Saab 9-3 Convertible M2003, Owner'S Manual

Page: 31 / 256

31 Safety
Side airbags are housed inside the back-
rests of the front seats and are designed to
protect the driver and front passenger in the
event of a side impact.
In a side impact, only the airbag on that side
will be activated, and only then if certain pre-
determined 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.
The sensors, which are fitted in the front
doors, sense the rise in pressure caused by
the door panel being pressed in during an
impact condition. The side airbag trigger will
be commanded based on the characteris-
tics of this pressure rise.
• The sensors for the side airbags are
fitted in the doors. We advise against
doing any work on the doors that could
affect the moisture barrier in the door
or the airbag sensors. It is essential
that the moisture barrier (thick plastic
film) in the door is not damaged in any
way.
• Improvement of the anticorrosion
treatment of the doors should only be
carried out by an authorized Saab
dealer. Otherwise there is a risk that
the side impact sensor and the mois-
ture barrier in the door could be dam-
aged.
• The side airbags will inflate only in the
event of a side impact; not in the event
of a front or rear-end crash or of the
car’s rolling over.
• Damage or wear to the seat cover, or
the seat seam, in the area of the side
airbag must immediately be repaired
by an authorized Saab dealer.
• Do not modify the speaker installation
in the front doors or install speakers
other than those specifically approved
by Saab.
IB1892
Accessories and other equipment must
not be fitted to the surfaces marked as
these are where the airbags may inflate in
the event of a crash.
IB1707
Side airbag, components
1 Side airbags
2 Sensor
3 Moisture barrier
4 Text on seat
93uC03.book Page 31 Thursday, May 30, 2002 11:36 AM