2000 SUBARU LEGACY Manu at

8-2
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
Vehic le with tac hometer
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. Vehic le without tac hometer (for manual transmission )
Do not exc eed the sp eed limits b elow for eac h g ear p osition exc ep t
for b rief ac c eleration in an emerg enc y.
mph (km/h)
1st
2nd3rd4th
22 (35)37 (60)50 (80)65 (105)
Vehic les without tac hometer (for automatic transmis sion)
Try to d rive at mod erate sp eed s while ac c elerating and b raking
smoothly. Prop er g ears are selec ted automatic ally a c c ord ing to the
d riving c ond itions.
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 linin g s are rep lac ed
with new ones.

8-4
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.
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

8-10trac tion b y starting the vehic le with the transmiss
ion in 2nd than 1st
(b oth for MT and AT). Never eq uip your vehic le with tires larg er than tho se sp ec ified in
this manual. Freq uent d riving of an AWD vehic le und er hard -d rivi ng c ond itions
suc h as roug h road s or off road s will nec essitate m ore freq uent re-
p lac ement of eng ine oil, b rake fluid and transmissi on oil than that sp e-
c ified in the maintenanc e sc hed ule d esc rib ed in the “Warranty and
Maintenanc e Booklet ”.
Rememb er that d amag e d one to your Sub aru while op er ating it off-
road and not using c ommon sense p rec autions suc h as those listed
ab ove is not elig ib le for warranty c overag e.
Winter driving
HB3010AA
Operation during cold weather
Carry some emerg enc y eq uip ment, suc h as tire c hains , a wind ow
sc rap er, a b ag of sand , flares, a small shovel, and jump er c ab les.
Chec k the b attery and c ab les. Cold temp eratures red uc e b attery c a-
p ac ity. The b attery must b e in g ood c ond ition to p r ovid e enoug h p ow-
er for c old winter starts.
Use an eng ine oil of p rop er g rad e and visc osity for c old weather.
Heavy summer oil will c ause hard er starting .

Driving tips8-11
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Keep the d oor loc ks from freezing b y sq uirting them
with d eic er or
g lyc erin.
Forc ing a frozen d oor op en may d amag e or sep arate t he rub b er
weather strip s around the d oor. If the d oor is froz en, use hot water to
melt the ic e, and afterward s thoroug hly wip e the wa ter away.
Use a wind shield washer fluid that c ontains an anti freeze solution. Do
not use eng ine antifreeze or other sub stitutes b ec a use they may d am-
ag e the p aint of the vehic le.n Before driving your vehicle
Before entering the vehic le, remove any snow or ic e from your shoes
b ec ause that c ould make the p ed als slip p ery and d an g erous.
While warming up the vehic le b efore d riving , c hec k that the ac c elera-
tor p ed al, b rake p ed al, and all other c ontrols op er ate smoothly.
Clear away ic e and snow that has ac c umulated und er the fend ers to
avoid making steering d iffic ult. During severe wint er d riving , stop
when and where it is safe to d o so and c hec k und er the fend ers p eri-
od ic ally. n Parking in cold weather
WARNING
Snow can trap dangerous exhaust gases under your vehicle. Keep snow clear of the exhaust pipe and from around your
vehicle if you park the vehicle in snow with the engine running.
Do not use the p arking b rake when p arking for long p eriod s in c old
weather sinc e it c ould freeze in that p osition. Ins tead , ob serve the fol-
lowing :
1. Plac e the shift lever in “1 ” or “R ” for manual transmission vehic les,
and in “P ” for automatic transmission vehic les.
2. Use tire stop s und er the tires to p revent the veh ic le from moving .
When the vehic le is p arked in snow or when it snows , raise the wip er
b lad es off the g lass to p revent d amag e to them.

8-18GVWR and GAWR limitations.
Roof rail and crossbar (if equipped)
CAUTION
For cargo carrying purposes, the roof rail must be used to-
gether with a roof crossbar kit and the appropriate carrying at- tachment. The roof rail must never be used alone to carry cargo.Otherwise, damage to the roof or paint or a dangerous road haz-ard due to loss of cargo could result. When using the roof crossbar kit, make sure that the total
weight of the crossbars, carrying attachment and cargo does not
exceed the maximum load limit. Overloading may cause damageto the vehicle and create a safety hazard.
HB8016BB
The roof rail is not d esig ned to c arry c arg o b y its elf. Carg o c an b e c ar-
ried after sec uring the roof c rossb ar kit to the ro of rail and installing the
ap p rop riate c arrying attac hment. When installing th e roof c rossb ar kit,
follow the manufac turer ’s instruc tions.
Roof slats are not d esig ned to c arry or hold c arg o, b ut are d esig ned as
the p rotec tor to p revent the roof from b eing d amag e d b y c arg o while it is
b eing load ed and unload ed on the roof c rossb ar or o n any c arrying
attac hment.
When you c arry c arg o on the roof using the roof c ro ssb ar kit and a c arry-

Driving tips8-19
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CONTINUED –
ing attac hment, never exc eed the maximum load limit
exp lained b elow.
You should also b e c areful that your vehic le d oes n ot exc eed the Gross
Vehic le Weig ht Rating (GVWR) and front and rear Gro ss Axle Weig ht Rat-
ing (GAWR). See the “Load ing your vehic le ” sec tion in this c hap ter for
information on load ing c arg o into or onto your vehi c le. The maximum
load limit of the c arg o, c rossb ars and c arrying att ac hment must not ex-
c eed 100 lb . (45 kg ). Plac e the heaviest load at th e b ottom, nearest the
roof, and evenly d istrib ute the c arg o. Always p rop e rly sec ure all c arg o.
Installing carrying attachments on the crossbars
When installing any c arrying attac hment suc h as a b ike c arrier, ski
c arrier, kayak c arrier, c arg o b asket, etc . on the c rossb ars, follow the
manufac turer ’s instruc tions and make sure that the attac hment is se-
c urely fixed to the c rossb ars. Use only attac hments d esig ned sp ec ifi-
c ally for the c rossb ars. A set of the c rossb ars is d esig ned to c arry
load s (c arg o and attac hment) of not more than 100 lb. (45 kg). Before
op erating the vehic le, make sure that the c arg o is p rop erly sec ured
on the attac hment. NOTE Remember that the vehicle ’s center of gravity is altered with the
weight of the load on the roof, thus affecting the driving charac- teristics.
Drive carefully. Avoid rapid starts, hard cornering and abruptstops. Crosswind effects will be increased. Removal and installation of the crossbars CAUTION
Do not carry cargo on the roof when the crossbars are removed. Luggage on the roof will be thrown forward or backward in sud-den stops or rapid accelerations, resulting in a dangerous roadhazard.
The c rossb ars c an b e removed when you d o not use th e roof to c arry
c arg o.

8-26Trailer towing
Your c ar is d esig ned and intend ed to b e used p rimar
ily as a p asseng er-
c arrying vehic le. Towing a trailer p uts ad d itional load s on your c ar’s en-
g ine, d rivetrain, b rakes, tires and susp ension and has an ad verse effec t
on fuel ec onomy.
If you d o d ec id e to tow a trailer, your safety and satisfac tion d ep end
up on p rop er use of c orrec t eq uip ment and c autious o p eration of your ve-
hic le. Seek the ad vic e of your SUBARU d ealer to ass ist you in p urc has-
ing a hitc h and other nec essary towing eq uip ment ap p rop riate for your
vehic le. In ad d ition, b e sure to follow the instruc tions on c orrec t installa-
tion and use p rovid ed b y the trailer and other towi ng eq uip ment
manufac turers.
SUBARU assumes no resp onsib ility for injuries or ve hic le d amag e that
result from trailer towing eq uip ment, or from any e rrors or omissions in
the instruc tions ac c omp anying suc h eq uip ment or for your failure to fol-
low the p rop er instruc tions.
Warranties and maintenance
SUBARU warranties d o not ap p ly to vehic le d amag e or malfunc tion
c aused b y trailer towing . If you use your vehic le t o tow a trailer, more
freq uent maintenanc e will b e req uired d ue to the ad d itional load .
(Refer to “Maintenanc e sc hed ule und er severe d riving c ond ition s” in
the “Warranty and Maintenanc e Booklet ”.)
Und er no c irc umstanc es should a trailer b e towed wi th a new vehic le
or a vehic le with any new p owertrain c omp onent (eng ine, transmis-
sion, d ifferential, wheel b earing s, etc .) for the f irst 1,000 miles (1,600
km) of d riving . Maximum load limits
WARNING
Never exceed the maximum load limits explained below. Exceed- ing the maximum load limits could cause personal injury and/or
vehicle damage.

Driving tips8-31
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Trailer hitches
WARNING
Never drill the frame or under-body of your vehicle to install a
commercial trailer hitch. If you do, dangerous exhaust gas, wateror mud may enter the passenger compartment through the drilledhole. Exhaust gas contains carbon monoxide, a colorless andodorless gas which is dangerous, or even lethal, if inhaled. Also,drilling the frame or under-body of your vehicle could cause dete-rioration of strength of your vehicle and cause corrosion aroundthe drilled hole.
CAUTION
Do not modify the vehicle exhaust system, brake system, or
other systems when installing a hitch or other trailer towingequipment. Do not use axle-mounted hitches as they can cause damage to
the axle housing, wheel bearings, wheels or tires.
Choose a p rop er hitc h for your vehic le and trailer. OUTBACK wagon
The use of a g enuine SUBARU trailer hitc h is rec omm end ed . A g enu-
ine SUBARU hitc h is availab le from your SUBARU d eal er.
If use of a non-g enuine hitc h is unavoid ab le, b e su re the hitc h is
suited to your vehic le and trailer. Consult with a p rofessional hitc h
sup p lier to assist you in c hoosing an ap p rop riate h itc h for your
vehic le. Be sure to follow all of the hitc h manufac turer’s instruc tions for
installation and use.
Never use a hitc h that mounts only to the rear b ump er. The b ump er is
not d esig ned to hand le that typ e of load .
For all typ es of hitc hes, reg ularly c hec k that the hitc h mounting b olts
and nuts are tig ht.