2000 SUBARU FORESTER Owners Manual

7-2Corrosion protection
7-45
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Loading your vehicle 7-46
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Vehicle capacity weight 7-47
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GVWR and GAWR 7-48
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Trailer towing 7-49
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Starting and operating7-3
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CONTINUED –
New vehicle break-in driving
– the first 1,000 miles
(1,600 km)
The p erformanc e and long life of your vehic le are d ep end ent on how you
hand le and c are for your vehic le while it is new. F ollow these instruc tions
d uring the first 1,000 miles (1,600 km): Do not rac e the eng ine. Break-in engine speed limit
Never exc eed 4,000 rp m eng ine sp eed exc ep t for b rie f ac c eleration
in an emerg enc y. Do not d rive at one c onstant eng ine or vehic le sp ee d for a long
time, either fast or slow. Avoid starting sud d enly and rap id ac c eleration, exc ep t in an emer-
g enc y. Avoid hard b raking , exc ep t in an emerg enc y.
The same b reak-in p roc ed ures should b e ap p lied to a newly-installed
or overhauled eng ine or when b rake p ad s or b rake li ning s are re-
p lac ed with new ones.
Fuel requirements Fuel Octane Rating
Your eng ine is d esig ned to use only unlead ed g asoli ne with an oc tane
rating of 87 AKI or hig her. This oc tane rating is t he averag e of the Re-
searc h Oc tane and Motor Oc tane numb ers and is c ommo nly referred
to as the Anti Knoc k Ind ex (AKI).
Using a g asoline with a lower oc tane rating c an c au se p ersistent and
heavy knoc king , whic h c an d amag e the eng ine. Do not b e c onc erned
if your vehic le sometimes knoc ks lig htly when you d rive up a hill or
when you ac c elerate. See your d ealer or a q ualified servic e tec hni-
c ian if you use a g asoline with the sp ec ified oc tan e rating and your
vehic le knoc ks heavily or p ersistently.

7-4
Unleaded gasoline
The nec k of the fuel filler p ip e is d esig ned to ac c ep t only an unlead ed
g asoline filler nozzle. Und er no c irc umstanc es shou ld lead ed g aso-
line b e used b ec ause it will d amag e the emission c o ntrol system and
may imp air d riveab ility and fuel ec onomy. Gasoline for California-certified LEV
If your vehic le is a California-c ertified Low Emiss ion Vehic le (LEV) as
ind ic ated on the und erhood tune-up lab el, it is d es ig ned to op timize
eng ine and emission c ontrol system p erformanc e with g asoline that
meets California low sulfur sp ec ific ations. Your ve hic le will op erate on
g asoline meeting Fed eral sp ec ific ations. Gasoline for cleaner air CAUTION
Do not let fuel spill on the exterior surfaces of the vehicle. Fuels containing alcohol may cause paint damage, which is not cov-
ered under the SUBARU Limited Warranty.
Your use of g asoline with d eterg ent ad d itives will help p revent d ep os-
its from forming in your eng ine and fuel system. Th is help s keep your
eng ine in tune and your emission c ontrol system wor king p rop erly,
and is a way of d oing your p art for c leaner air. If you c ontinuously use
a hig h q uality fuel with the p rop er d eterg ent and o ther ad d itives, you
should never need to ad d any fuel system c leaning a g ents to your
fuel tank.
Many g asolines are now b lend ed with materials c alle d oxyg enates.
Use of these fuels c an also help keep the air c lean er. SUBARU ap -
p roves the use of oxyg enated b lend fuels, suc h as M TBE (Methyl Ter-
tiary Butyl Ether) or ethanol (ethyl or g rain alc oh ol). The b lend ed fuels
should c ontain no more than 15% MTBE or 10% ethanol for the p rop er
op eration of your SUBARU.
In ad d ition, some g asoline sup p liers are now p rod uc ing reformulated
g asolines, whic h are d esig ned to red uc e vehic le emi ssions. SUBARU
ap p roves the use of reformulated g asoline.

Starting and operating7-5
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CONTINUED –
If you are not sure what the fuel c ontains, you sho
uld ask your servic e
station op erators if their g asolines c ontain d eterg ents and oxyg enates
and if they have b een reformulated to red uc e vehic l e emissions.
As ad d itional g uid anc e, only use fuels suited for y our vehic le as ex-
p lained b elow.
Fuel should b e unlead ed and have an oc tane rating n o lower
than that sp ec ified in this manual. Methanol (methyl or wood alc ohol) is sometimes mixe d with un-
lead ed g asoline. Methanol c an b e used in your vehic le ONLY if it
d oes not exc eed 5% of the fuel mixture AND if it is ac c omp anied
b y suffic ient q uantities of the p rop er c osolvents a nd c orrosion in-
hib itors req uired to p revent d amag e to the fuel sys tem. Do not use
fuel c ontaining methanol EXCEPT und er these c ond itions.
If und esirab le d riveab ility p rob lems are exp erienc e d and you
susp ec t they may b e fuel related , try a d ifferent b rand of g asoline
b efore seeking servic e at your SUBARU d ealer. Fuel system d amag e or d riveab ility p rob lems whic h r esult from
the use of imp rop er fuel are not c overed und er the SUBARU Lim-
ited Warranty.
State emission testing (U.S. only)
WARNING
Testing of an All-Wheel Drive vehicle must NEVER be performed
on a single two-wheel dynamometer. Attempting to do so willresult in uncontrolled vehicle movement and may cause an acci-
dent or injuries to persons nearby.
CAUTION
Resultant vehicle damage due to improper testing is not covered
under the SUBARU Limited Warranty and is the responsibility ofthe state inspection program or its contractors or licensees.

7-6
At state inspection time, remember to tell your inspection or service
station in advance not to place your Subaru AWD vehicle on a two-
wheel dynamometer. Otherwise, serious transmission damage willresult.
Some states have started using d ynamometers in thei
r state insp ec tion
p rog rams in ord er to meet their ob lig ation und er fe d eral law to imp lement
stric ter vehic le emission stand ard s to red uc e air p ollution from c ars. A
d ynamometer is a tread mill or roller-like testing d evic e that allows your
c ar ’s wheels to turn while the c ar remains in one p lac e . Dep end ing on
the severity of a state ’s air p ollution p rob lems, the states must ad op t
either a “b asic ” or “enhanc ed ” vehic le emission insp ec tion test. Nor-
mally, a p ortion of the b asic emission test c onsist s of an emission
insp ec tor inserting an analyzer p rob e into the exha ust p ip e of an id ling
vehic le for a short p eriod of time. States with mor e severe air p ollution
p rob lems are req uired to ad op t an enhanc ed vehic le emission test. This
test simulates ac tual d riving c ond itions on a d ynam ometer and p ermits
more ac c urate measurement of tailp ip e emitted p ollu tion than the b asic
emission test.
The U.S. Environmental Protec tion Ag enc y (EPA) and states using two-
wheel d ynamometers in their emission testing p rog ra ms have
EXEMPTED Sub aru AWD vehic les from the p ortion of the testin g p ro-
g ram that involves a two-wheel d ynamometer.
There are some states that use four-wheel d ynamomet ers in their testing
p rog rams. When p rop erly used , that eq uip ment will n ot d amag e an AWD
Sub aru vehic le.
Und er no c irc umstanc es should the rear wheels b e ja c ked off the
g round , nor should the d riveshaft b e d isc onnec ted f or state emission
testing .

Starting and operating7-7
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CONTINUED –
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. Never run the engine in a closed space, such as a garage, ex-
cept for the brief time needed to drive the vehicle in or out of it. Avoid remaining in a parked vehicle for a lengthy time while
the engine is running. If that is unavoidable, then use the ventila-tion fan to force fresh air into the vehicle. Always keep the front ventilator inlet grille free from snow,
leaves or other obstructions to ensure that the ventilation system
always works properly. If at any time you suspect that exhaust fumes are entering the
vehicle, have the problem checked and corrected as soon as pos-
sible. If you must drive under these conditions, drive only with allwindows fully open. Keep the trunk lid or rear gate closed while driving to prevent
exhaust gas from entering the vehicle.
NOTE Due to the expansion and contraction of the metals used in the
manufacture of the exhaust system, you may hear a crackling soundcoming from the exhaust system for a short time after the enginehas been shut off. This sound is normal.

7-8
Catalytic converter
WARNING
Avoid fire hazards. Do not drive or park the vehicle anywhere
near flammable materials (e.g. grass, paper, rags or leaves), be-
cause the catalytic converter operates at very high temperatures. Keep everyone and flammable materials away from the ex-
haust pipe while the engine is running. The exhaust gas is veryhot.
HB3003BA
The c atalytic c onverter is installed in the exhaust system. It serves as a
c atalyst to red uc e HC, CO and NOx in exhaust g ases, thus p rovid ing
c leaner exhaust.
To avoid d amag e to the c atalytic c onverter: Use only unlead ed fuel. Even a small amount of lead ed fuel will d am-
ag e the c atalytic c onverter. Never start the eng ine b y p ushing or p ulling the ve hic le.
Avoid rac ing the eng ine.
Never turn off the ig nition switc h while the vehic l e is moving .
Keep your eng ine tuned -up . If you feel the eng ine r unning roug h (mis-
firing , b ac kfiring or inc omp lete c omb ustion), have your vehic le c hec ked
and rep aired b y an authorized SUBARU d ealer. Do not ap p ly und erc oating or rust p revention treatm ent to the heat
shield of c atalytic c onverter and the exhaust syste m

Starting and operating7-9
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CONTINUED –
Fuel economy hints
The following sug g estions will help to save your fu
el.
Selec t the p rop er g ear p osition for the sp eed and r oad c ond itions.
Avoid sud d en ac c eleration or d ec eleration. Always a c c elerate g ently
until you reac h the d esired sp eed . Then try to main tain that sp eed for as
long as p ossib le. Do not p ump the ac c elerator and avoid rac ing the en g ine.
Avoid unnec essary eng ine id ling .
Keep the eng ine p rop erly tuned .
Keep the tires inflated to the c orrec t p ressure sho wn on the tire p lac -
ard , whic h is loc ated und er the d oor latc h on the d river’s sid e. Low p res-
sure will inc rease tire wear and fuel c onsump tion. Use the air c ond itioner only when nec essary.
Keep the front and rear wheels in p rop er alig nment.
Avoid c arrying unnec essary lug g ag e or c arg o.
Preparing to drive
You should p erform the following c hec ks and ad justm ents every d ay b e-
fore you start d riving .
1. Chec k that all wind ows, mirrors, and lig hts are c lean and unob -
struc ted .
2. Chec k the ap p earanc e and c ond ition of the tires. Also c hec k tires for
p rop er inflation.
3. Look und er the vehic le for any sig n of leaks.
4. Chec k that the hood and rear g ate are fully c lose d .
5. Chec k the ad justment of the seat.
6. Chec k the ad justment of the insid e and outsid e mi rrors.
7. Fasten your seat b elt. Chec k that your p asseng ers have fastened
their seat b elts.
8. Chec k the op eration of the warning and ind ic ator lig hts when the ig ni-
tion switc h is turned to the “ON ” p osition.
9. Chec k the g aug es, ind ic ator and warning lig hts af ter starting the en-
g ine.