2005 SUBARU FORESTER light

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Starting and operating
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light illuminate simultaneously, take the following
steps:
1. Stop the vehicle in the nearest safe, flat place.
2. Shut down the engine, then restart it.
3. Release the parking brake. If both warning lights go
out, the EBD system may be faulty.
Drive carefully to the nearest SUBARU dealer and
have the system inspected.
4. If both warning lights come on again and stay illu-
minated after the engine has been restarted, shut
down the engine again, apply the parking brake, and
check the brake fluid level.
5. If the brake fluid level is not below the “MIN” mark,
the EBD system may be faulty. Drive carefully to the
nearest SUBARU dealer and have the system inspect-
ed.
6. If the brake fluid level is below the “MIN” mark, DO
NOT drive the vehicle. Instead, have the vehicle towed
to the nearest SUBARU dealer for repair.
yDriving with the brake system warning light
on is dangerous. This indicates your brake sys-
tem may not be working properly. If the light re-
mains on, have the brakes inspected by a
SUBARU dealer immediately. y If at all in doubt about whether the brakes are operating properly, do not drive the vehicle.
Have your vehicle towed to the nearest
SUBARU dealer for repair.

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Starting and operating
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adjusts the engine’s output and the wheels’ respective
braking forces to help maintain traction and directional
control. yTraction 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 Vehicle Dynamics Control 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 Vehicle Dynamics Control operation indica-
tor light.
NOTE y Slight twitching of the brake pedal may be felt
when the Vehicle Dynamics Control system oper-
ates; a small degree of vehicle or steering wheel
shaking may also be noticed in this situation.
These are normal characteristics of Vehicle Dy-
namics Control 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 Vehicle Dynamics Control system
and is normal. y Depending on the timing of activation of the
brakes, certain situations may occur just after
driving off where the brake pedal seems to exhibit
a jolting motion. This too is a consequence of the
Vehicle Dynamics Control 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 Vehicle Dynamics Control sys-
tem will cause operation of the steering wheel to feel slightly different compared to that for normal
conditions.y Even if the vehicle is equipped with a Vehicle

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Starting and operating
Dynamics Control system, it is important that win-
ter tires be used when driving on snow-covered oricy roads. (All four wheels should be fitted with
tires of the same size and brand). Furthermore, if
snow chains are to be used, they should be fitted
on the front wheels. When a vehicle is fitted with
snow chains, however, the effectiveness of the Ve-
hicle Dynamics Control system is reduced and
this should be taken into account when driving the
vehicle in such a condition. y
It is always important to reduce speed when ap-
proaching a corner, even if the vehicle is equipped
with Vehicle Dynamics Control. 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 Vehicle Dynamics Control system will be
unable to operate correctly as intended.y Always turn off the engine before replacing a
tire as failure to do so may render the Vehicle Dy-
namics Control system unable to operate correct-ly. „
Vehicle Dynamics Control system monitor
T Vehicle Dynamics Control operation indicator
light
The indicator light turns on when the ignition key is
turned to the ON position; it turns off approximately
two seconds later. This indicator light flashes during
activation of the skid suppression function and is illu-
minated steadily during activation of the traction con-
trol function.
The following two situations could indicate a malfunc-
tion of the Vehicle Dynamics Control system; if either
US1115EA

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Starting and operating
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should occur, have an authorized SUBARU dealer
carry out an inspection of that system at the first avail-
able opportunity. yThe indicator light does not turn on when the ignition
key is turned to the ON position. y The indicator light does not turn off approximately
two seconds after the ignition key has been turned to
the ON position. T Vehicle Dynamics Control warning light/Vehi-
cle Dynamics Control OFF indicator light
This single light has the function of indicating malfunc-
tions in the Vehicle Dynamics Control system and the
function of indicating that the Vehicle Dynamics Con- trol system is not operating. It comes on in the event
of a malfunction in the system and is illuminated when-
ever the system is not operating. V
Vehicle Dynamics Control warning
The warning light comes on when the ignition switch is
turned to the “ON” position and goes off several sec-
onds after engine startup.This lighting pattern indi-
cates that the Vehicle Dynamics Control system is op-
erating normally.
The following situations could indicate a malfunction of
the Vehicle Dynamics Control system; if any should
occur, have an authorized SUBARU dealer carry out
an inspection of the system at the first available oppor-
tunity. y The warning light does not turn on when the ignition
key is turned to the ON position. y The warning light turns on while the vehicle is being
driven. y When a malfunction has occurred in the Vehicle Dy-
namics Control electrical system, only the warning
light will turn on. In such an event, the ABS will still be
operating normally. y The warning light will also turn on when a problem
occurs with the ABS or Vehicle Dynamics Control
electronic control systems.
Because the Vehicle Dynamics Control system con-
US1115FA

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Starting and operating
trols each brake through the ABS, whenever the ABS
stops operating due to a malfunction in that electrical
system, the Vehicle Dynamics Control will also be-
come unable to control all four brakes. Thus Vehicle
Dynamics Control system operation halts and the
warning light turns on. Although both the Vehicle Dy-
namics Control system and the ABS will be inoperable
in this situation, it will still be possible to stop the vehi-
cle using normal braking. The Vehicle Dynamics Con-
trol system and the ABS do not adversely affect oper-
ation of the vehicle in any way when they are inopera-
ble; 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
opportunity.
NOTE
When the warning light turns on and off in the fol-
lowing way, it indicates that the Vehicle Dynamics
Control 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 when the vehicle is
being driven; it then turns off and stays off. V Vehicle Dynamics Control OFF indicator light
This light comes on to indicate that the Vehicle Dy- namics Control system is in non-operation mode. This
does not constitute failure of the Vehicle DynamicsControl system.
NOTE y
The 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 suit-
able operating temperature. y When an engine problem occurs and the mal-
function indicator lamp turns on, the indicator
light will also come on.
The following two situations could indicate malfunction
of the Vehicle Dynamics Control system; if either
should occur, have an authorized SUBARU dealer
carry out an inspection of that system at the first avail-
able opportunity. y The indicator light does not turn on when the ignition
key is turned to the ON position. y The indicator light fails to turn off after the engine is
started, even when several minutes have passed to al-
low the engine to heat up sufficiently.

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Starting and operating
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„Vehicle Dynamics Control OFF switch
Pressing the switch to deactivate the Vehicle Dynam-
ics Control system can facilitate the following opera- tions: 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 switch is pressed during engine operation,
the indicator light illuminates. The Vehicle Dynamics
Control system will be deactivated and the vehicle will
behave like a model not equipped with the Vehicle Dy-
namics Control system. When the switch is pressed
again to reactivate the Vehicle Dynamics Control sys- tem, the indicator light goes off.
With the Vehicle Dynamics Control system deactivat-
ed, traction and stability enhancement offered by Ve- hicle Dynamics Control system is unavailable. There-
fore you should not deactivate the Vehicle Dynamics
Control system except under above-mentioned situa-
tions.
NOTE y
When the switch has been pressed to deactivate
the Vehicle Dynamics Control system, the Vehicle
Dynamics Control system automatically reacti-
vates itself the next time the ignition key is turned
to the OFF position and the engine is restarted. y If the switch is held down for 10 seconds or
longer, the indicator light goes off, the Vehicle Dy-
namics Control system is activated, and the sys-
tem ignores any further pressing of the switch. To
make the switch usable again, turn the ignition key
to the OFF position and restart the engine. y When the switch is pressed to deactivate the Ve-
hicle Dynamics Control system, the vehicle’s run-
ning performance is comparable with that of a ve-
hicle that does not have a Vehicle Dynamics Con-
trol system. Do not deactivate the Vehicle Dynam-
ics Control system except when absolutely neces-
sary.
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Starting and operating
Parking your vehicle „
Parking brake
To set the parking brake, press the brake pedal firmly
and hold it down while fully pulling up the parking
brake lever.
To release the parking brake, pull the lever up slightly,
press the release button, then lower the lever while
keeping the button pressed.
When the parking brake is set while the engine is run-
ning, the parking brake warning light comes on. After
starting the vehicle, be sure that the warning light has
gone out before the vehicle is driven. Refer to the “Warning and indicator lights” section (chapter 3).
Never drive while the parking brake is set be-
cause this will cause unnecessary wear on the
brake linings. Before starting to drive, always
make sure that the parking brake has been fully
released.
„ Parking tips
When parking your vehicle, always set the parking brake firmly and put the shift lever in the “1” (1st) for an
upgrade or “R” (Reverse) for a downgrade for manual
transmission vehicles, or in the “P” (Park) position for
automatic transmission vehicles. Always set the park-
ing brake firmly when parking your vehicle. Never rely
on the transmission alone to hold the vehicle.
HS7014BA

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Starting and operating
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The Hill holder does not operate when the vehicle is
facing downhill. And the Hill holder may not operate on
slight grades.
When starting in reverse and using the Hill holder, a
braking effect may be felt even after the brake pedal
has been released. However, this braking effect
should disappear once the clutch pedal is released.
A slight jolt may be felt when the vehicle begins to
move forward after being reversed.
If the braking power of the Hill holder is insufficient af-
ter the brake pedal is released, apply more braking
power by pressing the brake pedal again.
The Hill Holder is a device only for helping the
driver to START the vehicle on an uphill grade.
To prevent accidents when the vehicle is
parked on a slope, be sure to firmly set the
parking brake. When setting the parking brake,
make sure that the vehicle remains stationary
when the clutch pedal is released.
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