ABS SUBARU OUTBACK 2001 3.G User Guide

Starting and operating7-25
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CONTINUED –
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.
VDC (Vehicle Dynamics Control) system (if equipped)
WARNING
Always use the utmost care in driving — overconfidence because
you are driving with a VDC system equipped vehicle could easily lead to a serious accident.
CAUTION
Even if your vehicle is equipped with VDC, winter tires or snow
chains should be used when driving on snow-covered or icyroads; in addition, vehicle speed should be reduced consider-
ably. Simply having a VDC system does not guarantee that the
vehicle will be able to avoid accidents in any situation. Activation of the VDC system is an indication that the road
being travelled on has a slippery surface; since having VDC is no
guarantee that full vehicle control will be maintained at all timesand under all conditions, its activation should be seen as a sign
that the speed of the vehicle should be reduced considerably.

7-26
Whenever suspension components, steering components, or
an axle are removed from a vehicle equipped with VDC, have an authorized SUBARU dealer perform an inspection of that system. The following precautions should be observed in order to
ensure that the VDC system is operating properly:
–All four wheels should be fitted with tires of the same size,
type, and brand. Furthermore, the amount of wear should bethe same for all four tires.– Keep the tire pressure at the proper level as shown on the
label attached to the vehicle ’s door pillar.
– Use only the special temporary spare tire to replace a flat
tire.
When d riving on slip p ery road s or making sud d en tur ns to avoid
ob stac les in the vehic le ’s p ath, c ertain situations may oc c ur where the
vehic le may slip sid eways or where the rear of the vehic le may swing
outward . When the VDC system d etermines either of t hese c irc um-
stanc es is ab out to oc c ur, it c ontrols — and op erates in c onjunc tion with
— the Anti-loc k Brake System and the Trac tion Contro l System to sup -
p ress sud d en c hang es in vehic le attitud e and motion , thus imp roving
d irec tional stab ility d uring d riving .
Anti-loc k Brake System (ABS) func tion:
The ABS c ontrols the b rake system elec tronic ally. I t p revents loc king
of the wheels so that d irec tional stab ility and ste ering wheel resp on-
siveness c an b e maintained even when b raking on sli p p ery surfac es.
In the unlikely event that a malfunc tion should oc c ur in the ABS, it will
still b e p ossib le to stop the vehic le using normal b raking .
Trac tion Control System (TCS) func tion:
The TCS limits sp inning of the d rive wheels on slip p ery surfac es; in
this, it help s ensure that an ap p rop riate d eg ree of trac tion and steer-
ing are maintained . The VDC op eration ind ic ator lig ht will turn on
when the TCS ac tivates. Vehic le Dynamic s Control
To assist in maintaining d irec tional stab ility, the VDC help s sup p ress
sid eways slip p ing of the vehic le when the steering wheel is turned
sud d enly or when c ornering on a slip p ery surfac e. T he VDC op eration

Starting and operating7-29
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CONTINUED –

The VDC OFF ind ic ator lig ht d oes not turn on when t he ig nition key
is turned to the ON p osition. The VDC OFF ind ic ator lig ht fails to turn off after the eng ine is
started , even when several minutes have p assed to a llow the eng ine
to heat up suffic iently. n VDC operation indicator light
The VDC op eration ind ic ator lig ht turns on when the ig nition key is
turned to the ON p osition; it turns off ap p roximate ly two sec ond s later.
It flashes on and off when the VDC is op erating b ut stays c ontinuously
lit when only the TCS is op erating .
The following two situations c ould ind ic ate a malfu nc tion of the VDC
system; if either should oc c ur, have an authorized SUBARU d ealer
c arry out an insp ec tion of that system at the first availab le op p ortunity.
The VDC op eration ind ic ator lig ht d oes not turn on when the ig ni-
tion key is turned to the ON p osition. The VDC op eration ind ic ator lig ht d oes not turn off ap p roximately
two sec ond s after the ig nition key has b een turned to the ON p osition.
n VDC warning light
The VDC warning lig ht turns on when the ig nition ke y is turned to the
ON p osition and off when the eng ine is started . Thi s lig hting p attern
ind ic ates that the VDC system is op erating normally .
The following situations c ould ind ic ate a malfunc ti on of the VDC sys-
tem; if any should oc c ur, have an authorized SUBARU d ealer c arry
out an insp ec tion of the system at the first availa b le op p ortunity.
The VDC warning lig ht d oes not turn on when the ig n ition key is
turned to the ON p osition. The VDC warning lig ht d oes not turn off either when the eng ine is
started or when the vehic le reac hes a sp eed of ap p r oximately 8 mp h
(12 km/h). The VDC warning lig ht turns on while the vehic le is b eing d riven.
When a malfunc tion has oc c urred in the VDC elec tric al system,
only the VDC warning lig ht will turn on. In suc h an event, the ABS will
still b e op erating normally.

7-30
The VDC warning lig ht will also turn on when a p rob lem oc c urs
with the ABS or VDC elec tronic c ontrol systems.
Bec ause the VDC system c ontrols eac h b rake throug h the ABS,
whenever the ABS stop s op erating d ue to a malfunc ti on in that elec tri-
c al system, the VDC will also b ec ome unab le to c ont rol all four
b rakes. Thus VDC system op eration halts and the VDC warning lig ht
turns on. Althoug h b oth the VDC system and the ABS will b e inop er-
ab le in this situation, it will still b e p ossib le t o stop the vehic le using
normal b raking . The VDC system and the ABS d o not a d versely affec t
op eration of the vehic le in any way when they are i nop erab le; how-
ever should suc h a situation oc c ur, d rive with c are and have an autho-
rized SUBARU d ealer c arry out an insp ec tion of thos e systems at the
first availab le op p ortunity. NOTE
When the VDC warning light turns on and off in the following way,
it indicates that the VDC system is operating normally. Although turning on after the engine has been started, the
warning light quickly turns off and stays off. The warning light turns on after the engine is started and does
not turn off until the vehicle reaches a speed of 8 mph (12 km/h). The warning light turns on when the vehicle is being driven; it
then turns off and stays off.

8-12When 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-
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 eleration, hig h-sp eed d riving , and sharp turning w hen 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 wheels to
loc k, p ossib ly lead ing to loss of vehic le c ontrol.
An anti-loc k b rake system (ABS) enhanc es your vehic le’s b raking p er-
formanc e on snowy and ic y road s. Refer to the “ABS (Anti-Loc k Brake
System) ” and “VDC (Vehic le Dynamic s Control) system ” sec tion in
c hap ter 7 for information on b raking on slip p ery su rfac es.

8-38n
Driving with a trailer
You should allow for c onsid erab ly more stop p ing d is tanc e when
towing a trailer. Avoid sud d en b raking b ec ause it m ay result in skid -
d ing or jac kknifing and loss of c ontrol. Avoid ab rup t starts and sud d en ac c elerations. If yo ur vehic le has a
manual transmission, always start out in first g ear and release the
c lutc h at mod erate eng ine revolution. Avoid uneven steering , sharp turns and rap id lane c hang es.
Slow d own b efore turning . Make a long er than normal turning
rad ius b ec ause the trailer wheels will b e c loser th an the vehic le
wheels to the insid e of the turn. In a tig ht turn, the trailer c ould hit your
vehic le. Crosswind s will ad versely affec t the hand ling of yo ur vehic le and
trailer, c ausing sway. Crosswind s c an b e d ue to wea ther c ond itions or
the p assing of larg e truc ks or b uses. If swaying oc c urs, firmly g rip the
steering wheel and slow d own immed iately b ut g rad ua lly.
When p assing other vehic les, c onsid erab le d istanc e is req uired
b ec ause of the ad d ed weig ht and leng th c aused b y at tac hing the
trailer to your vehic le. Bac king up with a trailer is d iffic ult and takes p r ac tic e. When b ac k-
ing up with a trailer, never ac c elerate or steer ra p id ly. When turning
b ac k, g rip the b ottom of the steering wheel with on e hand and turn it
to the left for a left turn, and turn it to the rig ht for a rig ht turn.
Left turnRight turn
OM-H2791
If the ABS warning lig ht illuminates while the vehi c le is in motion,
stop towing the trailer and have rep airs p erformed immed iately b y the

11-30
HBB031BB
HBB030BB
Specified range SpecifiedrangeReservoir tank
If the fluid level is extreme low, it may ind ic ate p ossib le leakag e. Con-
sult your SUBARU d ealer for insp ec tion. Recommended fluid
“ Dexron IIE ” or “Dexron III ” Type Automatic Transmission Fluid
Brake fluid
Checking the fluid level
WARNING
Never let brake fluid contact your eyes because brake fluid can
be harmful to your eyes. If brake fluid gets in your eyes, immedi-
ately flush them thoroughly with clean water. For safety, whenperforming this work, wearing eye protection is advisable. Brake fluid absorbs moisture from the air. Any absorbed mois-
ture can cause a dangerous loss of braking performance. If the vehicle requires frequent refilling, there may be a leak. If
you suspect a problem, have the vehicle checked at your
SUBARU dealer.

11-32Clutch fluid (MT vehicles)
Checking the fluid level
WARNING
Never let clutch fluid contact your eyes because clutch fluid can
be harmful to your eyes. If clutch fluid gets in your eyes, immedi-
ately flush them thoroughly with clean water. For safety, whenperforming this work, wearing eye protection is advisable.
CAUTION
Clutch fluid absorbs moisture from the air. Any absorbed
moisture can cause improper clutch operation. If the vehicle requires frequent refilling, there may be a leak. If
you suspect a problem, have the vehicle checked at your
SUBARU dealer. Never use different brands of clutch fluid together.
When clutch fluid is added, be careful not to allow any dirt into
the tank.
Chec k the fluid level on the outsid e of the reservo ir. If the level is b elow
“ MIN ” level mark, ad d the rec ommend ed c lutc h fluid to “MAX ” level
mark.
Use only c lutc h fluid from a sealed c ontainer.
“ MIN ” level mark
“MAX ” level mark
HBB004HB

Specifications12-7
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Fuse panel Circuit
Fuse rating
615ASRS airb ag
715AFront fog lig ht
830AABS solenoid
915ARad io
Cloc k
1015ATrailer
1115AEng ine ig nition system
SRS airb ag
1210AIllumination b rig htness c ontrol
1315AFuel p ump
1410ARear wind ow wip er and washer
1530AWind shield wip er and washer
1620ABrake lig ht
1715AAir c ond itioner
1815ABac kup lig ht
Cruise c ontrol
ABS c ontrol
1920AMirror heater
Wip er d eic er
2020AAc c essory p ower soc ket
Seat heater

Specifications12-9
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CONTINUED –
Fuse panel Circuit
Fuse rating
830AABS (VDC) solenoid
915ARad io
Cloc k
1015ATrailer
1115AEng ine ig nition system
SRS airb ag
1210AIllumination b rig htness c ontrol
1315AFuel p ump
1410ARear wind ow wip er and washer
1530AWind shield wip er and washer
1620ABrake lig ht
1715AAir c ond itioner
1815ABac kup lig ht
Cruise c ontrol
ABS (VDC) c ontrol
1920AMirror heater
Wip er d eic er
2020AMc Intosh aud io amp (if eq uip p ed )
2120AAc c essory p ower soc ket
Seat heater