SUBARU OUTBACK 2009 5.G Owners Manual

3-48Instruments and controls
Illumination brightness con- trol
The brightness of clock display, audio, air
conditioner, information display and meter/
gauge illumination dims when the light
switch is in the “
”or “”position. You
can adjust brightness of the meter/gauge
illumination for better visibility.
For turbo and 3.0 L models, you can also
adjust the brightness of the meter/gauge
illumination when the lighting switch is in
the OFF position.
To brighten, turn the control dial upward.
To darken, turn the control dial downward. NOTE . When the control dial is turned fully
upward, the illumination brightness becomes the maximum and the auto-
matic dimming function does not work
at all..
The brightness setting is not can-
celed even when the ignition switch is
turned to the “LOCK ”position. Parking light switch
The parking light switch operates regard-
less of the ignition switch position.
By pushing the front end of this switch,
following lights will illuminate. –
Parking lights
– Front and rear side marker lights
– Tail lights
– License plate lights
To turn off, push the rear end of the
parking light switch.
Avoid leaving these lights on for a long
time because that will run down the
battery.

Front fog light switch
(if equipped)
The front fog lights operate only when the
light switch is in the“”position.
However, the front fog lights turn off when
the headlights are switched to high beam.
To turn on the front fog lights, turn the front
fog light switch on the turn signal lever
upward to the “
”position. To turn off the
front fog lights, turn the switch back down
to the “OFF ”position.
Vehicle with SI-DRIVE
Vehicle without SI-DRIVE
The indicator light located on the combi-
nation meter will illuminate when the front
fog lights are on. Wiper and washer
WARNING
In freezing weather, do not use the
windshield washer until the wind-
shield is sufficiently warmed by the
defroster.
Otherwise the washer fluid can
freeze on the windshield, blocking
your view.
CAUTION
. Do not operate the washer con-
tinuously for more than 10 sec-
onds, or when the washer fluid
tank is empty. This may cause
overheating of the washer motor.
Check the washer fluid level
frequently, such as at fuel stops.
. Do not operate the wipers when
the windshield or rear window is
dry. This may scratch the glass,
damage the wiper blades and
cause the wiper motor to burn
out. Before operating the wiper
on a dry windshield or rear
window, always use the wind-
shield washer. Instruments and controls
3-49
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3-50Instruments and controls
.In freezing weather, be sure that
the wiper blades are not frozen to
the windshield or rear window
before switching on the wipers.
Attempting to operate the wiper
with the blades frozen to the
window glass could cause not
only the wiper blades to be
damaged but also the wiper mo-
tor to burn out. If the wiper
blades are frozen to the window
glass, be sure to operate the
defroster, wiper deicer (if
equipped) or rear window defog-
ger before turning on the wiper.
. If the wipers stop during opera-
tion because of ice or some other
obstruction on the window, the
wiper motor could burn out even
if the wiper switch is turned off. If
this occurs, promptly stop the
vehicle in a safe place, turn the
ignition switch to the “LOCK ”
position and clean the window
glass to allow proper wiper op-eration.
. Use clean water if windshield
washer fluid is unavailable. In
areas where water freezes in
winter, use SUBARU Windshield
Washer Fluid or the equivalent.
Refer to the “Windshield washer fluid
”section in chapter 11.
Also, when driving the vehicle
when there are freezing tempera-
tures, use non-freezing type wi-
per blades.
. Do not clean the wiper blades
with gasoline or a solvent, such
as paint thinner or benzine. This
will cause deterioration of the
wiper blades.
NOTE . The front wiper motor is protected
against overloads by a circuit breaker.
If the motor operates continuously
under an unusually heavy load, the
circuit breaker may trip to stop the
motor temporarily. If this happens, park
your vehicle in a safe place, turn off the
wiper switch, and wait for approxi-
mately 10 minutes. The circuit breaker
will reset itself, and the wipers will
again operate normally.. Clean your wiper blades and win-
dow glass periodically with a washer
solution to prevent streaking, and to
remove accumulations of road salt or
road film. Keep the washer button
depressed at least for 1 second so that
washer solution will be sprinkled all
over the windshield or rear window. .
Grease, wax, insects or other mate-
rial on the windshield or the wiper
blades results in jerky wiper operation
and streaking on the glass. If you
cannot remove those streaks after
operating the washer or if the wiper
operation is jerky, clean the outer sur-
face of the windshield or rear window
and the wiper blades using a sponge or
soft cloth with a neutral detergent or
mild-abrasive cleaner. After cleaning,
rinse the window glass and wiper
blades with clean water. The glass is
clean if no beads form on the glass
when you rinse with water.. If you cannot eliminate the streaking
even after following this procedure,
replace the wiper blades with new
ones. Refer to the “Replacement of
wiper blades ”section in chapter 11 for
replacement instructions.

&Windshield wiper and washer switches
The wiper operates only when the ignition
switch is in the “ON ”or “Acc ”position.
! Windshield wipers
Station wagon
Sedan
OFF : Park
: Intermittent
LO: Low speed
HI: High speed
To turn the wipers on, push the wiper
control lever down.
To turn the wipers off, return the lever to the “OFF ”position. !
Mist (for a single wipe)Station wagon
Sedan
For a single wipe of the wipers, pull the
lever toward you. The wipers operate until Instruments and controls
3-51
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3-52Instruments and controls
you release the lever. ! Wiper intermittent time control
Station wagon
Sedan
When the wiper switch is in the “
”position, turn the dial to adjust the operat-
ing interval of the wiper. The operating
interval can be adjusted in nine steps from
the shortest interval to the longest. !
Washer
Station wagon
Sedan
To wash the windshield, push the washer
button at the end of the wiper control lever.
The washer fluid sprays until you release
the washer button. The wipers operate
while you push the button.

&Rear window wiper and
washer switch (Station wa- gon)
: Washer (accompanied by wiper operation)
ON: Continuous
INT: Intermittent
OFF: Park
: Washer
! Rear wiper
To turn the rear wiper on, turn the knob on
the end of the wiper control lever upward
to the “INT ”or “ON ”position.
To turn the wiper off, return the knob on
the end of the lever to the “OFF ”position.
With the switch turned to the “INT ”
position, the rear wiper will operate inter-
mittently at intervals corresponding to the
vehicle speed. When you subsequently move the selec-
tor lever of the automatic transmission tothe
“R ”position, the rear wiper will switch
to continuous operation. When you move
the selector lever from the “R ”position to
some other position, the rear wiper will
return to intermittent operation. ! Washer
To wash the rear window while the rear
wiper is operating, turn the knob on the
end of the wiper control lever upward tothe “
”position. The washer fluid sprays
until you release the knob.
To wash the rear window when the rear
wiper is not in use, turn the knob on the
end of the wiper control lever downward tothe “
”position. The washer fluid sprays
and the wiper operates until you release
the knob. Windshield wiper deicer
(if equipped)The windshield wiper deicer operates only
when the ignition switch is in the
“ON ”
position.
Before turning on the windshield wiper
deicer, remove any snow from the wind-
shield. To turn on the windshield wiper
deicer, push the button. The indicator light
located on the button lights up while the
windshield wiper deicer is operating.
The windshield wiper deicer will automa-
tically shut off after approximately 15
minutes. If the windshield wiper blades
have been deiced completely before that
time, push the button to turn it off. It also
turns off when the ignition switch is turned Instruments and controls
3-53
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3-54Instruments and controls
to the“Acc ”or “LOCK ”position. If deicing
is not complete, you have to push the
button to turn the deicer on again.
If you wish, you can set the windshield
wiper deicer for continuous operation. . Vehicle with genuine SUBARU navi-
gation system:
The windshield wiper deicer setting can be
changed for continuous operation by
means of the monitor. For details, please
refer to the Owner ’s Manual supplement
for the monitor system.
The setting can also be changed by a
SUBARU dealer. Contact the nearest
SUBARU dealer for details. . Vehicle without genuine SUBARU
navigation system:
The setting can also be changed by a
SUBARU dealer. Contact the nearest
SUBARU dealer for details.
Once the windshield wiper deicer has
been set for continuous operation, press-
ing the button results in continuous opera-
tion. The windshield wiper deicer auto-
matically stops operating if any one of the
following conditions occurs during contin-
uous operation. . The outside temperature becomes
41 8F(5 8C) or higher.
. The vehicle speed remains less than 9
mph (15 km/h) for 15 minutes. .
The battery voltage decreases below
the permissible level.
CAUTION
To prevent the battery from being
discharged, do not operate the
windshield wiper deicer continu-
ously for any longer than necessary. Rear window defogger but- ton
Vehicle with manual climate control sys- tem

Vehicle with automatic climate control
system
The rear window defogger operates only
when the ignition switch is in the “ON ”
position.
The rear window defogger button is
located on the climate control panel.
To turn on the defogger, push the button.
To turn it off, push the button again.
The indicator light located on the button
lights up while the rear window defogger isoperating.
The defogger will automatically shut off
after approximately 15 minutes. If the
window clears before that time, push the
button to turn it off. It also turns off when
the ignition switch is turned to the “Acc ”or
“ LOCK ”position. If defrosting or defogging is not complete, you have to push the
button to turn it on again.
For the vehicle with the automatic climate
control system, if you wish, you can set
the rear window defogger for continuous
operation as follows. .
Vehicle with genuine SUBARU navi-
gation system:
The rear window defogger setting can be
changed for continuous operation by
means of the monitor. For details, please
refer to the Owner ’s Manual supplement
for the monitor system.
The setting can also be changed by a
SUBARU dealer. Please contact the near-
est SUBARU dealer for details. . Vehicle without genuine SUBARU
navigation system:
The setting can also be changed by a
SUBARU dealer. Please contact the near-
est SUBARU dealer for details.
Once the rear window defogger has been
set for continuous operation, by pushing
the button, the rear window defogger
repeatedly runs according to the following
cycle: operates for 15 minutes, stops for 2
minutes, operates for 15 minutes, stops
for 2 minutes. If the battery voltage drops
below the permissible level, continuous
operation is canceled and the defogger
stops operating.
CAUTION
. Do not use sharp instruments or
window cleaner containing abra-
sives to clean the inner surface
of the rear window. They may
damage the conductors printed
on the window.
. To prevent the battery from being
discharged, do not operate the
defogger continuously for any
longer than necessary.
NOTE
If your vehicle is equipped with the
outside mirror defogger, the outside
mirror defogger operates while the rear
window defogger is operating. Instruments and controls
3-55

3-56Instruments and controls
Mirrors
Always check that the inside and outside
mirrors are properly adjusted before you
start driving. &Inside mirror
The inside mirror has a day and night
position. Pull the tab at the bottom of the
mirror toward you for the night position.
Push it away for the day position. The
night position reduces glare from head-lights. &
Auto-dimming mirror/com-
pass (if equipped)
1) Left button
2) Auto dimming indicator
3) Photosensor
4) Right button
The auto-dimming mirror/compass has an
anti-glare feature which automatically re-
duces glare coming from headlights of
vehicles behind you. It also contains a
built-in compass. . By pressing and releasing the left
button, the automatic dimming function is
toggled on or off. When the automatic
dimming function is on, the auto dimming
indicator light (green) located to the right
of the button will illuminate. . By pressing and releasing the right button, the compass display is toggled on
or off. When the compass is on, an
illuminated compass reading will appear
in the lower part of the mirror.
Even with the mirror in anti-glare mode,
the mirror surface turns bright if the
transmission is shifted into reverse. This
is to ensure good rearward visibility duringreversing. !
Photosensors
The mirror has a photosensor attached on
both the front and back sides. If the glare
from the headlights of vehicles behind you
strikes the mirror, these sensors detect it
and make the reflection surface of the
mirror dimmer to help prevent you from
being blinded. For this reason, use care
not to cover the sensors with stickers, or

other similar items. Periodically wipe the
sensors clean using a piece of dry soft
cotton cloth or an applicator. !Compass calibration
1. For optimum calibration, switch off all
nonessential electrical accessories (rear
window defogger, heater/air conditioning
system, spotlight, etc.) and ensure all
doors are shut.
2. Drive to an open, level area away from
large metallic objects or structures and
make certain the ignition switch is in the“ ON ”position.
3. Press and hold the left button for 3
seconds then release, and the compass
will enter the calibration mode. “CAL ”and
direction will be displayed.
4. Drive slowly in a circle until “CAL ”
disappears from the display (approxi-
mately two or three circles). The compass
is now calibrated.
5. Further calibration may be necessary
should outside influences cause the mirror
to read inaccurately. You will know that
this has occurred if your compass begins
to read in only limited directions. Should
you encounter this situation, return to step
one of the above procedure and recali-
brate the mirror. !
Compass zone adjustment
1. The zone setting is factory preset to
Zone 8. Refer to the “Compass calibration
zone ”map attached to the end of this
manual to verify that the compass zone
setting is correct for your geographical location.
2. Press and hold the right button for 3
seconds then release, and the word“ ZONE ”will briefly appear and then the
zone number will be displayed.
3. Press the right-hand button repeatedly
to cycle the display through all possible
zone settings. Stop cycling when the
correct zone setting for your location isdisplayed.
4. Releasing the button for 3 seconds will
exit the zone setting mode.
& Outside mirrors
! Convex mirror (passenger side)
WARNING
Objects look smaller in a convex
mirror and farther away than when
viewed in a flat mirror. Do not use
the convex mirror to judge the
distance of vehicles behind you
when changing lanes. Use the inside
mirror (or glance backwards) to determine the actual size and dis-
tance of objects that you view in
convex mirror.
! Remote control mirror switch
The remote control mirrors operate only
when the ignition switch is in the “ON ”or
“ Acc ”position.
1. Turn the knob to the “L ” side to adjust
the left-hand mirror or to the “R ” side to
adjust the right-hand mirror.
2. Move the knob in the direction you
want to move the mirror.
3. Return the knob to the neutral position
to prevent unintentional operation.
The mirrors can also be adjusted manu-
ally. Instruments and controls
3-57
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