Driving tips 8-7
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ground from under your tires, resulting in
possible loss of traction and even vehicle
rollover. y
Always check your brakes for effective-
ness immediately after driving in sand,
mud or water. Do this by driving slowly
and stepping on the brake pedal. Repeat
that process several times to dry out the
brake discs and brake pads. y Do not drive or park over or near flam-
mable materials such as dry grass or fall-
en leaves, as they may burn easily. The
exhaust system is very hot while the en-
gine is running and right after engine
stops. This could create a fire hazard. y After driving through tall grass, mud,
rocks, sand, rivers, etc., check that there
is no grass, bush, paper, rags, stones,
sand, etc. adhering to or trapped on the
underbody. Clear off any such matter from
the underbody. If the vehicle is used with
these materials trapped or adhering to the
underbody, a mechanical breakdown or
fire could occur. y Secure all cargo carried inside the vehi-
cle and make certain that it is not piled higher than the seatbacks. During sudden
stops or jolts, unsecured cargo could be
thrown around in the vehicle and cause in-
jury. Do not pile heavy loads on the roof.
Those loads raise the vehicle’s center of
gravity and make it more prone to tip over. y
If you must rock the vehicle to free it
from sand or mud, depress the accelera-
tor pedal slightly and move the selector le-
ver back and forth between “D” and “R” re-
peatedly. Do not race the engine. For the
best possible traction, avoid spinning the
wheels when trying to free the vehicle. y When the road surface is extremely
slippery, you can obtain better traction by
starting the vehicle with the transmission
in 2nd than 1st (both for MT and AT). y Never equip your vehi cle with tires larg-
er than those specified in this manual. y Wash the vehicle’s underbody after off-
road driving. Suspension components are
particularly prone to dirt buildup, so they
need to be washed thoroughly. y Frequent driving of an AWD vehicle un-
der hard-driving condit ions such as rough
roads or off roads will necessitate more
frequent replacement of engine oil, brake
fluid and transmission oil than that speci-
fied in the maintenance schedule de-
scribed in the “Warranty and Maintenance Booklet”.
Remember that damage done to your
SUBARU while operating it off-road and
not using common sense precautions
such as those listed above is not eligible for warranty coverage.
Winter driving „ Operation during cold weath- er
Carry some emergency equipment, such
as tire chains, a window scraper, a bag of
sand, flares, a small shovel, and jumper cables.
Check the battery and cables. Cold tem-
peratures reduce battery capacity. The
battery must be in good condition to pro-
vide enough power for cold winter starts.
Use an engine oil of proper grade and vis-
cosity for cold weather. Heavy summer oil
will cause harder starting.
Keep the door locks from freezing by
800015
