Page 281 of 320
281 Customer Assistance and Information
Engine oil and filter changesChanging the engine oil and filter is required
at every service point. Use only a Saab
approved long-life oil filter and engine oils
meeting the SAE viscosity ratings and API
service classifications stated in the “Techni-
cal data” section of this Owner’s Manual.
The use of extra additives in the oil is not
necessary and is not recommended, and
may be harmful to turbochargers.
More frequent oil changes are recom-
mended if your vehicle is operated under
any of the following conditions:
Most trips are less than 5–10 miles (8–
16 km). This is particularly important
when outside temperatures are below
freezing.
Most trips include extensive idling
(frequent stop-and-go traffic).
Most trips are through dusty areas (such
as construction zones).
If the vehicle is used for delivery service,
police, taxi or other commercial applica-
tions.
If your driving habits match this description,
have the engine oil and filter changed in-
between normal services. These conditions
cause the engine oil to break down faster.
The Warranties and Service Record Book-
let has provisions to record extra oil
changes.
Service record retentionIt is the owner’s responsibility to retain ser-
vice records. If possible, you should keep
copies of all shop work orders for all service
and repairs, whenever performed. As indi-
cated in the new car and emission control
system warranties, it is important to docu-
ment that all necessary maintenance has
been done.
HOW THE SERVICE RECORD IS ORGA-
NIZED
The service record is comprised of a series
of coupons on which to record services as
they are performed. There are additional
coupons for documenting extra engine oil
and filter changes, extra automatic trans-
mission fluid services necessary for severe
service conditions, and brake fluid changes.
HOW TO USE THE SERVICE RECORD
COUPONS
When the car is brought to a Saab dealer for
scheduled maintenance, present the War-
ranties & Service Record Booklet to the ser-
vice manager. When the technician has
completed the service, the technician will
sign the maintenance record. The person
responsible for quality assurance at the
dealership will also sign and stamp the
record with the dealer identification stamp.
Service costsDealer pricing practices and labor for ser-
vice work vary. Saab’s recommended ser-
vice times for each service point do not
include the labor required to replace wear
items, such as wiper blades, brake pads or
tires. Nor is labor to perform other service or
repairs found to be necessary as a result of
the inspections included in these times.
Additional labor and parts will be charged
for such work when necessary, except as
covered under an applicable Saab warranty
or any optional extended service contract.
Transmission fluid changes or suspension
alignment, when necessary, are also addi-
tional.
Dealer charges for general shop material,
regulated hazardous waste removal, recy-
cling expenses or other operation costs may
also be applied to service and repair
invoices and are apt to vary by dealer and
location.
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282 Customer Assistance and InformationOwner assistanceWarranties and service problem
assistanceFor complete information about all applica-
ble warranties, including the New Car War-
ranty, Perforation Warranty, Vehicle Emis-
sion Warranty and Emission Perforation
Warranty, consult the Warranties and Ser-
vice Record Booklet which accompanies
this Owner’s Manual. It also contains owner
assistance information including Saab
Roadside Assistance. If the booklet is lost or
misplaced, a new one may be ordered
through a Saab dealer or by contacting
Saab.
In the U.S. there is a national Customer
Assistance Center at Saab Automobile
USA, Inc. The toll-free number to call from
all 50 states is 1-800-955-9007.
In Canada, please call the Saab Customer
Assistance Center at 1-800-263-1999.
A list of authorized Saab sales and service
dealers is available for those planning to
travel in the United States and Canada.
Canadian or U.S. travelers may call the
Customer Assistance Center in the country
in which they are traveling.
Change of Address Notification
(U.S. and Canada)Two change of address cards are provided
at the end of the Warranties and Service
Record Booklet. Knowing your current
address allows Saab to contact you in the
event of a recall or service campaign.
Please help us keep our records up to date
for your own peace of mind.
Service informationFactory Service Manuals for the Saab 9-3
and 9-5 car lines can be ordered through
your dealer. These are comprehensive
manuals on CD ROM, geared to use by pro-
fessional technicians. Consult your Saab
dealer for prices for your model.
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283 Customer Assistance and Information
Reporting Safety
Defects (USA)If you believe that your vehicle has a defect
which could cause a crash or could cause
injury or death, you should immediately
inform the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) in addition to noti-
fying Saab Cars USA, Inc.
If NHTSA receives similar complaints, it
may open an investigation, and if it finds that
a safety defect exists in a group of vehicles,
it may order a recall and remedy campaign.
However, NHTSA cannot become involved
in individual problems between you, your
dealer, or Saab Cars USA, Inc.
To contact NHTSA, you may call the
toll-free Vehicle Safety Hotline at
1-888-327-4236 (TTY: 1-800-424-9153; go
to http://www.safercar.gov; or write to:
Administrator, NHTSA, 400 Seventh Street,
SW., Washington D.C. 20590. You can also
obtain other information about motor vehi-
cle safety from http:// www safercar.gov.
Reporting Safety
Defects to the Canadian
governmentIf you live in Canada, and believe that your
vehicle has a safety defect, you should
immediately notify Transport Canada, in
addition to notifying General Motors of
Canada Limited.
You may write to Transport Canada at Box
8880, Ottawa, Ontario, K1G 3J2.
In addition to notifying Transport Canada in
a situation like this, we certainly hope you
will notify us. In Canada, please call our
Saab Customer Assistance Center at
1-800-263-1999.
Or write:
General Motors of Canada Limited
Customer Assistance Center,
1908 Colonel Sam Drive,
Oshawa, Ontario, L1H 8P7.
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284 Customer Assistance and InformationVehicle Data Collection and
Event Data RecordersYour vehicle, like other modern motor vehi-
cles, has a number of sophisticated com-
puter systems that monitor and control sev-
eral aspects of the vehicle’s performance.
Your vehicle uses on-board vehicle comput-
ers to monitor emission control components
to optimize fuel economy, to monitor condi-
tions for air bag deployment and, if so
equipped, to provide anti-lock braking and
to help the driver control the vehicle in diffi-
cult driving situations. Some information
may be stored during regular operations to
facilitate repair of detected malfunctions;
other information is stored only in a crash
event by computer systems commonly
called event data recorders (EDR).
In a crash event, computer systems, such
as the Air Bag Sensing and Diagnostic
Module (SDM) in your vehicle may record
information about the condition of the vehi-
cle and how it was operated, such as data
related to engine speed, brake application,
throttle position, vehicle speed, steering
wheel angle, lateral acceleration, safety belt
usage, air bag readiness, air bag perfor-
mance, and the severity of a collision. This
information has been used to improve vehi-
cle crash performance and may be used to
improve crash performance of future vehi-
cles and driving safety. Unlike the data
recorders on many airplanes, these
on-board systems do not record sounds,
such as conversation of vehicle occupants.To read this information, special equipment
is needed and access to the vehicle or the
SDM is required.
Saab will not access information about a
crash event or share it with others other than
with the consent of the vehicle owner or, if
the vehicle is leased, with the consent of
the lessee,
in response to an official request of police
or similar government office,
as part of Saab’s defense of litigation
through the discovery process, or
as required by law.
In addition, once Saab collects or receives
data, Saab may
use the data for Saab research needs,
make it available for research where
appropriate confidentiality is to be main-
tained and need is shown, or
share summary data which is not tied to a
specific vehicle with non-Saab organiza-
tions for research purposes.
Others, such as law enforcement, may have
access to the special equipment that can
read the information if they have access to
the vehicle or SDM.
If your vehicle is equipped with OnStar
®,
please check the OnStar
® subscription ser-
vice agreement or manual for information
on its operations and data collection.
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285 Technical data
General data __________ 286
Engine _______________ 289
Engine oil _____________ 290
Fuel__________________ 291
Engines ______________ 291
Electrical system_______ 291
Drive belt _____________ 292
Manual transmission ___ 292
Automatic transmission _ 292
Suspension ___________ 293
Steering ______________ 293
Brake system__________ 293
Wheels and tires _______ 294
Plates and labels _______ 297
Technical data
3Asterisk means: equipment not fitted in all cars
(can depend on model variant, engine variant,
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286 Technical dataGeneral dataOverall length, including bumpers:
SportSedan and Convertible _________ 182.9'' (4647 mm)
SportCombi_______________________ 183.8'' (4670 mm)
Overall width, including door mirrors _____ 80.2'' (2038 mm)
Maximum height ____________________ 60.7'' (1543 mm)
Wheelbase ________________________ 105.3'' (2675 mm)
Tr a c k :
Front ____________________________ 59.8'' (1524 mm)
Re ar ____________________________ 59.3'' (1506 mm)
Ground clearance at GVW ____________ approx. 4.7''
(120 mm)
Number of seats (incl. driver):
SportSedan and SportCombi _________ 5
Convertible _______________________ 4
Turning circle:
Measured at vehicle extremities _______ 39.0 ft. (11.9 m)V.I.N. label on vehi-
cles sold in U.S.A.V.I.N. label on vehicles sold in
Canada
Permissible load (in addition to the driver) = GVW minus curb weight. The maximum
permissible axle load, front or rear, must not be exceeded.
The precise curb weight of the vehicle and load capacity are specified in the vehicle
registration documents.Trunk length, SportSedan:
Rear seat raised ___________________ 40.8'' (1036 mm)
Rear seat lowered _________________ 69.8'' (1774 mm)
Trunk length, Convertible _____________ 29.1" (740 mm)
Trunk length, SportCombi:
Rear seat raised ___________________ 39.9'' (1013 mm)
Rear seat lowered _________________ 70.0'' (1777 mm)
Trunk volume (VDA):
SportSedan ______________________ 15.0 cu.ft. (425 l)
Convertible, soft top raised ___________ 12.4 cu.ft. (352 l)
Convertible, soft top folded ___________ 8.3 cu.ft. (235 l)
SportCombi ______________________ 14.8 cu.ft. (419 l)
SportCombi with rear seat lowered ____ 45.0 cu.ft. (1273 l)
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287 Technical data
Curb weight
(i.e. with full fuel tank, full washer fluid res-
ervoir, standard tools and spare wheel):
SportSedan_______________________ 3210–3600 lbs.
(1455–1635 kg)
Convertible _______________________ 3520–3880 lbs.
(1595–1760 kg)
SportCombi_______________________ 3310–3730 lbs.
(1500–1690 kg)
Gross vehicle weight (GVW):
SportSedan_______________________ 4140–4540 lbs.
(1880–2060 kg)
Convertible _______________________ 4420–4660 lbs.
(2005–2115 kg)
SportCombi_______________________ 4240–4660 lbs.
(1925–2115 kg)
Maximum axle load:
SportSedan, front __________________ 2440 lbs. (1150 kg)
SportSedan, rear __________________ 2230 lbs. (1010 kg)
Convertible, front __________________ 2560 lbs. (1160 kg)
Convertible, rear ___________________ 2310 lbs. (1050 kg)
SportCombi, front __________________ 2540 lbs. (1150 kg)
SportCombi, rear __________________ 2430 lbs. (1100 kg)Weight distribution:
Curb weight + driver (150 lbs. (68 kg)),
front/rear, SportSedan and SportCombi_ approx. 60/40 %
GVW, front/rear, SportSedan and Sport-
Combi ___________________________ approx. 50/50 %
Maximum roof load, SportSedan and Sport-
Combi ___________________________ 220 lbs. (100 kg)
Maximum load in trunk, SportSedan, Con-
vertible and SportCombi _____________ 175 lbs. (80 kg)
The combined weight of occupants and
cargo should never exceed:
SportSedan and SportCombi _________ 926 lbs. (420 kg)
Convertible _______________________ 776 lbs. (352 kg)
Maximum combined weight of driver and
passengers ______________________
SportSedan and SportCombi (5x150 lbs.) 750 lbs. (340 kg)
Convertible (4x150 lbs.) _____________ 600 lbs. (272 kg)93_US_M08.book Page 287 Friday, May 11, 2007 11:37 AM
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288 Technical data
WARNING
The GVW and maximum axle loads must not be exceeded.
Note that if some accessories (e.g. towbar, CD changer) are
fitted, the available load capacity is reduced by the weight of
these.
When carrying a load in the trunk, make sure that it is lashed
down securely, particularly when part or all of the rear seat is
folded down.
Trailer
Trailer with brakes ___________________ Max. 3500 lbs.
(1588 kg)
Trailer without brakes ________________ Max. 1000 lbs.
(450 kg)
Recommended towball load ___________ 110–165 lbs.
(50–75 kg)
See also page 192.
Maximum theoretical towing speed, trailer
with brakes _______________________ 60 mph (100 km/h)
Maximum theoretical towing speed, trailer
without brakes ____________________National restrictions
apply
When towing a trailer, increase the pressure
of the rear tires by 20 kPa (3 psi).
The above speed and weight restrictions are those specified by
Saab Automobile AB.
Note that national restrictions may apply to trailer speeds and
weights (see page 190).
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289 Technical data
EngineType:
4-cyl engine ______________________ Four cylinders,
double overhead
camshafts,
16 valves, two
balancer shafts
V6 engine ________________________ Six cylinders,
4 overhead cam-
shafts, 24 valves,
the angle between
the cylinder rows is
60°
Cylinder bore:
4-cyl engine ______________________ 3.386'' (86 mm)
V6 engine ________________________ 3.504'' (89 mm)
Stroke:
4-cyl engine ______________________ 3.386'' (86 mm)
V6 engine ________________________ 2.945'' (74.8 mm)
Swept volume:
4-cyl engine ______________________ 122 cu.in. (1.998 l)
V6 engine ________________________ 170 cu.in. (2.792 l)Idling speed _______________________ 720 rpm.
When the engine
load increases, e.g.
the steering wheel
is turned, the idling
speed is raised to
900 rpm.
Antifreeze _________________________ Saab-approved
antifreeze
Coolant capacity:
4-cyl engine ______________________ 7.5 qts. (7.1 l)
V6 engine ________________________ 9.5 qts. (9.0 l)93_US_M08.book Page 289 Friday, May 11, 2007 11:37 AM
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290 Technical dataEngine oilTo meet demands in Saab's extended service intervals all en-
gines are filled with specially designed synthetic factory fill oils.
Long service intervals, fuel economy and environmental issues
are the base for our choice of oil. By using oils approved by
Saab you minimize the tendencies for oil sludge build, by that
protecting the engine from harmful, wear increasing, deposits.
Approved oils
For all gasoline engines - synthetic engine oil - approved
against the GM-LL-A-025 specification. To benefit from Saab´s
specified service intervals, pleasure ensure to select a synthetic
engine oil approved against GM-LL-A-025.
For optimum performance Saab recommends the use of Saab
Long Life Turbo Oil SAE 0W-30, 0W-40, 5W-30 or 5W-40.
Servicing/Oil changes
To be able to use recommended service intervals the need to
use only approved engine oils is vital. Use only engine oils ap-
proved for your engine. Service should be done according to
the recommended service intervals to optimize your engine's
function through out its entire life. Saab Automobile AB will not
take responsibility for any damage that might occur due to ne-
glecting to meet above mentioned requirements.
At your Saab dealers you can find Saab and GM Genuine en-
gine oils. Among those there are oils specially designed to meet
your engines specific needs. We recommend that you, with the
help of our skilled service personnel, choose your oil from that
selection.
Other oil companies also offer engine oils approved against GM
specifications. Oils meeting these standards may be marked as
synthetic. However, not all synthetic engine oils will meet your
engines specific requirements. Please ensure only to use syn-
thetic oils approved against your engines specific requirements,
i.e. GM-LL-A-025.Extra engine oil additives
Don't add anything to your oil. The recommended oils are all
you will need for good engine performance and protection.
When to change engine oil
Your vehicle has a display (SID) where time for service will be
shown. Based not only on mileage but also on driving condi-
tions the mileage at which a service will be indicated can vary
considerably.
For this service system to work it is of outmost importance that
the right engine oil is used.
When the message for service is displayed you need to have
the required service done as soon as possible.
After the service your service personnel will reset the service in-
dicator. It is important to reset the service indicator in order to
optimize the time to the next service.
Oil capacity, including filter (oil change) __
4-cyl engine ______________________ 6.3 qts. (6.0 l)
V6 engine ________________________ 6.3 qts. (6.0 l)
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