2003 SUBARU BAJA tires

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Tires and wheels Types of tires
You should be familiar with type of tires present on your vehicle.
All season tires
The factory-installed tires on your new vehicle are all season tires.
All season tires are designed to provide an adequate measure of trac-
tion, handling and braking performance in year-round driving includ-
ing snowy and icy road conditions. However all season tires do not
offer as much traction performance as winter (snow) tires in heavy or
loose snow or on icy roads.
All season tires are identified by “ALL SEASON ” and/or “M+S” (Mud &
Snow) on the tire sidewall. Summer tires
Summer tires are high-speed capability tires best suited for highway
driving under dry conditions.
Summer tires are inadequate for driving on slippery roads such as on
snow-covered or icy roads.
If you drive your vehicle on snow-covered or icy roads, we strongly
recommend the use of winter (snow) tires.
When installing winter tires, be sure to replace all four tires.

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Winter (snow) tires
Winter tires are best suited for driving on snow-covered and icy
roads. However winter tires do not perform as well as summer tires
and all season tires on roads other than snow-covered and icy roads.
Tire inspection
Check on a daily basis that the tires are free from serious damage, nails,
and stones. At the same time, check the tires for abnormal wear.
Contact your SUBARU dealer immediately if you find any problem. NOTE When the wheels and tires strike curbs or are subjected to harsh
treatment as when the vehicle is driven on a rough surface, they can suffer damage that cannot be seen with the naked eye. This type of
damage does not become evident until time has passed. Try not todrive over curbs, potholes or on other rough surfaces. If doing so is
unavoidable, keep the vehicle ’s speed down to a walking pace or
less, and approach the curbs as squarely as possible. Also, makesure the tires are not pressed against the curb when you park thevehicle. If you feel unusual vibration while driving or find it difficult to
steer the vehicle in a straight line, one of the tires and/or wheelsmay be damaged. Drive slowly to the nearest authorized SUBARUdealer and have the vehicle inspected. Tire pressures and wear
Maintaining the correct tire pressures helps to maximize the tires ’ service
lives and is essential for good running performance. Check and, if nec-
essary, adjust the pressure of each tire (including the spare) at least
once a month (for example, during a fuel stop) and before any long jour-
ney.
Check the tire pressures when the tires are cold. Use a pressure gauge
to adjust the tire pressures to the values shown on the tire placard. The
tire placard is located on the door pillar on the driver ’s side.

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Driving even a short distance warms up the tires and increases the tire
pressures. Also, the tire pressures are affected by the ambient tempera-
ture. It is best to check tire pressure outdoors before driving the vehicle.
When a tire becomes warm, the air inside it expands, causing the tire
pressure to increase. Be careful not to mistakenly release air from a
warm tire to reduce its pressure. NOTE The air pressure in a tire increases by approximately 4.3 psi (30
kPa, 0.3 kg/cm 2
) when the tire becomes warm.
The tires are considered cold when the vehicle has been parked
for at least three hours or has been driven less than one mile (1.6 km).
WARNING
Do not let air out of warm tires to adjust pressure. Doing so willresult in low tire pressure.
Incorrect tire pressures detract from controllability and ride comfort, and
they cause the tires to wear abnormally.

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Abnormally high tire pressure (tread worn in center)
HSB013AA
Ride comfort is poor. Also, the tire magnifies the effects of road-surface
bumps and dips, possibly resulting in vehicle damage.
If the tire placard shows tire pressures for the vehicle when fully loaded
and for the vehicle when towing a trailer, adjust the tire pressures to the
values that match current loading conditions.
WARNING
Driving at high speeds with excessively low tire pressures can
cause the tires to deform severely and to rapidly become hot. Asharp increase in temperature could cause tread separation, and
destruction of the tires. The resulting loss of vehicle controlcould lead to an accident.
Wheel balance
Each wheel was correctly balanced when your vehicle was new, but the
wheels will become unbalanced as the tires become worn during use.
Wheel imbalance causes the steering wheel to vibrate slightly at certain
vehicle speeds and detracts from the vehicle ’s straight-line stability. It
can also cause steering and suspension system problems and abnormal
tire wear. If you suspect that the wheels are not correctly balanced, have
them checked and adjusted by your SUBARU dealer. Also have them
adjusted after tire repairs and after tire rotation.

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NOTE Loss of correct wheel alignment* causes the tires to wear on one side and reduces the vehicle ’s running stability. Contact your
SUBARU dealer if you notice abnormal tire wear.
* : The suspension system is designed to hold each wheel at a certain alignment
(relative to the other wheels and to the road) for optimum straight-line stability and
cornering performance. Wear indicators
Each tire incorporates a tread wear indicator, which becomes visible
when the depth of the tread grooves decreases to 0.063 in. (1.6 mm). A
tire must be replaced when the tread wear indicator appears as a solid
band across the tread.
OM-H0231
WARNING
When a tire ’s tread wear indicator becomes visible, the tire is
worn beyond the acceptable limit and must be replaced immedi-
ately. With a tire in this condition, driving at high speeds in wetweather can cause the vehicle to hydroplane. The resulting lossof vehicle control can lead to an accident.
NOTE
For safety, inspect the tire tread regularly and replace the tires be- fore their tread wear indicators become visible. A) New tread
B) Worn tread
1) Tread wear indicator

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Tire rotation
OM-H0230
Tire wear varies from wheel to wheel. To maximize the life of each tire
and ensure that the tires wear uniformly, it is best to rotate the tires every
7,500 miles (12,500 km). Rotating the tires involves switching the front
and rear tires on the right-hand side of the vehicle and similarly switching
the front and rear tires on the left-hand side of the vehicle. (Each tiremust be kept on its original side of the vehicle.)
Replace any damaged or unevenly worn tire at the time of rotation. After
tire rotation, adjust the tire pressures and make sure the wheel nuts are
correctly tightened.
After driving approximately 600 miles (1,000 km), check the wheel nuts
again and retighten any nut that has become loose. Tire replacement
The wheels and tires are important and integral parts of your vehicle ’s
design; they cannot be changed arbitrarily. The tires fitted as standard
equipment are optimally matched to the characteristics of the vehicle
and were selected to give the best possible combination of running per-
formance, ride comfort, and service life. It is essential for every tire to
have a size and construction matching those shown on the tire placard
and to have a speed symbol and load index matching those shown on
the tire placard.
Using tires of a non-specified size detracts from controllability, ride com-
fort, braking performance, speedometer accuracy and odometer accu-

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racy. It also creates incorrect body-to-tire clearances and inappropriately changes the vehicle ’s ground clearance.
All four tires must be the same in terms of manufacturer, brand (tread
pattern), construction, and size. You are advised to replace the tires with
new ones that are identical to those fitted as standard equipment.
For safe vehicle operation, SUBARU recommends replacing all four tires at the same time.
WARNING
All four tires must be the same in terms of manufacturer, brand
(tread pattern), construction, degree of wear, speed symbol, loadindex and size. Mixing tires of different types, sizes or degrees ofwear can result in damage to the vehicle ’s power train. Use of dif-
ferent types or sizes of tires can also dangerously reduce con-trollability and braking performance and can lead to an accident. Use only radial tires. Do not use radial tires together with
belted bias tires and/or bias-ply tires. Doing so can dangerously
reduce controllability, resulting in an accident.
Wheel replacement
When replacing wheels due, for example, to damage, make sure the re-
placement wheels match the specifications of the wheels that are fitted
as standard equipment. Replacement wheels are available from
SUBARU dealers.
WARNING
Use only those wheels that are specified for your vehicle. Wheelsnot meeting specifications could interfere with brake caliper op-eration and may cause the tires to rub against the wheel wellhousing during turns. The resulting loss of vehicle control couldlead to an accident.

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Specifications Specifications12-2
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Dimensions 12-2
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Engine 12-2
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Electrical system 12-2
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Capacities 12-2
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Tires 12-3
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Wheel alignment 12-3
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Fuses and circuits 12-4
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Fuse panel located behind the coin tray 12-4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Fuse panel located in the engine compartment 12-6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Bulb chart 12-7
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Vehicle identification 12-8
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