SUBARU FORESTER 2000 SF / 1.G Owners Manual

7-36If the warning lig ht b ehaves as follows, the ABS sy
stem may not b e
working p rop erly. The warning lig ht d oes not c ome on when the ig nitio n switc h is
turned to the “ON ” p osition.
The warning lig ht c omes on when the ig nition switc h is turned to
the “ON ” p osition, b ut it d oes not g o out even when the veh ic le sp eed
exc eed s ap p roximately 8mp h (12km/h). The warning lig ht c omes on d uring d riving .
When the warning lig ht is on, the ABS func tion shut s d own; however,
the c onventional b rake system c ontinues to op erate normally. If this
oc c urs, have the ABS system rep aired at the first a vailab le op p ortuni-
ty b y your SUBARU d ealer. NOTE
If the warning light behavior is as described below, the ABS sys- tem may be considered normal. The warning light comes on right after the engine is started
but goes out immediately, remaining off. The warning light remains on after the engine has been
started, but it goes out when the vehicle speed reaches about 8mph (12 km/h). The warning light comes on during driving, but it goes out
immediately and remains off.
When d riving with an insuffic ient b attery voltag e s uc h as when the en-
g ine is jump started , the ABS warning lig ht may c om e on. This is d ue
to the low b attery voltag e and d oes not ind ic ate a malfunc tion. When
the b attery b ec omes fully c harg ed , the lig ht will g o out.

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Driving tips for AWD vehicles
WARNING
Always maintain a safe driving speed according to the road
and weather conditions in order to avoid having an accident on a sharp turn, during sudden braking or under other similar condi-tions. Always use the utmost care in driving – overconfidence be-
cause you are driving an all wheel drive vehicle could easily leadto a serious accident.
HS0113
All wheel d rive d istrib utes the eng ine p ower to all four wheels. AWD
vehic les p rovid e b etter trac tion when d riving on sl ip p ery, wet or snow-
c overed road s and when moving out of mud , d irt and sand . By shifting
p ower b etween the front and rear wheels, SUBARU AWD c an also p ro-
vid e ad d ed trac tion d uring ac c eleration and ad d ed e ng ine b raking forc e
d uring d ec eleration.
Therefore, your SUBARU AWD vehic le may hand le d iffe rently than an
ord inary two wheel d rive vehic le and it c ontains so me features uniq ue to
AWD. For safety p urp oses as well as to avoid d amag i ng the AWD sys-
tem, you should keep the following tip s in mind : An AWD vehic le is b etter ab le to c limb steep er road s und er snowy or
slip p ery c ond itions than a two wheel d rive vehic le. There is little d iffer-

7-38enc e in hand ling , however, d uring extremely sharp t
urns or sud d en b rak-
ing . Therefore, when d riving d own a slop e or turnin g c orners, b e sure to
red uc e your sp eed and maintain an amp le d istanc e fr om other vehic les.
When rep lac ing a tire, make sure you use only the s ame size, c irc um-
ferenc e, c onstruc tion, b rand , and load rang e as the orig inal tires listed on
the tire p lac ard . Using other sizes, c irc umferenc e or c onstruc tion may re-
sult in severe mec hanic al d amag e to the d rive train of your vehic le and
may affec t rid e, hand ling , b raking , sp eed ometer/od o meter c alib ration, and
c learanc e b etween the b od y and tires. It also may b e d ang erous and lead
to loss of vehic le c ontrol. Always c hec k the c old tire p ressure b efore starting to d rive. The rec -
ommend ed tire p ressure is p rovid ed on the tire p lac ard , whic h is loc ated
und er the d oor latc h on the d river ’s sid e.
Tire c hains should always b e p lac ed on the front wh eels only.
There are some p rec autions that you must ob serve wh en towing your
vehic le. For d etail information, see the “Towing ” sec tion in c hap ter 8.
Off road driving
WARNING
Always maintain a safe driving speed according to the road
and weather conditions in order to avoid having an accident on asharp turn, during sudden braking or under other similar condi-tions. Always use the utmost care in driving – overconfidence
because you are driving an all wheel drive vehicle could easilylead to a serious accident.
Bec ause of the AWD feature and hig her g round c leara nc e, your Sub aru
c an b e d riven on ord inary road s or off-road . But p l ease keep in mind that
an AWD Sub aru is a p asseng er c ar and is neither a c onventional off-road
vehic le nor an all-terrain vehic le. If you d o take your Sub aru off-road , c er-
tain c ommon sense p rec autions suc h as the following should b e taken:
Make c ertain that you and all of your p asseng ers ar e wearing seat

Starting and operating7-39
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b elts.
Carry some emerg enc y eq uip ment, suc h as a towing ro p e or c hain, a
shovel, wheel b loc ks, first aid kit and p ortab le p h one or c itizens b and
rad io. Drive c arefully. Do not take unnec essary risks b y d riving in d ang erous
areas or over roug h terrain. Slow d own and emp loy extra c aution at all times. Wh en d riving off-
road , you will not have the b enefit of marked traff ic lanes, b anked
c urves, traffic sig ns and the like. Do not d rive ac ross steep slop es. Instead , d rive ei ther straig ht up or
straig ht d own the slop es. A vehic le c an muc h more e asily tip over sid e-
ways than it c an end over end . Avoid d riving straig ht up or d own slop es
that are too steep . Avoid sharp turning maneuvers, esp ec ially at hig her sp eed s.
Do not g rip the insid e or sp okes of the steering wh eel. A b ad b ump
c ould jerk the wheel and injure your hand s. Instead d rive with your fin-
g ers and thumb s on the outsid e of the rim. If d riving throug h water, suc h as when c rossing sha llow streams, first
c hec k the d ep th of the water and the b ottom of the stream b ed for firm-
ness and ensure that the b ed of the stream is flat. Drive slowly and c om-
p letely throug h the stream. The water should b e sha llow enoug h that it
d oes not reac h the vehic le ’s und erc arriag e. Water entering the eng ine air
intake or the exhaust p ip e or water sp lashing onto elec tric al p arts may
d amag e your vehic le and may c ause it to stall. Neve r attemp t to d rive
throug h rushing water; reg ard less of its d ep th, it c an wash away the
g round from und er your tires, resulting in p ossib le loss of trac tion and
even vehic le rollover. Always c hec k your b rakes for effec tiveness immed iat ely after d riving
in sand , mud or water. Do this b y d riving slowly an d step p ing on the
b rake p ed al. Rep eat that p roc ess several times to d ry out the b rake
d isc s and b rake p ad s. Do not d rive or p ark over or near flammab le materia ls suc h as d ry
g rass or fallen leaves, as they may b urn easily. Th e exhaust system is
very hot while eng ine is running and rig ht after th e eng ine stop s. This
c ould c reate a fire hazard . After d riving throug h tall g rass, mud , roc k, sand , rivers, etc ., c hec k

7-40that there is no g rass, b ush, p ap er, rag s, stones,
sand , etc . ad hering to
or trap p ed on the und erb od y. Clear off any suc h mat ter from the und er-
b od y. If the vehic le is used with these materials t rap p ed or ad hering to
the und erb od y, a mec hanic al b reakd own or fire c ould oc c ur.
Sec ure all c arg o c arried insid e the vehic le and mak e c ertain that it is
not p iled hig her than the seatb ac ks. During sud d en stop s or jolts, unse-
c ured c arg o c ould b e thrown around in the vehic le a nd c ause injury. Do
not p ile heavy load s on the roof. Those load s raise the vehic le’s c enter of
g ravity and make it more p rone to tip over. If you must roc k the vehic le to free it from sand o r mud , d ep ress the
ac c elerator p ed al slig htly and move the selec tor le ver b ac k and forth b e-
tween “D ” and “R ” rep eated ly. Do not rac e the eng ine. For the b est p os-
sib le trac tion, avoid sp inning the wheels when tryi ng to free the vehic le.
When the road surfac e is extremely slip p ery, you c a n ob tain b etter trac -
tion b y starting the vehic le with the transmission in 2nd than 1st (b oth for
MT and AT). Never eq uip your vehic le with tires larg er than tho se sp ec ified in this
manual. Freq uent d riving of an AWD vehic le und er hard -d rivi ng c ond itions suc h
as roug h road s or off road s will nec essitate more f req uent rep lac ement of
eng ine oil, b rake fluid and transmission oil than t hat sp ec ified in the main-
tenanc e sc hed ule d esc rib ed in the “Warranty and Maintenanc e Booklet ”.
Rememb er that d amag e d one to your Sub aru while op er ating it off-road
and not using c ommon sense p rec autions suc h as thos e listed ab ove is
not elig ib le for warranty c overag e.

Starting and operating7-41
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Winter driving
HS0141

Operation during cold weather
Carry some emerg enc y eq uip ment, suc h as tire c hains , a wind ow
sc rap er, a b ag of sand , flares, a small shovel, and jump er c ab les.
Chec k the b attery and c ab les. Cold temp eratures red uc e b attery c a-
p ac ity. The b attery must b e in g ood c ond ition to p r ovid e enoug h p ow-
er for c old winter starts.
Use an eng ine oil of p rop er g rad e and visc osity for c old weather.
Heavy summer oil will c ause hard er starting .
Keep the d oor loc ks from freezing b y sq uirting them with d eic er or
g lyc erin.
Forc ing a frozen d oor op en may d amag e or sep arate t he rub b er
weather strip s around the d oor. If the d oor is froz en, use hot water to
melt the ic e, and afterward s thoroug hly wip e the wa ter away.
Use a wind shield washer fluid that c ontains an anti freeze solution. Do
not use eng ine antifreeze or other sub stitutes b ec a use they may d am-
ag e the p aint of the vehic le. n Before driving your vehicle
Before entering the vehic le, remove any snow or ic e from your shoes
b ec ause that c ould make the p ed als slip p ery and d an g erous.
While warming up the vehic le b efore d riving , c hec k that the ac c elera-

7-42tor p ed al, b rake p ed al, and all other c ontrols op er
ate smoothly.
Clear away ic e and snow that has ac c umulated und er the fend ers to
avoid making steering d iffic ult. During severe wint er d riving , stop
when and where it is safe to d o so and c hec k und er the fend ers p eri-
od ic ally. n During cold weather below –4F ( –20 C)
If the eng ine is d iffic ult to start using the norma l method (without d e-
p ressing the ac c elerator p ed al), turn the ig nition switc h to the
“ START ” p osition while slig htly d ep ressing the ac c elerator p ed al.
n Parking in cold weather
WARNING
Snow can trap dangerous exhaust gases under your vehicle. Keep snow clear of the exhaust pipe and from around your
vehicle if you park the vehicle in snow with the engine running.
Do not use the p arking b rake when p arking for long p eriod s in c old
weather sinc e it c ould freeze in that p osition. Ins tead , ob serve the fol-
lowing :
1. Plac e the shift lever in “1 ” or “R ” for manual transmission vehic les,
and in “P ” for automatic transmission vehic les.
2. Use tire stop s und er the tires to p revent the veh ic le from moving .
When the vehic le is p arked in snow or when it snows , raise the wip er
b lad es off the g lass to p revent d amag e to them.
When the vehic le has b een left p arked after use on road s heavily c ov-
ered with snow, or has b een left p arked d uring a sn owstorm, ic ing
may d evelop on the b rake system, whic h c ould c ause p oor b raking
ac tion. Chec k for snow or ic e b uild up on the susp en sion, d isc b rakes
and b rake hoses und erneath the vehic le.
If there is c aked snow or ic e, remove it, b eing c ar eful not to d amag e
the d isc b rakes and b rake hoses and ABS harness. n Refueling in cold weather
To help p revent moisture from forming in the fuel s ystem and the risk
of its freezing , use of an antifreeze ad d itive in t he fuel tank is rec om-

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mend ed d uring c old weather.
Use only ad d itives that are sp ec ific ally d esig ned f
or this p urp ose.
When an antifreeze ad d itive is used , its effec t las ts long er if the tank is
refilled whenever the fuel level reac hes half emp ty .
If your SUBARU is not g oing to b e used for an exten d ed p eriod , it is
b est to have the fuel tank filled to c ap ac ity. Driving on snowy and icy roads
WARNING
Do not use the cruise control on slippery roads such as snowy or icy roads. This may cause loss of vehicle control.
To p revent skid d ing and slip p ing , avoid sud d en b rak ing , ab rup t ac c el-
eration, hig h-sp eed d riving , and sharp turning when d riving on snowy
or ic y road s.
Always maintain amp le d istanc e b etween your vehic le and the vehic le
ahead of you to avoid the need for sud d en b raking .
To sup p lement the foot b rake, use the eng ine b rake effec tively to c on-
trol the vehic le sp eed . (Shift into a lower g ear wh en nec essary.)
Avoid shifting d own ab rup tly. Suc h b ehavior c an c au se the wheel to
loc k, p ossib ly lead ing to loss of vehic le c ontrol.
Avoid loc king the front wheels b ec ause that c an lea d to a loss of
steering c ontrol. When b raking with a vehic le not e q uip p ed with an
Anti-Loc k Brake System (ABS), p ress the b rake p ed al rep eated ly at
short intervals to p revent the wheels from loc king . Then ap p ly the
b rakes softly to b ring the vehic le to a stop .
An ABS enhanc es your vehic le ’s b raking p erformanc e on snowy and
ic y road s. Refer to the “ABS (Anti-Loc k Brake System) ” in this c hap ter
for information on b raking on slip p ery surfac es in ABS eq uip p ed
vehic le. n Wiper operation when snowing
Before d riving in c old weather, make sure the wip er b lad es are not
frozen to the wind shield or rear wind ow. If the wip er b lad es are frozen
to the wind shield or rear wind ow, use the d efroster with the airflow
c ontrol d ial in the “
” p osition and the temp erature c ontrol lever

7-44turned fully to the rig ht until the wip er b lad es ar
e c omp letely thawed
out. To thaw out the rear wip er b lad e, use the rear wind ow d efog g er.
When d riving in snow, if frozen snow starts to stic k on the surfac e of
the wind shield d esp ite wip er op eration, use the d ef roster with the air-
flow c ontrol d ial in “
” and the temp erature c ontrol d ial turned fully
to the rig ht. After the wind shield g ets warmed enou g h to melt the fro-
zen snow on it, wash it away using the wind shield w asher.
Snow stuc k on the wip er arm p revents the wip er from working effec -
tively. If snow is stuc k on the wip er arm, p ull off the road to a safe
p lac e, then remove it. If you stop the c ar at road sid e, use the hazard
warning flasher to alert other d rivers.
We rec ommend use of non-freezing typ e wip er b lad es d uring the sea-
sons you c ould have snow and sub -zero temp erature.
Snow tires
WARNING
When replacing a tire, make sure you use only the same size,
circumference, construction, brand, and load range as the origi- nal tires listed on the tire placard. Using other sizes, circumfer-
ence or construction may result in severe mechanical damage tothe drive train of your vehicle and may affect ride, handling, brak-ing, speedometer/odometer calibration, and clearance betweenthe body and tires. It also may be dangerous and lead to loss of
vehicle control. Do not use a combination of radial, belted bias or bias tires
since it may cause dangerous handling characteristics and leadto an accident.
Your vehic le is eq uip p ed with “all season tires ” whic h are d esig ned to
p rovid e an ad eq uate measure of trac tion, hand ling a nd b raking p erfor-
manc e in year-round d riving . In winter, it may b e p ossib le to enhanc e
p erformanc e throug h use of tires d esig ned sp ec ific a lly for winter d riving
c ond itions.
If you c hoose to install winter tires on your vehic le, b e sure to use the

Starting and operating7-45
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c orrec t tire size and typ e. All four tires should b
e of the same size,
c onstruc tion, c irc umferenc e, b rand and load rang e a nd you should nev-
er mix rad ial, b elted b ias or b ias tires sinc e this may result in d ang erous
hand ling c harac teristic s.
Rememb er to d rive with c are at all times reg ard less of the typ e of tires on
your vehic le. Tire chains
Driving on snowy g rad es or ic y road s may req uire th e use of tire c hains,
in whic h c ase p ut the c hains on the front wheels on ly. Use only SAE
c lass S typ e c hains that are of the c orrec t size fo r your tires so as not to
d amag e the vehic le b od y or susp ension.
When d riving with tire c hains, d rive at sp eed s b elo w 19 mp h (30 km/h).
When a temp orary sp are tire is on a front wheel, re p lac e the temp orary
sp are tire with the rear tire on the same sid e of t he vehic le, and then fit
c hains on the front tires.
Always use the utmost c are when d riving with tire c hains — overc onfi-
d enc e b ec ause you are d riving with tire c hains c oul d easily lead to a se-
rious ac c id ent.
Rocking the vehicle
If you must roc k the vehic le to free it from snow, sand , or mud , d ep ress the
ac c elerator p ed al slig htly and move the selec tor le ver b ac k and forth b e-
tween “D ” and “R ” rep eated ly. Do not rac e the eng ine. For the b est p ossib le
trac tion, avoid sp inning the wheels when trying to free the vehic le.
When the road surfac e is extremely slip p ery, you c a n ob tain b etter trac -
tion b y starting the vehic le with the transmission in 2nd than 1st (b oth for
MT and AT).
Refer to the “Automatic transmission ” sec tion in this c hap ter for informa-
tion on hold ing the transmission in 2nd p osition.
Corrosion protection
Refer to the “Corrosion p rotec tion ” sec tion (c hap ter 9).