2005 SUBARU OUTBACK warning light

8-41
Driving tips
– CONTINUED –
"Sufficient time should be taken to learn the “feel” of
the vehicle/trailer combination before starting out on a
trip. In an area free of traffic, practice turning, stopping
and backing up. ! Driving with a trailer
" You should allow for considerably more stopping
distance when towing a trailer. Avoid sudden braking because it may result in skidding or jackknifing and
loss of control." Avoid abrupt starts and sudden accelerations. If
your vehicle has a manual transmission, always start
out in first gear and release the clutch at moderate en-
gine revolution. " Avoid uneven steering, sharp turns and rapid lane
changes. " Slow down before turning. Make a longer than nor-
mal turning radius because the trailer wheels will be
closer than the vehicle wheels to the inside of the turn.
In a tight turn, the trailer could hit your vehicle. " Crosswinds will adversely affect the handling of
your vehicle and trailer, causing sway. Crosswinds
can be due to weather conditions or the passing of large trucks or buses. If swaying occurs, firmly grip the
steering wheel and slow down immediately but gradu-
ally. " When passing other vehicles, considerable dis-
tance is required because of the added weight and length caused by attaching the trailer to your vehicle.
A) Left turn
B) Right turn
" Backing up with a trailer is difficult and takes prac-
tice. When backing up with a trailer, never accelerate
or steer rapidly. When turning back, grip the bottom of
the steering wheel with one hand and turn it to the left
for a left turn, and turn it to the right for a right turn. " If the ABS warning light illuminates while the vehicle
is in motion, stop towing the trailer and have repairs
performed immediately by the nearest SUBARU deal- er.
A B
UB8502BB

8-42
Driving tips
!
Driving on grades
" 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." When driving uphill in hot weather, the air condition-
er may turn off automatically to protect the engine from
overheating." 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.
NOTE
With AT vehicles, the temperature of engine cool-
ant is less likely to rise to the OVERHEAT zone in
the “D” position than in the manual mode position. " 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. !
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.

9-3
In case of emergency
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Temporary spare tire
"Never tow a trailer when the temporary spare
tire is used. The temporary spare tire is not de-
signed to sustain the towing load. Use of the
temporary spare tire when towing can result in
failure of the spare tire and/or less stability of
the vehicle and may lead to an accident. " When a spare tire is mounted or a wheel rim
is replaced without the original pressure sen-
sor/transmitter being transferred, the low tire
pressure warning light will flash. This indicates
the tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) is
unable to monitor all four road wheels. Contact
your SUBARU dealer as soon as possible for
tire and sensor replacement and/or system re-
setting.
Never use any temporary spare tire other than
the original. Using other sizes may result in se-
vere mechanical damage to the drive train of
your vehicle.
The temporary spare tire is smaller and lighter than a
conventional tire and is designed for emergency use
only. Remove the temporary spare tire and re-install
the conventional tire as soon as possible because the
spare tire is designed only for temporary use.
Check the inflation pressure of the temporary spare
tire periodically to keep the tire ready for use. The cor-
rect pressure is 60 psi (420 kPa, 4.2 kgf/cm 2
).
When using the temporary spare tire, note the follow-
ing: " Do not exceed 50 mph (80 km/h).
" Do not put a tire chain on the temporary spare tire.
Because of the smaller tire size, a tire chain will not fit
properly. " Do not use two or more temporary spare tires at the
same time. " Do not drive over obstacles. This tire has a smaller
diameter, so road clearance is reduced.

9-4
In case of emergency
1) Tread wear indicator bar
2) Indicator location mark
" When the wear indicator appears on the tread, re-
place the tire.NOTE
If your vehicle is an AWD type with an automatic
transmission but is neither a Turbo model nor a
3.0-liter model, deactivate its all-wheel-drive capa-
bility as follows: Before driving your vehicle with
the temporary spare tire, put a spare fuse inside
the FWD connector located in the engine compart-
ment and confirm that the “ ” warning light
comes on. The all wheel drive capability of the ve-
hicle has now been deactivated. After re-installing
the conventional tire, remove the spare fuse from
the FWD connector in order to reactivate all wheel
drive.
1
2
US9525BBUBB501BA

9-16
In case of emergency
cations.
Never place a tire or tire changing tools in the
passenger compartment after changing
wheels. In a sudden stop or collisions, loose
equipment could strike occupants and cause
injury. Store the tire and all tools in the proper
place.
! Tire pressure monitoring system
(TPMS) (if equipped) The tire pressure monitoring system provides the driv-
er with a warning message indicated by sending a sig-
nal from a sensor that is installed in each wheel when
tire pressure is severely low.
The tire pressure monitoring system will activate only
when the vehicle is driven. Also, this system may not
react immediately to a sudden drop in tire pressure
(for example, a blow-out caused running over a sharp
object).
If the low tire pressure warning light comes on
while driving, never brake suddenly and keep
driving straight ahead while gradually reducing
speed. Then slowly pull off the road to a safe
place. Otherwise an accident involving serious
vehicle damage and serious personal injury
could occur.
Check the pressure for all four tires and adjust
the pressure to the COLD tire pressure shown
on the vehicle placard on the door pillar on the
driver’s side. If this light still comes on while
driving after adjusting the tire pressure, a tire
may have significant damage and a fast leak
that causes the tire to lose air rapidly. If you
have a flat tire, replace it with a spare tire as
soon as possible.
UB7507RA

9-17
In case of emergency
– CONTINUED –
When a spare tire is mounted or a wheel rim is
replaced without the original pressure sensor/
transmitter being transferred, the low tire pres-
sure warning light will flash. This indicates the
TPMS is unable to monitor all four road wheels.
Contact your SUBARU dealer as soon as possi-
ble for tire and sensor replacement and/or sys-
tem resetting.
Do not inject any tire liquid or aerosol tire seal-
ant into the tires, as this may cause a malfunc-
tion of the tire pressure sensors.
If the light flashes, promptly contact a SUBARU
dealer to have the system inspected.
Jump starting
"Battery fluid is SULFURIC ACID. Do not let it
come in contact with the eyes, skin, clothing or
the vehicle.
If battery fluid gets on you, thoroughly flush the
exposed area with water immediately. Get med-
ical help if the fluid has entered your eyes.
If battery fluid is accidentally swallowed, imme-
diately drink a large amount of milk or water,
and obtain immediate medical help.
Keep everyone including children away from the battery." The gas generated by a battery explodes if a
flame or spark is brought near it. Do not smoke
or light a match while jump starting." Never attempt jump starting if the discharged
battery is frozen. It could cause the battery to
burst or explode." Whenever working on or around a battery, al-
ways wear suitable eye protectors, and remove
metal objects such as rings, bands or other
metal jewelry. " Be sure the jumper cables and clamps on
them do not have loose or missing insulation.

11 -4 9
Maintenance and service
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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 traction, handling and braking perfor-
mance in year-round driving including 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 suit-
ed 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. !
Winter (snow) tires
Winter tires are best suited for driving on snow-cov-
ered and icy roads. However winter tires do not per-
form as well as summer tires and all season tires on
roads other than snow-covered and icy roads. ! Tire pressure monitoring system
(TPMS) (if equipped)
The tire pressure monitoring system provides the driv-
er with a warning message indicating by sending a sig-
nal from a sensor that is installed in each wheel when
tire pressure is severely low. The tire pressure moni-
toring system will activate only when the vehicle is
driven. Also, this system may not react immediately to
a sudden drop in tire pressure (for example, a blow-
out caused by running over a sharp object).
If you adjust the tire pressures in a warm garage and
will then drive the vehicle in cold outside air, the result-
ing drop in tire pressures may cause the low tire pres-
sure warning light to come on. To avoid this problem
when adjusting the tire pressures in a warm garage,
inflate the tires to pressures higher than those shown
on the tire placard. Specifically, inflate them by an ex-
tra 1 psi (6.9 kPa, 0.07 kgf/cm 2
) for every difference of
10 °F (5.6 °C) between the temperature in the garage
and the temperature outside. By way of example, the

11 - 5 0
Maintenance and service
following table shows the required tire pressures that
correspond to various outside temperatures when the
temperature in the garage is 60
°F (15.6 °C).
Standard tire pressures:
Front: 32 psi (220 kPa, 2.2 kgf/cm 2
)
Rear: 30 psi (210 kPa, 2.1 kgf/cm 2
)
Garage temperature: 60 °F (15.6 °C)
If the low tire pressure warning light comes on when
you drive the vehicle in cold outside air after adjusting
the tire pressures in a warm garage, re-adjust the tire
pressures using the method described above. Then,
increase the vehicle speed to at least 20 mph (32 km/
h) and check to see that the low tire pressure warning
light goes off a few minutes later. If the low tire pres-
sure warning light does not go off, the tire pressure
monitoring system may not be functioning normally. In this event, go to a SUBARU dealer to have the system
inspected as soon as possible.
While the vehicle is driven, friction between tires and
the road surface causes the tires to warm up. After il-
lumination of the low tire pressure warning light, any
increase in the tire pressures caused by an increase in
the outside air temperature or by an increase in the
temperature in the tires can cause the low tire pres-
sure warning light to go off.
System resetting is necessary when the wheels are
changed (for example, a switch to snow tires) and new
TPMS valves are installed on the newly fitted wheels.
Have this work performed by a SUBARU dealer fol-
lowing wheel replacement.
It may not be possible to install TPMS valves on cer-
tain wheels that are on the market. Therefore, if you
change the wheels (for example, a switch to snow
tires), use wheels that have the same part number as
the standard-equipment wheels. Without four opera-
tional TPMS valve/sensors on the wheels, the TPMS
will not fully function and the warning light in the instru-
ment panel will flash.
When a tire is replaced, adjustments are necessary to
ensure continued normal operation of the tire pressure
monitoring system. As with wheel replacement, there-
Outside temperature Adjusted pressure
[psi (kPa, kgf/cm2
)]
front rear
30 °F (–1 °C) 35 (240, 2.4) 33 (230, 2.3)
10 °F (–12 °C) 37 (255, 2.55) 35 (245, 2.45)
–10 °F (–23 °C) 39 (270, 2.7) 37 (260, 2.6)