ECU SUBARU IMPREZA 2003 2.G Owner's Guide

Driving tips
8-9
– CONTINUED –
aid kit and portable phone or citizens band radio. Drive carefully. Do not take unnecessary risks by
driving in dangerous areas or over rough terrain. Slow down and employ extra caution at all times.
When driving off-road, you will not have the benefit
of marked traffic lanes, banked curves, traffic signs and the like. Do not drive across steep slopes. Instead, drive
either straight up or straight down the slopes. A ve-
hicle can much more easily tip over sideways than it
can end over end. Avoid driving straight up or down
slopes that are too steep. Avoid sharp turning maneuvers, especially at
higher speeds. Do not grip the inside or spokes of the steering
wheel. A bad bump could jerk the wheel and injureyour hands. Instead drive with your fingers andthumbs on the outside of the rim. If driving through water, such as when crossing
shallow streams, first check the depth of the water
and the bottom of the stream bed for firmness and
ensure that the bed of the stream is flat. Drive slowly
and completely through the stream. The water
should be shallow enough that it does not reach the
vehicle’ s undercarriage. Water entering the engine
air intake or the exhaust pipe or water splashing
onto electrical parts may damage your vehicle and may cause it to stall. Never attempt to drive through
rushing water; regardless of its depth, it can wash
away the ground from under your tires, resulting in
possible loss of traction and even vehicle rollover.
Always check your brakes for effectiveness im-
mediately after driving in sand, mud or water. Do
this by driving slowly and stepping on the brake
pedal. Repeat that process several times to dry outthe brake discs and brake pads. Do not drive or park over or near flammable mate-
rials such as dry grass or fallen leaves, as they may
burn easily. The exhaust system is very hot while the
engine is running and right after the engine stops.
This could create a fire hazard. After driving through tall grass, mud, rock, sand,
rivers, etc., check that there is no grass, bush, pa-
per, rags, stones, sand, etc. adhering to or trapped
on the underbody. Clear off any such matter from
the underbody. If the vehicle is used with these ma-
terials trapped or adhering to the underbody, a
mechanical breakdown or fire could occur. Secure all cargo carried inside the vehicle and
make certain that it is not piled higher than the seat-
backs. During sudden stops or jolts, unsecured car-
go could be thrown around in the vehicle and cause
injury. Do not pile heavy loads on the roof. Thoseloads raise the vehicle ’s center of gravity and make

Driving tips
8-16
WARNING
When you carry something inside the ve-
hicle, secure it whenever you can to prevent it from being thrown around inside the vehicleduring sudden stops, sharp turns or in an ac- cident. Do not pile heavy loads on the roof. These
loads raise the vehicle ’s center of gravity and
make it more prone to tip over. Secure lengthy items properly to prevent
them from shooting forward and causing seri- ous injury during a sudden stop. Never exceed the maximum load limit. If you
do, some parts on your vehicle can break, or itcan change the way your vehicle handles.This could result in loss of control and cause
personal injury. Also, overloading can shorten the life of your vehicle. Do not place anything on the rear shelf
behind the rear seatback (for sedan) or the ex-
tended luggage cover (for wagon). Such itemscould tumble forward in the event of a suddenstop or a collision. This could cause serious
injury.
CAUTION
Do not carry spray cans, containers with flam- mable or corrosive liquids or any other dan- gerous items inside the vehicle.
NOTE
For better fuel economy, do not carry unneeded cargo. Vehicle capacity weight

Driving tips
8-18
load. Therefore, the GVW changes depending on
the situation. The GVWR equals Curb Weight (actualweight of your vehicle – including standard equip-
ment, fluids, emergency tools and spare tire assem-bly) plus the vehicle capacity weight. In addition, the total weight applied to each axle
(GAW) must never exceed the GAWR. The front and
rear GAWs can be adjusted by relocating luggageinside the vehicle.Even if the total weight of your luggage is lower than
the vehicle capacity weight, either front or rear GAW
may exceed the GAWR, depending on the distribu-
tion of the luggage.
If you carry heavy loads in the vehicle, you should
confirm that GVW and front and rear GAWs are with-
in the GVWR and GAWR by putting your vehicle on
a vehicle scale, found at a commercial weighing sta- tion.
Do not use replacement tires with a lower load range than the originals because they may lower the
GVWR and GAWR limitations. Replacement tireswith a higher load range than the originals do not in-
crease the GVWR and GAWR limitations.
Roof rail and crossbar (if equipped)
1) Crossbar kit
The roof rail is not designed to carry cargo by itself.
Cargo can be carried after securing the roof cross-
bar kit to the roof rail and installing the appropriate
carrying attachment. When installing the roof cross-
bar kit, follow the manufacturer ’s instructions.
When you carry cargo on the roof using the roof
crossbar kit and a carrying attachment, never ex-
ceed the maximum load limit explained below. You
should also be careful that your vehicle does not ex-
ceed the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) and

Driving tips
8-19
– CONTINUED –
front and rear Gross Axle Weight Rating (GAWR). See the “Loading your vehicle ” section in this chap-
ter for information on loading cargo into or onto your
vehicle. The maximum load limit of the cargo, cross-
bars and carrying attachment must not exceed 100
lb. (45 kg). Place the heaviest load at the bottom,
nearest the roof, and evenly distribute the cargo. Al-
ways properly secure all cargo.
CAUTION
For cargo carrying purposes, the roof rail
must be used together with a roof crossbar kit and the appropriate carrying attachment. The roof rail must never be used alone to carrycargo. Otherwise, damage to the roof or paint
or a dangerous road hazard due to loss of car-go could result. When using the roof crossbar kit, make sure
that the total weight of the crossbars, carryingattachment and cargo does not exceed the
maximum load limit. Overloading may cause
damage to the vehicle and create a safety haz-ard.
Installing carrying attachments on the cross-bars
When installing any carrying attachment such as a
bike carrier, ski carrier, kayak carrier, cargo basket,
etc. on the crossbars, follow the manufacturer ’s
instructions and make sure that the attachment is
securely fixed to the crossbars. Use only attach-
ments designed specifically for the crossbars. A set
of the crossbars is designed to carry loads (cargo
and attachment) of not more than 100 lb. (45 kg).
Before operating the vehicle, make sure that the car-
go is properly secured on the attachment. NOTE Remember that the vehicle ’s center of gravity is
altered with the weight of the load on the roof, thus affecting the driving characteristics.
Drive carefully. Avoid rapid starts, hard corneringand abrupt stops. Crosswind effects will beincreased.
Removal and installation of the crossbars
The crossbars can be removed when you do not
use the roof to carry cargo.
n To remove the crossbar
1. Loosen and remove the T –30 torx head screw
from the top of each crossbar end support.

Driving tips
8-21
– CONTINUED –
F) Front of vehicle
1) T30 torx head screw
2) Front arrow label
3) Front crossbar
4) 100LBS load label
5) Lower clamp
6) Roof rail end support
7) Joint line
8) 3 inches (76 mm)
9) Front arrow label
1. Before placing the crossbar on the roof rails,
make sure that the T-30 torx head screw is
removed from the top of each crossbar end support.
2. Rotate the lower clamp on the bottom of each
end support downward approximately 90 °.
3. With the front direction arrow label on the top
right side of the crossbar pointing toward the front of
the vehicle, carefully place the crossbar across the
top of the vehicle so that the crossbar end supports
rest on the top of the roof rails approximately 3
inches (76 mm) rearward from the seam (joint)
between the front roof rail support and the roof rail.
4. Rotate (raise) the lower clamp up to the bottom of
the roof rail and loosely tighten the T-30 torx head
screw with the torx wrench provided, through the
top of the end support and into the threaded insert
in the lower clamp on each end of the crossbar. NOTE It may be necessary to squeeze the lower clamp and the end support together to compress thepads and gain a better alignment of the pieces
while trying to start the screw. Use care not tocrossthread the screw in the insert.
5. Adjust the alignment of the crossbar on the roof
rails, and if available, use a T-30 torx
bit and
torque wrench and tighten the T-30 torx head
screws to 30 to 35 inch lbs. (3.4 to 4.0 N-m, 0.35 to
0.41 kg-m) of torque (or tighten securely with thetorx wrench provided).

Driving tips
8-24
for positive locking placement before towing a
trailer. If the ball mount comes off the hitch re-
ceiver, the trailer could get loose and create atraffic safety hazard.Use only the ball mount supplied with this
hitch. Use the hitch only as a weight carrying
hitch. Do not use with any type of weight dis- tributing hitch.
Connecting a trailer
1. Remove the receiver cover from the hitch receiv-
er tube. Then insert the ball mount into the hitch re- ceiver tube.2. Insert the hitch pin into the hole on the hitch re-
ceiver tube so that the pin passes through the ballmount.
3. Insert the safety pin securely into the hitch pin.
4. Pull the ball mount to make sure it does not come
off the hitch receiver.

Driving tips
8-25
– CONTINUED –
1) Hitch ball installation point
2) Hooks for safety chains
5. Use only a hitch ball that is appropriate for the
ball mount and your trailer. The hitch ball must be
securely installed on the ball mount.
6. Connect your trailer to the hitch ball.
7. Connect the trailer and the hitch with safetychains that will hold the trailer ’s maximum gross
weight. The chains should cross under the trailer
tongue to prevent the tongue from dropping onto the
ground in case it should disconnect from the hitch
ball. Allow sufficient slack in the chains taking tight –
turn situations into account; however, be careful not
to let them drag on the ground.
WARNING
Do not connect safety chains to part of the
vehicle other than the safety chain hooks.

Driving tips
8-30
Gross Axle Weight (GAW) and Gross Axle
Weight Rating (GAWR)
Gross Axle Weight
The total weight applied to each axle (GAW) must
never exceed the Gross Axle Weight Rating
(GAWR). The front and rear GAWs can be adjusted
by relocating passengers and luggage inside the
vehicle. The front and rear GAWR are also shown on
the certification label.
Certification label
To check both GVWR and GAWR and to confirm that
the total weight and weight distribution are withinsafe driving limits, you should have your vehicle and
trailer weighed at a commercial weighing station.
Be sure that all cargo is firmly secured to prevent a
change in weight distribution while driving.

Driving tips
8-32
F) Front of vehicle
The tongue load can be adjusted by proper distribu-
tion of the load in the trailer. Never load the trailer
with more weight in the back than in the front;
approximately 60 percent of the trailer load should
be in the front and approximately 40 percent in the
rear. Also, distribute the load as evenly as possible on both the left and right sides.
Be sure that all cargo is firmly secured to prevent a
change in weight distribution while driving.
WARNING
If the trailer is loaded with more weight in the back of trailer ’s axle than in the front, the load
is taken off the rear axle of the towing vehicle.This may cause the rear wheels to skid, espe-
cially during braking or when vehicle speed is reduced during cornering, resulting in over-
steer, spin out and/or jackknifing.
Trailer hitches
Choose a proper hitch for your vehicle and trailer.
WARNING
Never drill the frame or under-body of your
vehicle to install a commercial trailer hitch. If you do, dangerous exhaust gas, water or mudmay enter the passenger compartment
through the drilled hole. Exhaust gas containscarbon monoxide, a colorless and odorless
gas which is dangerous, or even lethal, if
inhaled. Also, drilling the frame or under-body of your vehicle could cause deterioration ofstrength of your vehicle and cause corrosionaround the drilled hole.

Driving tips
8-35
– CONTINUED –
eral, state/province and/or other applicable regula- tions.
Trailer lights
Connection of trailer lights to your vehicle ’s electrical
system requires modifications to the vehicle ’s light-
ing circuit to increase its capacity and accommo-
date wiring changes. To ensure the trailer lights are
connected properly, please consult your SUBARU
dealer. Check for proper operation of the turn sig-nals, the brake lights and parking lights each timeyou hitch up.
CAUTION
Direct splicing or other improper connection
of trailer lights may damage your vehicle ’s
electrical system and cause a malfunction ofyour vehicle ’s lighting system.
Tires
Make sure that all the tires on your vehicle are prop-
erly inflated to the pressure specified on the tire
placard located on the left center pillar of your ve-hicle.
Trailer tire condition, size, load rating and proper
inflation pressure should be in accordance with the trailer manufacturer
’s specifications.
In the event your vehicle gets a flat tire when towing
a trailer, ask a commercial road service to repair the
flat tire.
If you carry a regular size spare tire in your vehicle
or trailer as a precaution against getting a flat tire,
be sure that the spare tire is firmly secured.
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 ofthe temporary spare tire when towing canresult in failure of the spare tire and/or less
stability of the vehicle.
Trailer towing tips
CAUTION
Never exceed 45 mph (72 km/h) when tow-
ing a trailer in hilly country on hot days. When towing a trailer, steering, stability,
stopping distance and braking performancewill be different from normal operation. For