2004 SUBARU LEGACY Owners Manual

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Starting and operating
ABS (Anti-lock Brake System)
Always use the utmost care in driving – over-
confidence because you are driving with an
ABS equipped vehicle could easily lead to a se-
rious accident.
y
The ABS system does not always decrease
stopping distance. You should always maintain
a safe following distance from other vehicles. y When driving on badly surfaced roads, gravel
roads, icy road, or over deep newly fallen snow,
stopping distances may be longer for a vehicle
with the ABS system than one without. When
driving under these conditions, therefore, re-
duce your speed and leave ample distance from
other vehicles. y When you feel the ABS system operating,
you should maintain constant brake pedal pres-
sure. Do not pump the brake pedal since doing
so may defeat the operation of the ABS system. The ABS system prevents the lock-up of wheels which
may occur during sudden braking or braking on slip-
pery road surfaces. This helps prevent the loss of
steering control and directional stability caused by
wheel lock-up.
When the ABS system is operating, you may hear a
chattering noise or feel a slight vibration in the brake
pedal. This is normal when the ABS operates.
The ABS system will not operate when the vehicle
speed is below approximately 6 mph (10 km/h). „
ABS system self-check
You may feel a slight shock in the brake pedal and hear the operating sound of ABS from the engine com-
partment just after the vehicle is started. This is
caused by an automatic functional test of the ABS sys-
tem being carried out and does not indicate any abnor-
mal condition.

7-33
Starting and operating
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„ABS warning light
The ABS warning light comes on when the ignition
switch is turned to the “ON” position and goes out after
about two seconds.
This is an indication that the ABS system is working
properly.
If the warning light behaves as follows, the ABS
system may not be working properly.
When the warning light is on, the ABS function
shuts down; however, the conventional brake
system continues to operate normally. y
The warning light does not come on when the
ignition switch is turned to the “ON” position.y The warning light comes on when the ignition
switch is turned to the “ON” position, but it
does not go out even when the vehicle speed
exceeds approximately 8 mph (12 km/h). y The warning light comes on during driving.
If these occur, have the ABS system repaired at
the first available opportunity by your SUBARU
dealer.
NOTE
If the warning light behavior is as described be-
low, the ABS system may be considered normal. y The warning light comes on right after the en-
gine is started but goes out immediately, remain-
ing off. y The warning light remains on after the engine
has been started, but it goes out when the vehicle
speed reaches about 8 mph (12 km/h). y The warning light comes on during driving, but
it goes out immediately and remains off.
When driving with an insufficient battery voltage such as when the engine is jump started, the ABS warning
light may come on. This is due to the low battery volt-UB4010LA

7-34
Starting and operating
age and does not indicate a malfunction. When the
battery becomes fully charged, the light will go out.
VDC (Vehicle Dynamics Control) sys-
tem (if equipped)
Always use the utmost care in driving – over-
confidence because you are driving with a VDC
system equipped vehicle could easily lead to a
serious accident.
y
Even if your vehicle is equipped with VDC,
winter tires should be used when driving on
snow-covered or icy roads; in addition, vehicle
speed should be reduced considerably. Simply
having a VDC system does not guarantee that
the vehicle will be able to avoid accidents in
any situation.y Activation of the VDC system is an indication
that the road being travelled on has a slippery
surface; since having VDC is no guarantee that
full vehicle control will be maintained at all
times and under all conditions, its activation
should be seen as a sign that the speed of the
vehicle should be reduced considerably.

7-35
Starting and operating
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yWhenever suspension components, steering
components, or an axle are removed from a ve-
hicle equipped with VDC, have an authorized
SUBARU dealer perform an inspection of that
system.y The following precautions should be ob-
served in order to ensure that the VDC system
is operating properly:
– All four wheels should be fitted with tires of
the same size, type, and brand. Furthermore,
the amount of wear should be the same for allfour tires.
– Keep the tire pressure at the proper level as
shown on the placard attached to the vehi-
cle’s door pillar.
– Use only the special temporary spare tire to
replace a flat tire. With a temporary spare tire,
the effectiveness of the VDC system is re-
duced and this should be taken into account
when driving with vehicle.
In the event of wheelspin and/or skidding on a slippery
road surface and/or during cornering and/or an eva-
sive maneuver, the VDC system adjusts the engine’s
output and the wheels’ respective braking forces to
help maintain traction and directional control. y
Traction Control Function
The traction control function is designed to prevent
spinning of the driving wheels on slippery road surfac-
es, thereby helping to maintain traction and directional
control. Activation of this function is shown by steady
illumination of the VDC operation indicator light. y Skid Suppression Function
The skid suppression function is designed to help
maintain directional stability by suppressing the
wheels’ tendency to slide sideways during steering op-
erations. Activation of this function is shown by flash-
ing of the VDC operation indicator light.
NOTE y Slight twitching of the brake pedal may be felt
when the VDC-system operates; a small degree of
vehicle or steering wheel shaking may also be no-
ticed in this situation. These are normal character-
istics of VDC operation and are no cause for
alarm. y When driving off immediately after starting the
engine, a short-lived operation noise may be no-
ticed coming from the engine compartment. This
noise is generated as a result of a check being per-
formed on the VDC system and is normal.y Depending on the timing of activation of the
brakes, certain situations may occur just after

7-36
Starting and operating
driving off where the brake pedal seems to exhibit
a jolting motion. This too is a consequence of the
VDC operational check and is normal. y
In the circumstances listed below, the vehicle
may be more unstable than it feels to the driver.
The Vehicle Dynamics Control System may there-
fore operate. Such operation does not indicate a
system fault.
yon gravel-covered or rutted roads
y on unfinished roads
y when the vehicle is towing a trailer
y when the vehicle is fitted with snow tires or
winter tires
y Activation of the VDC system will cause opera-
tion of the steering wheel to feel slightly different
compared to that for normal conditions. y Even if the vehicle is equipped with a VDC sys-
tem, it is important that winter tires be used when
driving on snow-covered or icy roads. (All four
wheels should be fitted with tires of the same size
and brand). y It is always important to reduce speed when ap-
proaching a corner, even if the vehicle is equipped with VDC. y All four wheels should be fitted with tires of the
same size, type, and brand; furthermore, the
amount of wear should be the same for all four tires. If these precautions are not observed and
non-matching tires are used, it is quite possible
that the VDC system will be unable to operate cor-
rectly as intended. y
Always turn off the engine before replacing a
tire as failure to do so may render the VDC system
unable to operate correctly. „ VDC system monitor
T V D C O F F i n d i c a t o r l i g h t
y The VDC OFF indicator light turns on initially when
the ignition key is turned to the ON position; it subse-
quently turns off 6 seconds after the engine is started.
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Starting and operating
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yThis light turns on to indicate that the VDC system
is in non-operation mode. This does not constitute fail- ure of the VDC system.
NOTE y The VDC OFF indicator light may stay on for a
while after the engine has been started, especially
in cold weather. This occurs because the engine
has not yet warmed up and is completely normal.
The light will turn off when the engine has reached
a suitable operating temperature. y When an engine problem occurs and the CHECK
ENGINE warning light turns on, the VDC OFF indi-
cator light will also turn on.
The following two situations could indicate malfunction
of the VDC system; if either should occur, have an au-
thorized SUBARU dealer carry out an inspection of
that system at the first available opportunity. y The VDC OFF indicator light does not turn on when
the ignition key is turned to the ON position. y The VDC OFF indicator light fails to turn off after the
engine is started, even when several minutes have
passed to allow the engine to heat up sufficiently. T VDC operation indicator light
The VDC operation indicator light turns on when the
ignition key is turned to the ON position; it turns off ap- proximately two seconds later. This indicator light
flashes during activation of the skid suppression func-
tion and is illuminated steadily during activation of the
traction control function.
The following two situations could indicate a malfunc-
tion of the VDC system; if either should occur, have an
authorized SUBARU dealer carry out an inspection of
that system at the first available opportunity.y
The VDC operation indicator light does not turn on
when the ignition key is turned to the ON position.y The VDC operation indicator light does not turn off
approximately two seconds after the ignition key has
been turned to the ON position. T V D C w a r n i n g l i g h t
The VDC warning light turns on when the ignition key
is turned to the ON position and off when the engine is
started. This lighting pattern indicates that the VDC
system is operating normally.
The following situations could indicate a malfunction of
the VDC system; if any should occur, have an autho-
rized SUBARU dealer carry out an inspection of the
system at the first available opportunity. y The VDC warning light does not turn on when the ig-
nition key is turned to the ON position. y The VDC warning light does not turn off either when
the engine is started or when the vehicle reaches a

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Starting and operating
speed of approximately 8 mph (12 km/h). y
The VDC warning light turns on while the vehicle is
being driven. y When a malfunction has occurred in the VDC elec-
trical system, only the VDC warning light will turn on.
In such an event, the ABS will still be operating nor-
mally. y The VDC warning light will also turn on when a prob-
lem occurs with the ABS or VDC electronic control
systems.
Because the VDC system controls each brake throughthe ABS, whenever the ABS stops operating due to a
malfunction in that electrical system, the VDC will also
become unable to control all four brakes. Thus VDC
system operation halts and the VDC warning light
turns on. Although both the VDC system and the ABS
will be inoperable in this situation, it will still be possi-
ble to stop the vehicle using normal braking. The VDC
system and the ABS do not adversely affect operation
of the vehicle in any way when they are inoperable;however should such a situation occur, drive with care
and have an authorized SUBARU dealer carry out an
inspection of those systems at the first available op-
portunity.
NOTE
When the VDC warning light turns on and off in the
following way, it indicates that the VDC system is operating normally.y
Although turning on after the engine has been
started, the warning light quickly turns off and
stays off. y The warning light turns on after the engine is
started and does not turn off until the vehicle
reaches a speed of 8 mph (12 km/h). y The warning light turns on when the vehicle is
being driven; it then turns off and stays off. „ VDC OFF switch
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Starting and operating
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With OnStar® System
Note: Even when the lighting switch is turned to the
“ ” or “ ” position, the “OFF” portion of the
symbol stamped on the switch will not illuminate in the
dark. Only “VDC” portion will illuminate.
Pressing the VDC OFF switch to deactivate the VDC
system can facilitate the following operations: y a standing start on a steeply sloping road with a
snowy, gravel-covered, or otherwise slippery surface y extrication of the vehicle when its wheels are stuck
in mud or deep snow
When the VDC OFF switch is pressed during engine operation, the VDC OFF indicator light illuminates.
The VDC system will be deactivated and the vehicle
will behave like a model not equipped with the VDC system.
When the VDC OFF switch is pressed again to reacti-
vate the VDC system, the VDC OFF indicator light
goes off.
If the vehicle reaches a speed of approximately 37
mph (60 km/h) after the VDC OFF switch is pressed to
deactivate the VDC system, the VDC system automat-
ically reactivates itself and the VDC OFF indicator light
goes off. While the vehicle is moving at a speed of ap-
proximately 37 mph (60 km/h) or higher, it is not pos-
sible to deactivate the VDC system by pressing theVDC OFF switch.
With the VDC system deactivated, traction and stabil-
ity enhancement offered by VDC system is unavail-
able. Therefore you should not deactivate the VDC
system except under above-mentioned situations.
NOTE y
When the VDC switch has been pressed to deac-
tivate the VDC system, the VDC system automati-
cally reactivates itself the next time the ignition
key is turned to the OFF position and the engine is
restarted. y If the VDC OFF switch is held down for 10 sec-
onds or longer, the VDC OFF indicator light goes
UB7028AA