SUBARU OUTBACK 2005 4.G Owners Manual

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Maintenance and service
!
Recommended fluid
“Dexron III” Type Automatic Transmission Fluid
Brake fluid !Checking the fluid level
"Never let brake fluid contact your eyes be-
cause brake fluid can be harmful to your eyes.
If brake fluid gets in your eyes, immediately
flush them thoroughly with clean water. For
safety, when performing this work, wearing eye
protection is advisable. " Brake fluid absorbs moisture from the air.
Any absorbed moisture 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.
" Never use different brands of brake fluid to-
gether. " When adding brake fluid, be careful not to al-
low any dirt into the reservoir." Never splash the brake fluid over painted sur-

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Maintenance and service
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faces or rubber parts. Alcohol contained in the
brake fluid may damage them.
Check the fluid level monthly.
Check the fluid level on the outside of the reservoir. If
the level is below “MIN”, add the recommended brake
fluid to “MAX”.
Use only brake fluid from a sealed container. ! Recommended brake fluid
FMVSS No. 116, fresh DOT 3 or 4 brake fluid
Clutch fluid (MT vehicles) !Checking the fluid level
Never let clutch fluid contact your eyes be-
cause clutch fluid can be harmful to your eyes.
If clutch fluid gets in your eyes, immediately
flush them thoroughly with clean water. For
safety, when performing this work, wearing eye
protection is advisable.
"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 to-
gether. " When clutch fluid is added, be careful not to
allow any dirt into the tank.
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Maintenance and service
Check the fluid level on the outside of the reservoir. If
the level is below “MIN” level mark, add the recom-
mended clutch fluid to “MAX” level mark.
Use only clutch fluid from a sealed container. !
Recommended clutch fluid
FMVSS No. 116, fresh DOT 3 or 4 brake fluid
Brake booster
If the brake booster does not operate as described be-
low, have it checked by your SUBARU dealer.
1. With the engine off, depress the brake pedal sever-
al times, applying the same pedal force each time. The
distance the pedal travels should not vary.
2. With the brake pedal depressed, start the engine.
The pedal should move slightly down to the floor.
3. With the brake pedal depressed, stop the engine
and keep the pedal depressed for 30 seconds. The
pedal height should not change.
4. Start the engine again and run for about one minute
then turn it off. Depress the brake pedal several times
to check the brake booster. Brake booster operates
properly if the pedal stroke decreases with each de-
pression.
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Maintenance and service
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Brake pedal
Check the brake pedal free play and reserve distance
according to the maintenance schedule in the “War-
ranty and Maintenance Booklet”. !Checking the brake pedal free play
A) 0.02 – 0.08 in (0.5 – 2.0 mm)
Stop the engine and firmly depress the brake pedal
several times. Lightly pull the brake pedal up with one
finger to check the free play with a force of less than 2
lbs (10 N, 1 kg).
If the free play is not within proper specification, con- tact your SUBARU dealer. !
Checking the brake pedal reserve dis-
tance
A) More than 2.56 in (65 mm)
Depress the pedal with a force of approximately 66 lbs
(294 N, 30 kg) and measure the distance between the
upper surface of the pedal pad and the floor.
When the measurement is smaller than the specifica-
tion, or when the pedal does not operate smoothly,
contact with your SUBARU dealer.
A
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A
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Maintenance and service
Clutch pedal (Manual transmission
vehicles)
Check the clutch pedal free play and reserve distance
according to the maintenance schedule in the “War-
ranty and Maintenance Booklet”. !
Checking the clutch function
Check the clutch engagement and disengagement.
1. With the engine idling, check that there are no ab-
normal noises when the clutch pedal is depressed,
and that shifting into 1st or reverse feels smooth.
2. Start the vehicle by releasing the pedal slowly to
check that the engine and transmission smoothly cou-
ple without any sign of slippage. !
Checking the clutch pedal free play
A) 0.16 – 0.51 in (4.0 – 13.0 mm)
Lightly press the clutch pedal down with your finger
until you feel resistance, and check the free play.
If the free play is not within proper specification, con-
tact your SUBARU dealer.
A
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Maintenance and service
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Replacement of brake pad and lining
If you continue to drive despite the scraping
noise from the audible brake pad wear indica-
tor, it will result in the need for costly brake ro-
tor repair or replacement.
The right front disc brake and the right rear disc brake
have an audible wear indicators on the brake pads. If
the brake pads wear close to their service limit, the
wear indicator makes a very audible scraping noise when the brake pedal is applied.
If you hear this scraping noise each time you apply the
brake pedal, have the brake pads serviced by your
SUBARU dealer as soon as possible. !
Breaking-in of new brake pads and lin- ings
When replacing the brake pad or lining, use only gen-
uine SUBARU parts. After replacement, the new parts
must be broken in as follows: ! Brake pad and lining
While maintaining a speed of 30 to 40 mph (50 to 65
km/h), step on the brake pedal lightly. Repeat this five
or more times. ! Parking brake lining
A safe location and situation should be select-
ed for break-in driving.
Pulling the parking brake lever too forcefully
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Maintenance and service
may cause the rear wheels to lock. To avoid
this, be certain to pull the lever up slowly and
gently.
1. Drive the vehicle at a speed of about 22 mph (35
km/h).
2. With the parking brake release button pushed in,
pull the parking brake lever SLOWLY and GENTLY.
(Pulling with a force of approximately 33 lbs [147 N, 15 kg].)
3. Drive the vehicle for about 220 yards (200 meters)
in this condition.
4. Wait 5 to 10 minutes for the parking brake to cool
down. Repeat this procedure.
5. Check the parking brake stroke. If the parking
brake stroke is out of the specified range, adjust it by
turning the adjusting nut located on the parking brake
lever.
Parking brake stroke:
5 – 6 notches / 44 lbs (196 N, 20 kg)
Parking brake stroke
Check the parking brake stroke according to the main-
tenance schedule in the “Warranty and Maintenance
Booklet”. When the parking brake is properly adjusted,
braking power is fully applied by pulling the lever up
five to six notches gently but firmly (about 44 lbs, 196
N, 20 kg). If the parking brake lever stroke is not within the specified range, have the brake system checked
and adjusted at your SUBARU dealer.
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Maintenance and service
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Tires and wheels !Types of tires
You should be familiar with type of tires present on your vehicle. ! All season tires
The factory-installed tires on your new vehicle are all
season tires.
All season tires are designed to provide an adequate
measure of traction, handling and braking perfor-
mance in year-round driving including snowy and icy
road conditions. However all season tires do not offer
as much traction performance as winter (snow) tires in
heavy or loose snow or on icy roads.
All season tires are identified by “ALL SEASON” and/
or “M+S” (Mud & Snow) on the tire sidewall. ! Summer tires
Summer tires are high-speed capability tires best suit-
ed for highway driving under dry conditions.
Summer tires are inadequate for driving on slippery
roads such as on snow-covered or icy roads.
If you drive your vehicle on snow-covered or icy roads,
we strongly recommend the use of winter (snow) tires.
When installing winter tires, be sure to replace all four
tires. !
Winter (snow) tires
Winter tires are best suited for driving on snow-cov-
ered and icy roads. However winter tires do not per-
form as well as summer tires and all season tires on
roads other than snow-covered and icy roads. ! Tire pressure monitoring system
(TPMS) (if equipped)
The tire pressure monitoring system provides the driv-
er with a warning message indicating by sending a sig-
nal from a sensor that is installed in each wheel when
tire pressure is severely low. The tire pressure moni-
toring system will activate only when the vehicle is
driven. Also, this system may not react immediately to
a sudden drop in tire pressure (for example, a blow-
out caused by running over a sharp object).
If you adjust the tire pressures in a warm garage and
will then drive the vehicle in cold outside air, the result-
ing drop in tire pressures may cause the low tire pres-
sure warning light to come on. To avoid this problem
when adjusting the tire pressures in a warm garage,
inflate the tires to pressures higher than those shown
on the tire placard. Specifically, inflate them by an ex-
tra 1 psi (6.9 kPa, 0.07 kgf/cm 2
) for every difference of
10 °F (5.6 °C) between the temperature in the garage
and the temperature outside. By way of example, the

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Maintenance and service
following table shows the required tire pressures that
correspond to various outside temperatures when the
temperature in the garage is 60
°F (15.6 °C).
Standard tire pressures:
Front: 32 psi (220 kPa, 2.2 kgf/cm 2
)
Rear: 30 psi (210 kPa, 2.1 kgf/cm 2
)
Garage temperature: 60 °F (15.6 °C)
If the low tire pressure warning light comes on when
you drive the vehicle in cold outside air after adjusting
the tire pressures in a warm garage, re-adjust the tire
pressures using the method described above. Then,
increase the vehicle speed to at least 20 mph (32 km/
h) and check to see that the low tire pressure warning
light goes off a few minutes later. If the low tire pres-
sure warning light does not go off, the tire pressure
monitoring system may not be functioning normally. In this event, go to a SUBARU dealer to have the system
inspected as soon as possible.
While the vehicle is driven, friction between tires and
the road surface causes the tires to warm up. After il-
lumination of the low tire pressure warning light, any
increase in the tire pressures caused by an increase in
the outside air temperature or by an increase in the
temperature in the tires can cause the low tire pres-
sure warning light to go off.
System resetting is necessary when the wheels are
changed (for example, a switch to snow tires) and new
TPMS valves are installed on the newly fitted wheels.
Have this work performed by a SUBARU dealer fol-
lowing wheel replacement.
It may not be possible to install TPMS valves on cer-
tain wheels that are on the market. Therefore, if you
change the wheels (for example, a switch to snow
tires), use wheels that have the same part number as
the standard-equipment wheels. Without four opera-
tional TPMS valve/sensors on the wheels, the TPMS
will not fully function and the warning light in the instru-
ment panel will flash.
When a tire is replaced, adjustments are necessary to
ensure continued normal operation of the tire pressure
monitoring system. As with wheel replacement, there-
Outside temperature Adjusted pressure
[psi (kPa, kgf/cm2
)]
front rear
30 °F (–1 °C) 35 (240, 2.4) 33 (230, 2.3)
10 °F (–12 °C) 37 (255, 2.55) 35 (245, 2.45)
–10 °F (–23 °C) 39 (270, 2.7) 37 (260, 2.6)

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Maintenance and service
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fore, you should have the work performed by a SUBA-
RU dealer.
If the low tire pressure warning light does not
come on briefly after the ignition switch is
turned ON or the light is flashing, you should
have your Tire Pressure Monitoring System
checked at a SUBARU dealer as soon as possi-
ble.
If this light comes on while driving, never brake
suddenly and keep driving straight ahead while
gradually reducing speed. Then slowly pull off
the road to a safe place. Otherwise an accident
involving serious vehicle damage and serious
personal injury could occur.
If this light still comes on while driving after ad-
justing the tire pressure, a tire may have signif-
icant damage and a fast leak that causes the
tire to lose air rapidly. If you have a flat tire, re-
place it with a spare tire as soon as possible.
When a spare tire is mounted or a wheel rim is
replaced without the original pressure sensor/
transmitter being transferred, the low tire pres-
sure warning light will flash. This indicates the
TPMS is unable to monitor all four road wheels.
Contact your SUBARU dealer as soon as possi- ble for tire and sensor replacement and/or sys-
tem resetting. If the light flashes, promptly con-
tact a SUBARU dealer to have the system in-
spected.
! Tire inspection
Check on a daily basis that the tires are free from se-
rious damage, nails, and stones. At the same time,
check the tires for abnormal wear.
Contact your SUBARU dealer immediately if you find
any problem.
NOTE " When the wheels and tires strike curbs or are
subjected to harsh treatment as when the vehicle
is driven on a rough surface, they can suffer dam-
age that cannot be seen with the naked eye. This
type of damage does not become evident until
time has passed. Try not to drive over curbs, pot-
holes or on other rough surfaces. If doing so is un-
avoidable, keep the vehicle’s speed down to a
walking pace or less, and approach the curbs as
squarely as possible. Also, make sure the tires are
not pressed against the curb when you park thevehicle. " If you feel unusual vibration while driving or find