2003 SUBARU LEGACY maintenance

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Maintenance schedule
The scheduled maintenance items required to be serviced at regular in-
tervals are shown in the
“Warranty and Maintenance Booklet ”.
For details of your maintenance schedule, read the separate “Warranty
and Maintenance Booklet ”.
Maintenance precautions
When maintenance and service are required, it is recommended that all
work be done by an authorized SUBARU dealer.
If you perform maintenance and service by yourself, you should familiar-
ize yourself with the information provided in this section on general main-
tenance and service for your SUBARU.
Incorrect or incomplete service could cause improper or unsafe vehicle
operation. Any problems caused by improper maintenance and service
performed by you are not eligible for warranty coverage. WARNING
Testing of an All-Wheel Drive vehicle must NEVER be per-
formed on a single two-wheel dynamometer or similar apparatus.Attempting to do so will result in transmission damage and inuncontrolled vehicle movement and may cause an accident or
injuries to persons nearby. Always select a safe area when performing maintenance on
your vehicle. Always be very careful to avoid injury when working on the ve-
hicle. Remember that some of the materials in the vehicle may behazardous if improperly used or handled, for example, batteryacid. Your vehicle should only be serviced by persons fully compe-
tent to do so. Serious personal injury may result to persons not
experienced in servicing vehicles.

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When you do checking or servicing in the engine
compartment while the engine is running
A running engine can be dangerous. Keep your fingers, hands, clothing, hair and tools away from the cooling fan, belts and anyother moving engine parts. Removing rings, watches and ties isadvisable.
Engine hood
WARNING
Always check that the hood is properly locked before you start
driving. If it is not, it might fly open while the vehicle is moving
and block your view, which may cause an accident and serious
bodily injury.
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Engine compartment overview
2.5 liter models
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1 Manual transmission oil level
gauge (MT) (page 11-23) or
Differential gear oil level gauge
(AT) (page 11-26)
2 Air cleaner element (page 11-18)
3 Clutch fluid reservoir (page 11-32)
4 Automatic transmission fluidlevel gauge (page 11-24)
5 Brake fluid reservoir (page 11-30)
6 Fuel filter 7
Windshield washer tank (page 11-47)
8 Fuse box (page 11-52)
9 Battery (page 11-51)
Q Engine oil filler cap (page 11-9)
W Engine coolant reservoir (page 11-15)
E Radiator cap (page 11-15)
R Engine oil level gauge (page 11-9)
T Power steering fluid reservoir (page 11-29)

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Engine oil
Checking the oil level
Check the engine oil level at each fuel stop.
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1. Park the vehicle on a level surface and stop the engine.
2. Pull out the dipstick, wipe it clean, and insert it again.
3. Be sure the dipstick is correctly inserted until it stops with the
graphic symbol
on its top appearing as shown in the illustra-
tion.
4. Pull out the dipstick again and check the oil level on it. If it is belowthe lower level, add oil to bring the level up to the upper level.
CAUTION
Use only engine oil with the recommended grade and viscosity.
If you check the oil level just after stopping the engine, wait a few min-
utes for the oil to drain back into the oil pan before checking the level.
To prevent overfilling the engine oil, do not add any additional oilabove the upper level when the engine is cold.
In 2.5-liter-engine models, the dipstick has a notch above the upper level.
Just after driving or while the engine is warm, the engine oil level
reading may be in a range between the upper level and the notch
mark. This is caused by thermal expansion of the engine oil.

11-10
Changing the oil and oil filter
Change the oil and oil filter according to the maintenance schedule in the “Warranty and Maintenance Booklet ”.
The engine oil and oil filter must be changed more frequently than
listed in the maintenance schedule when driving on dusty roads,
when short trips are frequently made, or when driving in extremely
cold whether.
1. Warm up the engine by letting the engine idle for about 10 minutes to ease draining the engine oil.
2. Park the vehicle on a level surface and stop the engine.
3. Remove the oil filler cap.
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4. Drain out the engine oil by removing the drain plug while the en-
gine is still warm. The used oil should be drained into an appropriate
container and disposed of properly.
WARNING
Be careful not to burn yourself with hot engine oil.
5. Wipe the seating surface of the drain plug with a clean cloth and
tighten it securely with a new sealing washer after the oil has com-pletely drained out.

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6. Remove three clips at the front of the cover under the oil filter.
7. Slide the cover toward the vehicle front to remove it.
8. Remove the oil filter with an oil filter wrench.
9. Before installing a new oil filter, apply a thin coat of engine oil to theseal.
10. Clean the rubber seal seating area of the lower crank case and
install the oil filter by hand turning. Be careful not to twist or damagethe seal.
11. Tighten it approximately two-thirds of a turn after the seal makes
contact with the lower crank case.
CAUTION
Never over tighten the oil filter because that can result in an oilleak.

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New API Certification Mark (Starburst Mark)
1
Indicates the oil quality by API desig- nations
2 Indicates the SAE oil viscosity grade
3 Indicates that the oil has fuel savingcapabilities
In choosing an oil, you want the proper quality and viscosity, as well
as one that will add to fuel economy. The following table lists the rec-
ommended viscosities and applicable temperatures.
When adding oil, different brands may be used together as long as
they are the same API classification and SAE viscosity as those rec-
ommended by SUBARU.
Engine oil viscosity (thickness) affects fuel economy. Oils of lower vis-
cosity provide better fuel economy. However, in hot weather, oil of
higher viscosity is required to properly lubricate the engine.
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SAE viscosity numbr and applicable temperature

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controlled to operate when the engine coolant reaches a specific tem-
perature.If the radiator cooling fan does not operate even when the engine
coolant temperature gauge exceeds the normal operating range, the
cooling fan circuit may be defective. Check the fuse and replace it if
necessary. If the fuse is not blown, have the cooling system checked
by your SUBARU dealer.
If frequent addition of coolant is necessary, there may be a leak in the
engine cooling system. It is recommended that the cooling systemand connections be checked for leaks, damage, or looseness.
Engine coolant Checking the coolant level
Check the coolant level at each fuel stop.
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1. Check the coolant level on the outside of the reservoir while the
engine is cool.
2. If the level is close to or lower than the “LOW” level mark, add
coolant up to the “FULL” level mark. If the reserve tank is empty, re-
move the radiator cap and refill as required.