2006 Saab 9-5 Owner's Manual - Page 158

158 Starting and driving When the selector lever is in the M position, as opposed to the D position, engines are much more responsive to changes in accelerator position. The accelerator has a different feel. When in manual mode, kick-down operates for 4th and 5th gears (below 2,000 rpm). Kick-down cannot be activated in 1st, 2nd or 3rd gears. For optimum performance, gear changes should be made before reaching 6,000 rpm. To avoid damaging the engine and transmission, the transmission will shift up a gear if the engine is in danger of overrevving. You may feel a slight jolt before this gear change is effected. Sentronic, manual mode Move the selector lever to the M position. Select a higher gear by pushing the right-hand paddle on the steering wheel. Select a lower gear by pushing the left-hand paddle on the steering wheel. An example of when you may wish to make manual gear changes is when overtaking, to enable you to remain in a low gear for an extended period of time. Changes from 3rd to 4th and from 4th to 5th can be made when the engine speed is above roughly 2,000 rpm. If you select a gear that is judged too high by the system, the selected gear position will be shown briefly on the main instrument panel and then the gear that is actually engaged. Paddles on the steering wheel for changing gear manually If the road surface is slippery, you may wish to pull off in 2nd or 3rd to reduce the risk of wheel spin. When descending hills you should select a low gear to increase the braking effect of the engine and thus spare the brakes. Manual gear selections are shown on the main instrument panel. The selector position and the current gear are displayed. IB3880