warning SUBARU OUTBACK 2004 4.G Owners Manual

3
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CONTINUED –
Chapter 13: Consumer information and Reporting safety defects
This chapter informs you about Tire information, Uni-
form tire quality grading standards and Reporting
safety defects.
Chapter 14: Index
This is an alphabetical listing of all that’s in this manu-
al. You can use it to quickly find something you wantto 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 bet-
ter understanding of how to use your SUBARU vehicle safely.
A WARNING indicates a situation in which seri-
ous injury or death could result if the warning is
ignored.
A CAUTION indicates a situation in which injury
or damage to your 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. „ Safety symbol
You will find a circle with a slash through it in this man-
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„Driving with pets
Unrestrained pets can interfere with your driving and
distract your attention from driving. In a collision or
sudden stop, unrestrained pets or cages can be
thrown around inside the vehicle and hurt you or your
passengers. Besides, the pets can be hurt under
these situations. It is also for their own safety that pets
should be properly restrained in your vehicle. Restrain
a pet with a special traveling harness which can be se-
cured to the rear seat with a seatbelt or use a pet car-
rier which can be secured to the rear seat by routing a
seatbelt through the carrier’s handle. Never restrain
pets or pet carriers in the front passenger’s seat. For
further information, consult your veterinarian, local an-
imal protection society or pet shop. „ Tire pressures
Driving at high speeds with excessively low tire
pressures can cause the tires to deform severe-
ly and to rapidly become hot. A sharp increase
in temperature could cause tread separation,
and destruction of the tires. The resulting loss
of vehicle control could lead to an accident. Check and, if necessary, adjust the pressure of each
tire (including the spare) at least once a month and be-
fore 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
Engine exhaust, some of its constituents, and
certain vehicle components contain or emit
chemicals known to the State of California to
cause cancer and birth defects or other repro-
ductive harm. In addition, certain fluids in vehi-
cles and certain components of product wear
contain or emit chemicals known to the State of
California to cause cancer and birth defects or
other reproductive harm.

18
„
Instrument panel
12 3 4 5 67
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
UBF021BB
1) Door locks (page 2-3)
2) Outside mirror (page 3-33)
3) Light control lever (page 3-19)
4) Combination meter (page 3-7)
5) Wiper control lever (page 3-24)
6) Hazard warning flasher switch
(page 3-6)
7) Climate c o ntr ol (p age 4 -1 )
8) Gear shift lever (MT) (page 7- 12)/Selector lever (AT) (page 7-
15)
9) Au dio (pa ge 5-1 )
10) Cruise control (page 7-42)
11) Horn (page 3-36)
12) SRS airbag (page 1-57)
13) Tilt steering (page 3-35)
14) Fuse box (page 11-59)
15) Hood lock release (page 11-5)
16) Power door locking switch (page
2-5)
17) Power window (page 2-23)

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TWarning and indicator light
Mark Name Page
Seatbelt warning light 3-10
SRS airbag system warning light 3-10
CHECK ENGINE warning
light/Malfunction indicator lamp 3-11
Charge warning light 3-12
Oil pressure warning light 3-12
AT OIL temperature warn-
ing light (if equipped) 3-12
or ABS warning light 3-13
VDC warning light (if
equipped) 3-13
or Brake system warning light 3-14
Door open warning light 3-15
Low fuel warning light 3-15
Front-wheel drive warning
light (if equipped) 3-15
VDC operation indicator
light (if equipped) 3-15
VDC OFF indicator light (if equipped) 3-16
Security system indicator
light (if equipped) 3-16
Turn signal indicator lights 3-17
High beam indicator light 3-18
Cruise control set indicator light 3-18
Mark Name Page

1-1
1
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
Front seats .................................................... 1-2 Fore and aft adjustment ................................... 1-3
Seat cushion angle and height adjustment (Power seat only) ........................................... 1-4
Reclining the seatback ..................................... 1-5
Head restraint adjustment ................................ 1-7
Lumbar support (if equipped) .......................... 1-8
Seat heater (if equipped) .............................. 1-9
Rear seats ..................................................... 1-10 Armrest (if equipped) ........................................ 1-11
Headrest adjustment – Rear center seating position on Station wagon ............................ 1-13
Folding down the rear seat – Station wagon .. 1-14
Seatbelts ....................................................... 1-18 Seatbelt safety tips ........................................... 1-18
Emergency Locking Retractor (ELR) .............. 1-19
Automatic/Emergency Locking Retractor (A/ELR) ............................................................ 1-20
Seatbelt warning light and chime ................... 1-20
Fastening the seatbelt ...................................... 1-20
Seatbelt maintenance ....................................... 1-31
Seatbelt extender ......................................... 1-32
Front seatbelt pretensioners ....................... 1-34 System monitors ............................................... 1-35
System servicing .............................................. 1-36
Precautions against vehicle modification ...... 1-37
Child restraint systems ................................ 1-37 Where to place a child restraint system ......... 1-39
Choosing a child restraint system .................. 1-41 Installing child restraint systems with A/ELR
seatbelt ............................................................ 1-41
Installing a booster seat ................................... 1-46
Installation of child restraint systems by use
of lower and tether anchorages (LATCH) .... 1-48
Top tether anchorages ..................................... 1-52
*SRS airbag (Supplemental Restraint System airbag) ........................................... 1-57Vehicle with driver’s and front passenger’s SRS airbags and lap/shoulder restraints ..... 1-57
SRS frontal airbag ............................................ 1-62
SRS side airbag (if equipped) .......................... 1-70
SRS airbag system monitors ........................... 1-78
SRS airbag system servicing .......................... 1-79
Precautions against vehicle modification ...... 1-80

1-20
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
„
Automatic/Emergency Locking Retrac- tor (A/ELR)
Each passenger’s seatbelt has an Automatic/Emer-
gency Locking Retractor (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” intended to secure a child re-
straint system. When the seatbelt is once drawn out
completely and is then retracted even slightly, the re-
tractor locks the seatbelt in that position and the seat-
belt cannot be extended. As the belt is rewinding,
clicks will be heard which indicate the retractor func-
tions as ALR. When the seatbelt is retracted fully, ALR
mode is released.
When securing a child restraint system on the passen-
gers’ 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 allowing the seat-
belt to retract fully.
For instructions on how to convert the retractor to the
ALR mode and restore 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 de-
vice at the driver’s seat.
This device causes the seatbelt warning light on the
instrument panel to light up for about six seconds
when the ignition switch is turned to the “ON” position
to remind the driver to wear the seatbelt. If the driver’s
seatbelt is not fastened, a warning chime sounds at
the same time. „ Fastening the seatbelt
yNever use a belt that is twisted or reversed. In
an accident, this can increase the risk or sever-
ity of injury.y Keep the lap belt as low as possible on your
hips. In a collision, this spreads the force of the
lap belt over stronger hip bones instead of
across the weaker abdomen.y Seatbelts provide maximum restraint when
the occupant sits well back and upright in the
seat. To reduce the risk of sliding under the
seatbelt in a collision, the front seatbacks
should be always used in the upright position
while the vehicle is running. If the front seat-

1-35
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
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yIf the front seatbelt retractor assembly or sur-
rounding area has been damaged, contact your
SUBARU dealer as soon as possible. y When you sell your vehicle, we urge you to ex-
plain to the buyer that it has seatbelt pretension-
ers by alerting him to the contents of this section.
y To obtain maximum protection, occupants
should sit in an upright position with their seat-
belts properly fastened. Refer to “Seatbelts”
section in this chapter.y Do not modify, remove or strike the front
seatbelt retractor assemblies or surrounding
area. This could result in accidental activation
of the seatbelt pretensioners or could make the
system inoperative, possibly resulting in seri-
ous injury. Seatbelt pretensioners have no
user-serviceable parts. For required servicing
of front seatbelt retractors equipped with seat-
belt pretensioners, see your nearest SUBARU
dealer.y When discarding front seatbelt retractor as-
semblies or scrapping the entire car due to col-
lision damage or for other reasons, consult
your SUBARU dealer.
„ System monitors
SRS airbag system warning light
A diagnostic system continually monitors the readi-
ness of the seatbelt pretensioner while the vehicle is
being driven. The seatbelt pretensioners share the
control module with the airbag system. Therefore, if
any malfunction occurs in a seatbelt pretensioner, the
SRS airbag system warning light will illuminate. The
SRS airbag system warning light will show normal sys-
tem operation by lighting for about 6 seconds when
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1-36
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
the ignition key is turned to the “ON” position.
The following components are monitored by the indi- cator: y
Front sub sensor (Right hand side)
y Front sub sensor (Left hand side)
y Airbag control module (including impact sensors)
y Seatbelt pretensioner (Driver’s side)
y Seatbelt pretensioner (Passenger’s side)
y All related wiring
In the event of a malfunction indicated by any of follow-
ing, the vehicle should be taken promptly to your near-
est SUBARU dealer to have the system checked. Un-
less checked and repaired, the seatbelt pretensioners
and airbags will not function reliably:y Flashing or flickering of the indicator light.
y No illumination of the warning light when the ignition
switch is first turned to the “ON” position.y Continuous illumination of the warning light.
y Illumination of the warning light while driving.
„ System servicing
yWhen discarding a seatbelt retractor assem-
bly or scrapping the entire car damaged by a collision, consult your SUBARU dealer. y
Tampering with or disconnecting the sys-
tem’s wiring could result in accidental activa-
tion of the seatbelt pretensioner and/or airbag
or could make the system inoperative, which
may result in serious injury. The wiring har-
nesses of the seatbelt pretensioner and SRS
airbag systems are covered with yellow insula-
tion and the connectors of the system are yel-
low for easy identification. Do not use electrical
test equipment on any circuit related to the
seatbelt pretensioner and airbag systems. For
required servicing of the seatbelt pretensioner,
see your nearest SUBARU dealer.
The front sub sensors are located in both front
fenders and the airbag control module includ-
ing the impact sensors is located under the
center console. If you need service or repair in
those areas or near the front seatbelt retrac-
tors, we recommend that you have an autho-
rized SUBARU dealer perform the work.

1-78
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
The SRS side airbag is basically not designed to de-
ploy if the vehicle is involved in a frontal collision or is
struck from behind. Examples of such accidents are il-
lustrated below.
1) First impact!
2) Second impact!!
In an accident where the vehicle is struck from the side
more than once, the SRS side airbag deploys only
once.
Example: In the case of a double side impact collision,
first with one vehicle and immediately followed by an-
other from the same direction, once the SRS side air-
bag is activated on the first impact, it will not be acti- vated on the second. „
SRS airbag system monitors
SRS airbag system warning light
A diagnostic system continually monitors the readi-
ness of the SRS airbag system (including front seat-
belt pretensioners) while the vehicle is being driven.
The SRS airbag system warning light “AIRBAG” will
show normal system operation by lighting for about 6
seconds when the ignition key is turned to the “ON” position.
The following components are monitored by the indi-
1 2
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1-79
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
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cator: yFront sub sensor (Right hand side)
y Front sub sensor (Left hand side)
y Airbag control module (including impact sensors)
y Frontal airbag module (Driver’s side)
y Frontal airbag module (Passenger’s side)
y Side airbag sensor (Driver’s side – if equipped)
y Side airbag sensor (Passenger’s side – if equipped)
y Side airbag module (Driver’s side – if equipped)
y Side airbag module (Passenger’s side – if
equipped)y Seatbelt pretensioner (Driver’s side)
y Seatbelt pretensioner (Passenger’s side)
y All related wiring
In the event of a malfunction indicated by any of follow-
ing, the vehicle should be taken promptly to your near-
est SUBARU dealer to have the system checked. Un-
less checked and repaired, the SRS airbags will not
function reliably: y Flashing or flickering of the indicator light.
y No illumination of the warning light when the ignition
switch is first turned to the “ON” position.y Continuous illumination of the warning light.
y Illumination of the warning light while driving. „
SRS airbag system servicing
yWhen discarding an airbag module or scrap-
ping the entire car damaged by a collision, con-
sult your SUBARU dealer. y The SRS airbag has no user-serviceable
parts. Do not use electrical test equipment on
any circuit related to the SRS airbag system.
For required servicing of the SRS airbag, see
your nearest SUBARU dealer. Tampering with
or disconnecting the system’s wiring could re-
sult in accidental inflation of the SRS airbag or
could make the system inoperative, which may
result in serious injury. The wiring harnesses of
the SRS airbag system are covered with yellow
insulation and system connectors are yellow
for easy identification.
If you need service or repair in areas listed be-
low, we recommend that you have an autho-
rized SUBARU dealer perform the work. The
SRS airbag control module, impact sensors
and airbag modules are stored in these areas.