chapter 9 SUBARU OUTBACK 2003 3.G Owners Manual

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How to use this owner
’s manual
Using your Owner ’s manual
Before you operate your vehicle, carefully read this manual. To protect yourself and extend the service life of your vehicle, follow the instructions
in this manual. Failure to observe these instructions may result in serious
injury and damage to your vehicle.
This manual is composed of fourteen chapters. Each chapter begins with a brief table of contents, so you can usually tell at a glance if that
chapter contains the information you want. Chapter 1: Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
This chapter informs you how to use the seat and seatbelt and contains
precautions for the SRS airbags.Chapter 2: Keys and doors
This chapter informs you how to operate the keys, locks and windows.Chapter 3: Instruments and controls
This chapter informs you about the operation of instrument panel indica-tors and how to use the instruments and other switches.Chapter 4: Climate control
This chapter informs you how to operate the climate control.Chapter 5: Audio
This chapter informs you how to operate your audio system.Chapter 6: Interior equipment
This chapter informs you how to operate interior equipment.Chapter 7: Starting and operating
This chapter informs you how to start and operate your SUBARU.Chapter 8: Driving tips
This chapter informs you how to drive your SUBARU in various condi-tions and explains some safety tips on driving.Chapter 9: In case of emergency
This chapter informs you what to do if you have a problem while driving,
such as a flat tire or engine overheating.Chapter 10: Appearance care
This chapter informs you how to keep your SUBARU looking good.

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Chapter 11: Maintenance and service
This chapter informs you when you need to take your SUBARU to the
dealer for scheduled maintenance and informs you how to keep your
SUBARU running properly.Chapter 12: Specifications
This chapter informs you about dimension and capacities of yourSUBARU.Chapter 13: Consumer information and Reporting safety defects
This chapter informs you about Uniform tire quality grading standards
and Reporting safety defects.Chapter 14: IndexThis is an alphabetical listing of all that
’s in this manual. You can use it to
quickly find something you want to read. Safety warnings
You will find a number of WARNINGs, CAUTIONs and NOTEs in this manual.
These safety warnings alert you to potential hazards that could result in
injury to you or others.
Please read these safety warnings as well as all other portions of this
manual carefully in order to gain a better understanding of how to use
your SUBARU vehicle safely.
WARNING
A WARNING indicates a situation in which serious injury or deathcould result if the warning is ignored.
CAUTION
A CAUTION indicates a situation in which injury or damage toyour vehicle, or both, could result if the caution is ignored.
NOTE A NOTE gives information or suggestions how to make better use of your vehicle.

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deploys could suffer very serious injuries. Because the SRS air- bag needs enough space for deployment, the driver should al-ways sit upright and well back in the seat as far from the steeringwheel as practical while still maintaining full vehicle control and
the front passenger should move the seat as far back as possibleand sit upright and well back in the seat.
Carefully read the sections “Seat, seatbelts and SRS airbag ” in chapter 1
of this owner ’s manual for instructions and precautions concerning the
seatbelt system and SRS airbag system. CHILD SAFETY
WARNING
Never hold a child on your lap or in your arms while the ve-
hicle is moving. The passenger cannot protect the child from in- jury in a collision, because the child will be caught between the
passenger and objects inside the vehicle. While riding in the vehicle, infants and small children should
always be placed in the REAR seat in an infant or child restraint
system which is appropriate for the child ’s age, height and
weight. If a child is too big for a child restraint system, the childshould sit in the REAR seat and be restrained using the seatbelts.According to accident statistics, children are safer when properlyrestrained in the rear seating positions than in the front seatingpositions. Never allow a child to stand up or kneel on the seat. Put children aged 12 and under in the REAR seat properly re-
strained at all times in a child restraint device or in a seatbelt. TheSRS airbag deploys with considerable speed and force and caninjure or even kill children, especially if they are 12 years of ageand under and are not restrained or improperly restrained. Be-
cause children are lighter and weaker than adults, their risk being
injured from deployment is greater. NEVER INSTALL A REARWARD FACING CHILD SAFETY SEAT
IN THE FRONT SEAT. DOING SO RISKS SERIOUS INJURY OR
DEATH TO THE CHILD BY PLACING THE CHILD ’S HEAD TOO

viCLOSE TO THE SRS AIRBAG.
Always use the child safety locks whenever a child rides in the
rear seat. Serious injury could result if a child accidentallyopened the door and fell out. Refer to the “Door locks ” section in
chapter 2. Always lock the passenger ’s windows using the lock switch
when children are riding in the vehicle. Failure to follow this pro-cedure could result in injury to a child operating the power win-
dow. Refer to the “Power windows ” section in chapter 2.
Never leave unattended children in the vehicle. They could ac-
cidentally injure themselves or others through inadvertent opera-
tion of the vehicle. Also, on hot or sunny days, temperature in a
closed vehicle could quickly become high enough to cause se-vere or possibly fatal injuries to them. Help prevent young children from locking themselves in the
trunk. When leaving the vehicle, either close all windows and lockall doors or cancel the inside trunk lid release. Also make certainthat the trunk is closed. On hot or sunny days, the temperature ina trunk could quickly become high enough to cause death or seri-ous heat-related injuries including brain damage, particularly for
small children.
Carefully read the sections “Child restraint systems ”, “SRS airbag ”, and
“Seatbelts” in chapter 1 of this owner ’s manual for instructions and pre-
cautions concerning the child restraint system, seatbelt system and SRSairbag system. ENGINE EXHAUST GAS (CARBON MONOXIDE)
WARNING
Never inhale engine exhaust gas. Engine exhaust gas contains
carbon monoxide, a colorless and odorless gas which is danger- ous, or even lethal, if inhaled. Always properly maintain the engine exhaust system to pre-
vent engine exhaust gas from entering the vehicle.

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TIRE PRESSURES
WARNING
Driving at high speeds with excessively low tire pressures can
cause the tires to deform severely and to rapidly become hot. Asharp increase in temperature could cause tread separation, and
destruction of the tires. The resulting loss of vehicle controlcould lead to an accident.
Check and, if necessary, adjust the pressure of each tire (including the
spare) at least once a month and before any long journey.
Check the tire pressure when the tires are cold.
Use a pressure gauge to adjust the tire pressures to the values shown on
the tire placard.Refer to the “Tires and wheels ” section in chapter 11 for detailed
information.
CALIFORNIA PROPOSITION 65 WARNING
WARNING
Engine exhaust, some of its constituents, and certain vehicle components contain or emit chemicals known to the State ofCalifornia to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductiveharm.

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adults, their risk of being injured from deployment is greater. For
that reason, we strongly recommend that ALL children (including
those in child seats and those that have outgrown child restraint
devices) sit in the REAR seat properly restrained at all times in a
child restraint device or in a seatbelt, whichever is appropriate for
the child
’s age, height and weight.
Secure ALL types of child restraint devices (including forward fac-
ing child seat) in the REAR seats at all times.
NEVER INSTALL A REARWARD FACING CHILD SEAT IN THE
FRONT SEAT. DOING SO RISKS SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH TO
THE CHILD BY PLACING THE CHILD ’S HEAD TOO CLOSE TO THE
SRS AIRBAG.
According to accident statistics, children are safer when properly
restrained in the rear seating positions than in the front seating
positions. For instructions and precautions concerning child re-
straint systems, see the “Child restraint systems ” section in this
chapter.
HB0290
HS0233
Adjust the seatback to upright position. Sit well back and upright.
Move the seat as far from the steering wheel as practical. Adjust the seatback toupright position. Sit well back and upright.Move the seat as far back as possible.

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NOTE While adjusting the seatback, you can not at the same time adjust the seat position or the seat cushion angle and height.
Head restraint adjustment
HB1016BA
To raise the head restraint, pull it up. To lower it, push the head
restraint down while pressing the release button on the top of theseatback.
The head restraint should be adjusted so that the center of the head
restraint is closest to the top of the occupant ’s ears.
NOTE If the seatback is reclined rearward to the same level as the rear seat cushion with the head restraint removed, a wide flat bed ismade available.
WARNING
Never drive your car with the seats converted in a flat bed
position. If you do so, occupants will have a greater chance of
being injured even during simple deceleration, acceleration andcornering since no firm restraint will be available for them. Before you lie on the flat bed to take a rest, read the descrip-
tion “ Parking your vehicle ” in Chapter 7 carefully and follow the
instructions.

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According to accident statistics, children are safer when properly restrained in the rear seating positions than in the front seatingpositions. For instructions and precautions concerning the childrestraint system, see the
“Child restraint systems ” section in this
chapter.
Infants or small children
Use a child restraint system that is suitable for your vehicle. See in-
formation on “Child restraint systems ” in this chapter.
Children
If a child is too big for a child restraint system, the child should sit in
the rear seat and be restrained using the seatbelts. According to ac-
cident statistics, children are safer when properly restrained in the
rear seating positions than in the front seating positions. Never allow a
child to stand up or kneel on the seat.
If the shoulder portion of the belt crosses the face or neck, move the
child closer to the belt buckle to help provide a good shoulder belt fit.
Care must be taken to securely place the lap belt as low as possibleon the hips and not on the child ’s waist. If the shoulder portion of the
belt cannot be properly positioned, a child restraint system should beused. Never place the shoulder belt under the child ’s arm or behind
the child ’s back.
Expectant mothers
HS1107AA

1-18Expectant mothers also need to use the seatbelts. They should con-
sult their doctor for specific recommendations. The lap belt should be
worn securely and as low as possible over the hips, not over thewaist.
Emergency Locking Retractor (ELR)
The driver ’s seatbelt has an Emergency Locking Retractor (ELR).
The emergency locking retractor allows normal body movement but the
retractor locks automatically during a sudden stop, impact or if you pull
the belt very quickly out of the retractor. Automatic/Emergency Locking Retractor (A/ELR)
Each passenger ’s seatbelt has an Automatic/Emergency Locking Re-
tractor (A/ELR). The Automatic/Emergency Locking Retractor normally
functions as an Emergency Locking Retractor (ELR). The A/ELR has an
additional locking mode “Automatic Locking Retractor (ALR) mode ” in-
tended to secure a child restraint system. When the seatbelt is once
drawn out completely and is then retracted even slightly, the retractorlocks the seatbelt in that position and the seatbelt cannot be extended.
As the belt is rewinding, clicks will be heard which indicate the retractor
functions as ALR. When the seatbelt is retracted fully, ALR mode is re-leased.
When securing a child restraint system on the passengers ’ seats, the
seatbelt must be changed over to the Automatic Locking Retractor (ALR) mode.
When the child restraint system is removed, make sure that the retractor
is restored to the Emergency Locking Retractor (ELR) function by allow-
ing the seatbelt to retract fully.
For instructions on how to convert the retractor to the ALR mode and re-
store it to the ELR mode, see the “Child restraint systems ” section in this
chapter. Seatbelt warning light and chime
Your vehicle is equipped with a seatbelt warning device at the driver ’s
seat.

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Front seatbelt pretensioners
WARNING
To obtain maximum protection, occupants should sit in an up-
right position with their seatbelts properly fastened. Refer to
“Seatbelts” section in this chapter.
Do not modify, remove or strike the front seatbelt retractor as-
semblies or surrounding area. This could result in accidental ac-tivation of the seatbelt pretensioners or could make the system
inoperative, possibly resulting in serious injury. Seatbelt preten-sioners have no user-serviceable parts. For required servicing of
front seatbelt retractors equipped with seatbelt pretensioners,
see your nearest SUBARU dealer. When discarding front seatbelt retractor assemblies or scrap-
ping the entire car due to collision damage or for other reasons,
consult your SUBARU dealer.
HB0373
Seatbelt retractor assembly (Pretensioner)
The driver
’s and front passenger ’s seatbelts have a seatbelt preten-
sioner. The seatbelt pretensioners are designed to be activated in the
event of an accident involving a moderate to severe frontal collision.
The pretensioner sensor also serves as a SRS frontal airbag sensor. If
the sensor detects a certain predetermined amount of force during a
frontal collision, the front seatbelt is quickly drawn back in by the re-
tractor to take up the slack so that the belt more effectively restrains