2006 SUBARU BAJA brake fluid

3-15
Instruments and controls
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battery becomes fully charged, the light will go out. „Brake system warning light
„Brake system
„ Warning light
„ Warning lights
„ Brake system
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.
This light has the following two functions: T Parking brake warning
The light comes on with the parking brake applied
while the ignition switch is in the “ON” position. It goes
out when the parking brake is fully released. T Brake fluid level warning
This light comes on when the brake fluid level has
dropped to near the “MIN” level of the brake fluid res-
ervoir with the ignition switch in the “ON” position and with the parking brake fully released. If the brake system warning li
ght should come on while
driving (with the parking brake fully released and with
the ignition switch positioned in “ON”), it could be an
indication of leaking of brake fluid or worn brake pads.
If this occurs, immediately stop the vehicle at the near-
est safe place and check the brake fluid level. If the flu-
id level is below the “MIN” mark in the reservoir, do not
drive the vehicle. Have the vehicle towed to the near-
est SUBARU dealer for repair. „ Door ajar warning lights
„Door ajar warning lights
„ Warning lights
„ Door ajarThe specific door ajar warning light comes on if any
door is not fully closed.
Always make sure this light is out before you start to drive. „Switchback door indicator light
„Switchback door indicator lightWhile the ignition switch is in the “ON” position, the
switchback door indicator light comes on when the
switchback door is open.
While the ignition switch is in the “LOCK” or “ACC” po-
sition, the switchback door indicator light flashes for
approximately 20 seconds and goes off when the
switchback door is open.
(U.S.) (Canada)

7-8
Starting and operating
y
A state emission inspection may reject (not pass or
fail) a vehicle if the numbe r of OBD system readiness
monitors “Not Ready” is greater than one. Under this
condition, the vehicle opera tor should be instructed to
drive his/her vehicle for a few days to set the monitors
and return for an emission re-inspection. y Owners of rejected or failing vehicles should contact
their SUBARU Dealer for service.Preparing to drive
You should perform the following checks and adjust-
ments every day before you start driving.
1. Check that all windows, mirrors, and lights are
clean and unobstructed.
2. Check the appearance and condition of the tires.
Also check tires for proper inflation.
3. Look under the vehicle for any sign of leaks.
4. Check that the hood is fully closed.
5. Check the adjustment of the seat.
6. Check the adjustment of the inside and outside mir-
rors.
7. Fasten your seatbelt. Check that your passengers
have fastened their seatbelts.
8. Check the operation of the warning and indicator
lights when the ignition switch is turned to the “ON” po-sition.
9. Check the gauges, indicator and warning lights af-
ter starting the engine.
NOTE
Engine oil, engine coolant, brake fluid, washer flu-
id and other fluid levels should be checked daily,
weekly or at fuel stops.

7-14
Starting and operating
„
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.
The engine may, on rare occasions, knock when the
vehicle rapidly accelerates or rapidly pulls away from
a standstill. This phenomenon does not indicate afault. Automatic transmission (Non-turbo
models)
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 when chocks are
used in the wheels. This may cause the auto-
matic transmission 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.

7-15
Starting and operating
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yWhen parking the vehicle, first securely apply
the parking brake and then place the selector
lever in the “P” position. Avoid parking for a
long time with the selector lever in any other
position as doing so could result in a dead bat-
tery.
The automatic transmission is electronically controlled
and provides 4 forward speeds and 1 reverse speed.
NOTE y When 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 suffi ciently high in order to
shorten the warm-up time and improve driveabili-
ty. The gearshift timing wil l automatically shift to
the normal timing after the engine has warmed up.
y Immediately after a disconnected battery is re-
connected or ATF (automatic transmission fluid)
is replaced, you may feel that the automatic trans-
mission operation is somewhat unusual.
This results from invalidation of data the on-board
computer has collected and stored in memory to
allow the transmission to shift at the most appro-
priate times for the current condition of your vehi-
cle. Optimized shifting will be restored as the vehi- cle continues to be driven for a while. „
Selector lever
P
RND321
HS7009AA

7-17
Starting and operating
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In this position the wheels and transmission are not
locked. In this position, the transmission is neutral; the
vehicle will roll freely, even on the slightest incline un-
less the parking brake or foot brake is on.
Avoid coasting with the transmission neutral.
During coasting, the engine braking does not act. T D (Drive)
This position is for normal driving.
The transmission automatically shifts into a suitable
gear from 1st to 4th according to the vehicle speed
and the acceleration you require.
When more acceleration is required in this position,
press the accelerator pedal fully to the floor and hold
that position. The transmission will automatically
downshift to 3rd, 2nd or 1st gear. When you release
the pedal, the transmission will return to the original
gear position. V While climbing a grade
When driving up a hill, undesired upshift to 4th gear is
prevented from taking place when the accelerator is
released. This minimizes the chance of subsequent
downshifting to a lower gear when accelerating again.
This prevents repeated upshifting and downshifting re-
sulting in a smoother operation of the vehicle.NOTE
The transmission may downshift to 2nd or 1st
gear, depending on the way the accelerator pedal
is pressed to accelerate the vehicle again. V While going down a hill
When descending a steep hill, depressing the brake
pedal will cause the transmission to downshift to 3rd
gear, thus applying engine braking. Reacceleration for
a short time will cause the transmission to upshift nor- mally.
NOTE
In some cases, depressing the brake pedal on a
downhill grade does not result in an automatic
downshift to 3rd gear. This can happen when the
automatic transmission fluid temperature is very
low, for example, during driving shortly after the
vehicle has been parked for an extended period of
time. When the ATF temperature has risen to a cer-tain level, automatic downshift normally takes
place. In the meantime, downshift manually for en-
gine braking as required.
Also, downshifting when braking downhill will not
occur at speeds above approximately 50 mph (80 km/h).

7-21
Starting and operating
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Automatic transmission (Turbo mod-
els)
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 when chocks are
used in the wheels. This may cause the auto-matic transmission 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 dama ge to the transmis-
sion. y
When parking the vehicle, first securely apply
the parking brake and then place the selector
lever in the “P” position. Avoid parking for a
long time with the selector lever in any other
position as doing so could result in a dead bat-
tery.
The automatic transmission is electronically controlled
and provides 4 forward speeds and 1 reverse speed.
Also, it has a manual mode.
NOTE y When the engine coolant temperature is still
low, your vehicle’s auto matic 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 w ill automatically shift to
the normal timing after th e 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 invalidation of data which 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

7-24
Starting and operating
The transmission automatica
lly shifts into a suitable
gear from 1st to 4th according to the vehicle speed
and the acceleration you require.
When more acceleration is required in this position,
press the accelerator pedal fully to the floor and hold
that position. The transmission will automatically
downshift to 3rd, 2nd or 1st gear. When you release
the pedal, the transmission will return to the original
gear position.
To use the SPORTSHIFT mode, move the lever from
this position into the manual gate. V While climbing a grade
When driving up a hill, undesired upshift to 4th gear is
prevented from taking place when the accelerator is
released. This minimizes the chance of subsequent
downshifting to a lower gear when accelerating again.
This prevents repeated upshifting and downshifting re-
sulting in a smoother operation of the vehicle.
NOTE
The transmission may downshift to 2nd or 1st
gear, depending on the way the accelerator pedal
is pressed to accelerate the vehicle again. V While going down a hill
When descending a steep hill, depressing the brake
pedal will cause the transmission to downshift to 3rd gear, thus applying engine braking. Reacceleration for
a short time will cause the transmission to upshift nor-mally.
NOTE
In some cases, depressing the brake pedal on a
downhill grade does not result in an automatic
downshift to 3rd gear. This can happen when the
automatic transmission fluid temperature is very
low, for example, during driving shortly after the
vehicle has been parked for an extended period of
time. When the ATF temperature has risen to a cer-
tain level, automatic downshift normally takes
place. In the meantime, downshift manually for en-
gine braking as required.
Also, downshifting when braking downhill will not
occur at speeds above approximately 50 mph (80
km/h). T
3 (Third)
This position is for using engine braking when going
down a hill or for climbing a grade.
The transmission automatically shifts into a suitable
gear from 1st to 3rd according to the vehicle speed
and the acceleration you require.
When more acceleration is required in this position,
press the accelerator pedal fully to the floor and hold

7-31
Starting and operating
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Power steering
Do not hold the steering wheel at the fully
locked position left or right for more than five
seconds. This may damage the power steering
pump.
The power steering system operates only when the
engine is running.
If you lose power steering assist because the engine
stops or the system fails to function, you can steer but
it will take much more effort.
NOTE
Right after the engine has been started and before
it has warmed up, you may hear a noise coming
from areas adjacent to the power steering pump
which is located at the right-front area of the en-
gine compartment. This noise is normal. It does
not indicate power steering system trouble.
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.