2005 SUBARU FORESTER engine overheat

1-10
Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
Seat heater (if equipped)
HI – Rapid heating
LO – Normal heating
The seat heater operates when the ignition switch is
either in the “ACC” or “ON” position.
To turn on the seat heater, push the “LO” or “HI” posi-
tion on the switch, as desired, depending on the tem-
perature. Selecting the “HI” position will cause the seat
to heat up quicker.
The indicator located on the switch comes on when
the seat heater is in operation. When the vehicle’s in- terior is warmed enough or before you leave the vehi-
cle, be sure to turn the switch off.
y
There is a possibility that people with delicate
skin may suffer slight burns even at low tem-
peratures if he/she uses the seat heater for a
long period of time. When using the heater, al-
ways be sure to warn the persons concerned.y Do not put anything on the seat which insu-
lates against heat, such as a blanket, cushion,
or similar items. This may cause the seat heater
to overheat.
NOTE y Use of the seat heater for a long period of time
while the engine is not running can cause battery
discharge. y When cleaning the seat, do not use benzine,
paint thinner, or any similar materials.
HI
LO
US1507BB

6-13
Interior equipment
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Do not hold the lighter pushed in, because it
will overheat.
„ Using as an accessory power outlet
Electrical power (12V DC) from the battery is available
at the socket when the ignition switch is either in the
“ACC” or “ON” position.
If you use the socket as an accessory power outlet,
take the following precautions.
When the socket is not in use, always put the cap on
the socket to prevent any foreign object from entering
it.
y Use only in-car use electrical appliances
which are designed for 12V DC and which con-
sume less than 120W. Overloading the socket
can cause a short circuit. Do not use double
adapters or more than one electrical appliance. y If the plug on your electric appliance is either
too loose or too tight for the socket, this can re-
sult in a poor contact or cause the plug to get
stuck. Only use plugs that fit properly. y
Use of an electric appliance in the socket for
a long period of time while the engine is not
running can cause battery discharge. y Before driving your vehicle, make sure that
the plug and the cord on your electrical appli-
ance will not interfere with your shifting gears
and operating the accelerator and brake pedals.
If they do, do not use the electrical appliance
while driving.
If the socket has been used for electrical appliances,
damage may have been done to the internal mecha-
nism that causes a cigarette lighter to “pop out” after
its element has been heated. For that reason, a ciga-
rette lighter, even if it is a genuine part, should not be
used in the socket. If you want to use the socket for a
cigarette lighter again, or to protect your purchaser be-
fore you sell your vehicle, have your SUBARU dealer
replace the socket with a new one.

7-14
Starting and operating
mph (km/h)
When shifting down a gear, ensure that the ve-
hicle is not traveling at a speed exceeding the
Maximum Allowable Speed for the gear which
is about to be selected. Failure to observe this
precaution can lead to engine over-revving and
this in turn can result in engine damage.
In addition, sudden application of engine
brakes when the vehicle is travelling on a slip-
pery surface can lead to wheel locking; as a
consequence, control of the vehicle may be lost
and the risk of an accident increased.
„ Driving tips
Do not drive with your foot resting on the clutch pedal and do not use the clutch to hold your vehicle at a
standstill on an upgrade. Either of those actions may
cause clutch damage.
Do not drive with your hand resting on the shift lever.
This may cause wear on the transmission compo-
nents.
When it is necessary to reduce vehicle speed due to
slow traffic, turning corners, or driving up steep hills,
downshift to a lower gear before the engine starts to
labor.
On steep downgrades, downshift the transmission to
4th, 3rd or 2nd gear as necessary; this helps to main-
tain a safe speed and to extend brake pad life.
In this way, the engine provides a braking effect. Re-
member, if you “ride” (over use) the brakes while de-
scending a hill, they may overheat and not work prop-
erly.
Non-turbo
models Turbo
models
1st 30 (49) 28 (46)
2nd 51 (82) 52 (83)
3rd 73 (117) 73 (118)

7-15
Starting and operating
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Automatic transmission
The automatic transmission is electronically controlled
and provides 4 forward speeds and 1 reverse speed.
NOTE yWhen the engine coolant temperature is still
low, your vehicle’s automatic transmission will
up-shift at higher engine speeds than when the
coolant temperature is sufficiently high in order to
shorten the warm-up time and improve driveabili-
ty. The gearshift timing will automatically shift to
the normal timing after the engine has warmed up. y Immediately after ATF (automatic transmission
fluid) is replaced, you may feel that the automatic
transmission operation is somewhat unusual.
This results from erasure or invalidation of data
the on-board computer has collected and stored in memory to allow the transmission to shift at the
most appropriate times for the current condition
of your vehicle. Optimized shifting will be restored
as the vehicle continues to be driven for a while.
Do not shift from the “P” or “N” position into
the “D”, “3”, “2”, “1” or “R” position while de-
pressing the accelerator pedal. This may cause
the vehicle to jump forward or backward.
y Shift into the “P” or “R” position only after
the vehicle is completely stopped. Shifting
while the vehicle is moving may cause damage
to the transmission. y Do not race the engine for more than five sec-
onds in any position except the “N” or “P” po-
sition when the brake is set or the tires are on
blocks. This may cause the automatic transmis-
sion fluid to overheat.y Avoid shifting from one of the forward driving
positions into the “R” position or vice versa un-
til the vehicle has completely stopped. Such
shifting may cause damage to the transmis-
sion.

7-22
Starting and operating
Braking „
Braking tips
Never rest your foot on the brake pedal while
driving. This can cause dangerous overheating
of the brakes and needless wear on the brake
pads and linings.
T When the brakes get wet
When driving in rain or after washing the vehicle, the
brakes may get wet. As a result, brake stopping dis-
tance will be longer. To dry the brakes, drive the vehi-
cle at a safe speed while lightly depressing the brake
pedal to heat up the brakes. T Use of engine braking
Remember to make use of engine braking in addition
to foot braking. When descending a grade, if only the
foot brake is used, the brakes may start working im-
properly because of brake fluid overheating, caused
by overheated brake pads. To help prevent this, shift
into a lower gear to get stronger engine braking. T
Braking when a tire is punctured
Do not depress the brake pedal suddenly when a tire
is punctured. This could cause a loss of control of the
vehicle. Keep driving straight ahead while gradually
reducing speed. Then slowly pull off the road to a safe
place. „ Brake system
T Two separate circuits
Your vehicle has two separate circuit brake systems.
Each circuit works diagonally across the vehicle. If one
circuit of the brake system should fail, the other half of
the system still works. If one circuit fails, the brake
pedal will go down much closer to the floor than usual
and you will need to press it down much harder. And a
much longer distance will be needed to stop the vehi- cle. T Brake booster
The brake booster uses engine manifold vacuum to
assist braking force. Do not turn off the engine while
driving because that will turn off the brake booster, re-
sulting in poor braking power.
The brakes will continue to work even when the brake
booster completely stops functioning. If this happens,
however, you will have to push the pedal much harder

8-35
Driving tips
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performed immediately by the nearest SUBARU deal- er. TDriving on grades
y Before going down a steep hill, slow down and shift
into lower gear (if necessary, use 1st gear) in order to
utilize the engine braking effect and prevent overheat-
ing of your vehicle’s brakes. Do not make sudden
downshifts. y When driving uphill in hot weather, the air condition-
er may turn off automatically to protect the engine from
overheating. y When driving uphill in hot weather, pay attention to
the water temperature gauge pointer (for all vehicles)
and AT OIL TEMP warning light (for AT vehicles) since
the engine and transmission are relatively prone to
overheating under these conditions. If the water tem-
perature gauge pointer approaches the OVERHEAT
zone or the AT OIL TEMP warning light illuminates,
immediately switch off the air conditioner and stop the
vehicle at the nearest safe place. Refer to the “Engine
overheating” section in chapter 9, and “Warning and
indicator lights” section in chapter 3. y If your vehicle has an automatic transmission, avoid
using the accelerator pedal to stay stationary on an
uphill slope instead of using the parking brake or foot
brake. That may cause the transmission fluid to over-
heat. Also, if your vehicle is equipped with an automat- ic transmission, avoid driving with the gear selector le-
ver in “D” when towing a heavy trailer to prevent fluid
overheating. A lower gear should be used. T
Parking on a grade
Always block the wheels under both vehicle and trailer
when parking. Apply the parking brake firmly. You
should not park on a hill or slope. But if parking on a
hill or slope cannot be avoided, you should take the
following steps:
1. Apply the brakes and hold the pedal down.
2. Have someone place wheel blocks under both the
vehicle and trailer wheels.
3. When the wheel blocks are in place, release the
regular brakes slowly until the blocks absorb the load.
4. Apply the regular brakes and then apply the park-
ing brake; slowly release the regular brakes.
5. Shift into 1st or reverse gear (manual transmission)
or “P” (automatic transmission) and shut off the en-
gine.

9-1
9
In case of emergency
If you park your vehicle in case of an emergency ............................................ 9-2
Flat tires ......................................................... 9-3 Changing a flat tire ........................................... 9-3
Jump starting ................................................ 9-9 How to jump start ............................................. 9-10
Engine overheating ....................................... 9-12 If steam is coming from the engine compartment .................................................. 9-12
If no steam is coming from the engine compartment .................................................. 9-12
Towing ........................................................... 9-13 Towing and tie-down hooks ............................ 9-13
Using a flat-bed truck ....................................... 9-15
Towing with all wheels on the ground ............ 9-15
Rear gate – if the rear gate cannot be unlocked ..................................................... 9-17
Moonroof – if the moonroof cannot be closed ......................................................... 9-18
Maintenance tools ......................................... 9-19 Jack and jack handle ........................................ 9-19

9-12
In case of emergency
Engine overheating
Never attempt to remove the radiator cap until
the engine has been shut off and has fully
cooled down. When the engine is hot, the cool-
ant is under pressure. Removing the cap while
the engine is still hot could release a spray of
boiling hot coolant, which could burn you very
seriously.
If the engine overheats, safely pull off the road and
stop the vehicle in a safe place. „ If steam is coming from the engine
compartment
Turn the engine off and get everyone away from the
vehicle until it cools down. „ If no steam is coming from the engine
compartment
1. Keep the engine running at idling speed.
2. Open the hood to ventilate the engine compart- ment. Confirm that the cooling fan is turning. If the fan is not
turning, immediately turn the engine off and contact
your authorized dealer for repair.
3. After the engine coolant temperature has dropped,
turn off the engine.
If the temperature gauge stays at the overheated
zone, turn the engine off.
4. After the engine has fully cooled down, check the
coolant level in the reserve tank.
If the coolant level is below the “LOW” mark, add cool-
ant up to the “FULL” mark.
5. If there is no coolant in the reserve tank, add cool-
ant to the reserve tank. Then remove the radiator cap
and fill the radiator with coolant.
If you remove the radiator cap from a hot radiator, first
wrap a thick cloth around the radiator cap, then turn
the cap counterclockwise slowly without pressing
down until it stops. Release the pressure from the ra-
diator. After the pressure has been fully released, re-
move the cap by pressing down and turning it.