SUBARU OUTBACK 2001 3.G Owners Manual

Driving tips8-33
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Trailer hitches
WARNING
Never drill the frame or under-body of your vehicle to install a
commercial trailer hitch. If you do, dangerous exhaust gas, wateror mud may enter the passenger compartment through the drilledhole. Exhaust gas contains carbon monoxide, a colorless andodorless gas which is dangerous, or even lethal, if inhaled. Also,drilling the frame or under-body of your vehicle could cause dete-rioration of strength of your vehicle and cause corrosion aroundthe drilled hole.
CAUTION
Do not modify the vehicle exhaust system, brake system, or
other systems when installing a hitch or other trailer towingequipment. Do not use axle-mounted hitches as they can cause damage to
the axle housing, wheel bearings, wheels or tires.
Choose a p rop er hitc h for your vehic le and trailer. OUTBACK wagon
The use of a g enuine SUBARU trailer hitc h is rec omm end ed . A g enu-
ine SUBARU hitc h is availab le from your SUBARU d eal er.
If use of a non-g enuine hitc h is unavoid ab le, b e su re the hitc h is
suited to your vehic le and trailer. Consult with a p rofessional hitc h
sup p lier to assist you in c hoosing an ap p rop riate h itc h for your
vehic le. Be sure to follow all of the hitc h manufac turer’s instruc tions for
installation and use.
Never use a hitc h that mounts only to the rear b ump er. The b ump er is
not d esig ned to hand le that typ e of load .
For all typ es of hitc hes, reg ularly c hec k that the hitc h mounting b olts
and nuts are tig ht.

8-34
All vehicles except OUTBACK wagon
SUBARU d oes not offer ac c essory trailer hitc hes. Co nsult with a p ro-
fessional hitc h sup p lier to assist you in c hoosing an ap p rop riate hitc h
for your vehic le. Be sure to follow all of the hitc h manufac turer’s
instruc tions for installation and use.
Never use a hitc h that mounts only to the rear b ump er. The b ump er is
not d esig ned to hand le that typ e of load .
Reg ularly c hec k that the hitc h mounting b olts and n uts are tig ht.
Connecting a trailer
n Trailer brakes
WARNING
Adequate size trailer brakes are required when the trailer and
its cargo exceed 1,000 lbs (453 kg) total weight. Do not directly connect your trailer ’s hydraulic brake system
to the hydraulic brake system in your vehicle. Direct connectionwould cause the vehicle ’s brake performance to deteriorate and
could lead to an accident.
If your trailer ’s total weig ht (trailer weig ht p lus its c arg o weig h t)
exc eed s 1,000 lb s (453 kg ), the trailer is req uired to b e eq uip p ed with
its own b rake system. Elec tric b rakes or surg e b rak es are rec om-
mend ed , and must b e installed p rop erly. Chec k that your trailer’s
b rakes c onform with Fed eral, state/p rovinc e and /or other ap p lic ab le
reg ulations. Your SUBARU ’s b rake system is not d esig ned to b e
tap p ed into the trailer ’s hyd raulic b rake system. Please ask your
SUBARU d ealer and p rofessional trailer sup p lier for more information
ab out the trailer ’s b rake system.
n Trailer safety chains
WARNING
Always use safety chains between your vehicle and the trailer.
Towing trailer without safety chains could create a traffic safetyhazard if the trailer separates from the hitch due to coupling dam-age or hitch ball damage.

Driving tips8-35
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In c ase the trailer hitc h c onnec tor or hitc h b all s
hould b reak or
b ec ome d isc onnec ted , the trailer c ould g et loose an d c reate a traffic
safety hazard .
For safety, always c onnec t the towing vehic le and t railer with trailer
safety c hains. Pass the c hains c rossing eac h other und er the trailer
tong ue to p revent the trailer from d rop p ing onto th e g round in c ase
the trailer tong ue should d isc onnec t from the hitc h b all. Allow suffi-
c ient slac k in the c hains taking tig ht-turn situati ons into ac c ount; how-
ever, b e c areful not to let them d rag on the g round .
For more information ab out the safety c hain c onnec t ion, refer to the
instruc tions for your hitc h and trailer. n Side mirrors
After hitc hing a trailer to your vehic le, c hec k tha t the stand ard sid e
mirrors p rovid e a g ood rearward field of view witho ut sig nific ant b lind
sp ots. If sig nific ant b lind sp ots oc c ur with the ve hic le’s stand ard sid e
mirrors, use towing mirrors that c onform with Fed er al, state/p rovinc e
and /or other ap p lic ab le reg ulations.
HB0085
n Trailer lights CAUTION
Direct splicing or other improper connection of trailer lights may
damage your vehicle ’s electrical system and cause a malfunction
of your vehicle ’s lighting system.

8-36Connec tion of trailer lig hts to your vehic le
’s elec tric al system req uires
mod ific ations to the vehic le ’s lig hting c irc uit to inc rease its c ap ac ity
and ac c ommod ate wiring c hang es. To ensure the trail er lig hts are
c onnec ted p rop erly, p lease c onsult your SUBARU d eal er. Chec k for
p rop er op eration of the turn sig nals, the b rake lig hts and p arking
lig hts eac h time you hitc h up . n Tires
WARNING
Never tow a trailer when the temporary spare tire is used. The temporary spare tire is not designed to sustain the towing load.
Use of the temporary spare tire when towing can result in failureof the spare tire and/or less stability of the vehicle.
Make sure that all the tires on your vehic le are p r op erly inflated .
OUTBACK: The rec ommend ed c old tire p ressure und er trailer
towing c ond itions is ind ic ated on the tire p lac ard loc ated und er the
d oor striker on the d river ’s sid e. Ad just the rear tire p ressure to the
rec ommend ed p ressure shown on the tire p lac ard when the tires
are c old . Normal p ressure should b e maintained in t he front tires.
Other models: It is rec ommend ed to inflate the rear tires to 3 p si
(20 kPa, 0.2 kg /c m 2
) ab ove their normal op erating p ressure when
the tires are c old . Normal p ressure should b e maint ained in the
front tires.
Trailer tire c ond ition, size, load rating and p rop e r inflation p ressure
should b e in ac c ord anc e with the trailer manufac tur er’s sp ec ific ations.
In the event your vehic le g ets a flat tire when tow ing a trailer, ask a
c ommerc ial road servic e to rep air the flat tire.
If you c arry a reg ular size sp are tire in your vehi c le or trailer as a p re-
c aution ag ainst g etting a flat tire, b e sure that t he sp are tire is firmly
sec ured .

Driving tips8-37
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Trailer towing tips CAUTION
Never exceed 45 mph (72 km/h) when towing a trailer in hilly
country on hot days. When towing a trailer, steering, stability, stopping distance and
braking performance will be different from normal operation. For
safety’ s sake, you should employ extra caution when towing a
trailer and you should never speed. You should also keep the fol-lowing tips in mind:
n Before starting out on a trip
Chec k that the vehic le and vehic le-to-hitc h mountin g are in g ood
c ond ition. If any p rob lems are ap p arent, d o not tow the trailer.
Chec k that the vehic le sits horizontally with the t railer attac hed . If
the vehic le is tip p ed sharp ly up at the front and d own at the rear,
c hec k the total trailer weig ht, GVW, GAWs and tong u e load ag ain,
then c onfirm that the load and its d istrib ution are ac c ep tab le.
Chec k that the tire p ressures are c orrec t.
Chec k that the vehic le and trailer are c onnec ted p r op erly. Confirm
that. –the trailer tong ue is c onnec ted p rop erly to the hit c h b all.
– the trailer lig hts c onnec tor is c onnec ted p rop erly and trailer’s
b rake lig hts illuminate when the vehic le ’s b rake p ed al is p ressed ,
and that the trailer ’s turn sig nal lig hts flash when the vehic le ’s turn
sig nal lever is op erated .
– the safety c hains are c onnec ted p rop erly.
– all c arg o in the trailer is sec ured safety in p osit ion.
– the sid e mirrors p rovid e a g ood rearward field of v iew without a
sig nific ant b lind sp ot.
Suffic ient time should b e taken to learn the “feel ” of the vehic le/
trailer c omb ination b efore starting out on a trip . In an area free of traf-
fic , p rac tic e turning , stop p ing and b ac king up .

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

Driving tips8-39
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nearest SUBARU d ealer. n
Driving on grades
Before g oing d own a steep hill, slow d own and shift into lower g ear
(if nec essary, use 1st g ear) in ord er to utilize th e eng ine b raking effec t
and p revent overheating of your vehic le ’s b rakes. Do not make sud -
d en d ownshifts. When d riving up hill in hot weather, the air c ond iti oner may turn off
automatic ally to p rotec t the eng ine from overheatin g .
When d riving up hill in hot weather, p ay attention t o the water tem-
p erature g aug e p ointer (for all vehic les) and AT OI L TEMP warning
lig ht (for AT vehic les) sinc e the eng ine and transm ission are relatively
p rone to overheating und er these c ond itions. If the water temp erature
g aug e p ointer ap p roac hes the OVERHEAT zone or the A T OIL TEMP
warning lig ht illuminates, immed iately switc h off t he air c ond itioner
and stop the vehic le at the nearest safe p lac e. Ref er to the “Eng ine
overheat ” sec tion in c hap ter 9, and “Warning and ind ic ator lig hts ”
sec tion in c hap ter 3. If your vehic le has a automatic transmission, avoid using the ac c el-
erator p ed al to stay stationary on an up hill slop e instead of using the
p arking b rake or foot b rake. That may c ause the tra nsmission fluid to
overheat. Also, if your vehic le is eq uip p ed with an automatic transmis-
sion, avoid d riving with the g ear selec tor lever in “ D ” when towing a
heavy trailer to p revent fluid overheating . n Parking on a grade
Always b loc k the wheels und er b oth vehic le and trai ler when p arking .
Ap p ly the p arking b rake firmly. You should not p ark on a hill or slop e.
But if p arking on a hill or slop e c annot b e avoid ed , you should take
the following step s:
1. Ap p ly the b rakes and hold the p ed al d own.
2. Have someone p lac e wheel b loc ks und er b oth the ve hic le and
trailer wheels.
3. When the wheel b loc ks are in p lac e, release the r eg ular b rakes
slowly until the b loc ks ab sorb the load .
4. Ap p ly the reg ular b rakes and then ap p ly the p arki ng b rake; slowly
release the reg ular b rakes.

8-405. Shift into 1st or reverse g ear (manual transmissi
on) or “P ” (auto-
matic transmission) and shut off the eng ine.

9
In case of emergency
If you park your vehicle in an emergency 9-2. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Temporary spare tire 9-3
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Flat tires 9-4
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Jump starting 9-11
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Engine overheating 9-14
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Towing 9-15
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Moonroof — if the moonroof cannot be closed 9-25 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Maintenance tools 9-26
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Jack and jack handle 9-27
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

9-2
If you park your vehicle in an emergency
HB8002BA
The hazard warning flasher should b e used in d ay or
nig ht to warn other
d rivers when you have to p ark your vehic le und er em erg enc y c ond itions.
Avoid stop p ing on the road . It is b est to safely p u ll off the road if a p rob -
lem oc c urs.
The hazard warning flasher c an b e ac tivated reg ard l ess of the ig nition
switc h p osition.
Turn on the hazard warning b y p ushing the hazard wa rning flasher
switc h. Turn it off b y p ushing the switc h ag ain. NOTE When the hazard warning flasher is on, the turn signals do not work.