2007 SUBARU FORESTER flat tire

2
the climate control.
Chapter 5: Audio
This chapter informs you how to operate
your audio system.
Chapter 6: Interior equipment
This chapter informs you how to operate
interior equipment.
Chapter 7: Starting and operating
This chapter informs you how to start and
operate your SUBARU.
Chapter 8: Driving tips
This chapter informs you how to drive your
SUBARU in various conditions and ex-
plains some safety tips on driving.
Chapter 9: In case of emergency
This chapter informs you what to do if you
have a problem while driving, such as a
flat tire or engine overheating.
Chapter 10: Appearance care
This chapter informs you how to keep your
SUBARU looking good.
Chapter 11: Maintenance and service
This chapter informs you when you need
to take your SUBARU to the dealer for
scheduled maintenance and informs you
how to keep your SUBARU running prop-
erly.
Chapter 12: Specifications
This chapter informs you about dimension
and capacities of your SUBARU.
Chapter 13: Consumer information and
Reporting safety defectsThis chapter informs you about Uniform
tire quality grading standards and Report-
ing safety defects.
Chapter 14: Index
This is an alphabetical listing of all that’s in
this manual. You can use it to quickly find
something you want to read.
„ Safety warnings
You will find a number of WARNINGs,
CAUTIONs and NOTEs in this manual.
These safety warnings alert you to poten-
tial hazards that could result in injury to
you or others.
Please read these safety warnings as well
as all other portions of this manual careful-
ly in order to gain a better understanding
of how to use your SUBARU vehicle safe-
ly.NOTE
A NOTE gives information or sugges-
tions how to make better use of your
vehicle. „ Safety symbol
You will find a circle with a slash through it
in this manual. This symbol means “Do
not”, “Do not do this”, or “Do not let this
happen”, depending upon the context.
A WARNING indicates a situation in
which serious injury or death could
result if the warning is ignored.
A CAUTION indicates a situation in
which injury or damage to your vehi-
cle, or both, could result if the cau-
tion is ignored.
000013

10
Illustrated index „Exterior
6
7
8
9
10
11
1
2
3 4
5000194
1) Headlight switch (page 3-17)
2) Replacing bulbs (page 11-44)
3) Engine hood (page 11-4)
4) Wiper switch (page 3-22)
5) Roof rails (page 8-13)
6) Door locks (page 2-4)
7) Tire pressure (page 11-31)
8) Flat tires (page 9-3)
9) Tire chains (page 8-10)
10) Front fog light button (page 3-20)
11) Tie-down/Towing hooks (page 9-11)

1-58 Seat, seatbelt and SRS airbags
ySide airbag sensor (Center pillar right-
hand side) y Side airbag sensor (Center pillar left-
hand side) y Side airbag module (Driver’s side)
y Side airbag module (Front passenger’s
side)y Seatbelt pretensioner (Driver’s side)
y Seatbelt pretensioner (Front passen-
ger’s side)y Seatbelt buckle switch (Driver’s side)
y Seatbelt buckle switch (Front passen-
ger’s side)y Driver’s seat position sensor
y Front passenger’s seatbelt tension sen-
sory Front passenger’s occupant detection
system weight sensor y Front passenger’s occupant detection
control module y Front passenger’s frontal airbag ON
and OFF indicator y All related wiring„ SRS airbag system servicing
If the warning light exhibits any of
the following conditions, there may
be a malfunction in the seatbelt pre-
tensioners and/or SRS airbag sys-
tem. Immediately take your vehicle
to your nearest SUBARU dealer to
have the system checked. Unless
checked and properly repaired, the
seatbelt pretensioners and/or SRS
airbags will not operate properly in
the event of a collision, which may
increase the risk of injury.
yFlashing or flickering of the warn-
ing light
yNo illumination of the warning
light when the ignition switch is
first turned to the “ON” position
yContinuous illumination of the
warning light
yIllumination of the warning light
while driving
yWhen discarding an airbag mod-
ule or scrapping the entire vehicle
damaged by a collision, consult
your SUBARU dealer.
yThe SRS airbag has no user-ser-
viceable parts. Do not use electri-
cal test equipment on any circuit
related to the SRS airbag system.
For required servicing of the SRS
airbag, see your nearest SUBARU
dealer. Tampering with or discon-
necting the system’s wiring could
result in accidental inflation of the
SRS airbag or could make the sys-
tem inoperative, which may result
in serious injury. The wiring har-
nesses of the SRS airbag system
are covered with yellow insulation
and system connectors are yellow
for easy identification.

Interior equipment 6-17
NOTE
When storing a flat tire, put the storage
tray in the luggage compartment (Ex-
cept Canada-spec. non-turbo models).
600108

8-2 Driving tips
Driving tipsNew vehicle break-in driving
– the first 1,000 miles (1,600
km)
The performance and long life of your ve-
hicle are dependent on how you handle
and care for your vehicle while it is new.
Follow these instructions during the first
1,000 miles (1,600 km):yDo not race the engine. And do not al-
low engine speed to exceed 4,000 rpm ex-
cept in an emergency. y Do not drive at one constant engine or
vehicle speed for a long time, either fast or
slow.y Avoid starting suddenly and rapid accel-
eration, except in an emergency. y Avoid hard braking, except in an emer-
gency.
The same break-in procedures should be
applied to an overhauled engine, newly
mounted engine or when brake pads or
brake linings are replaced with new ones.
Fuel economy hints
The following suggestions will help to
save your fuel. y Select the proper gear position for the
speed and road conditions. y Avoid sudden acceleration or decelera-
tion. Always accelerate gently until you
reach the desired speed. Then try to main-
tain that speed for as long as possible. y Do not pump the accelerator and avoid
racing the engine. y Avoid unnecessary engine idling.
y Keep the engine properly tuned.
y Keep the tires inflated to the correct
pressure shown on the tire placard, which
is located under the door latch on the driv-
er’s side. Low pressure will increase tire
wear and fuel consumption. y Use the air conditioner only when nec-
essary. y Keep the front and rear wheels in prop-
er alignment.y Avoid carrying unnecessary cargo. Engine exhaust gas (Carbon
monoxide)
y
Never inhale engine exhaust gas.
Engine exhaust gas contains car-
bon monoxide, a colorless and
odorless gas which is dangerous,
or even lethal, if inhaled.
yAlways properly maintain the en-
gine exhaust system to prevent
engine exhaust gas from entering
the vehicle.
yNever run the engine in a closed
space, such as a garage, except
for the brief time needed to drive
the vehicle in or out of it.
yAvoid remaining in a parked vehi-
cle for a lengthy time while the en-
gine is running. If that is unavoid-
able, then use the ventilation fan
to force fresh air into the vehicle.
yAlways keep the front ventilator
inlet grille free from snow, leaves
or other obstructions to ensure
that the ventilation system always
works properly.

8-6 Driving tips
Off road driving
Because of the AWD feature and higher
ground clearance, your SUBARU can be
driven on ordinary roads or off-road. But
please keep in mind that an AWD SUBA-
RU is a passenger car and is neither a
conventional off-road vehicle nor an all-
terrain vehicle. If you do take your SUBA-
RU off-road, certain common sense pre-
cautions such as the following should be
taken: yMake certain that you and all of your
passengers are wearing seatbelts. y Carry some emergency equipment,
such as a towing rope or chain, a shovel,
wheel blocks, first aid kit and cell phone or citizens band radio. y
Drive carefully. Do not take unneces-
sary risks by driving in dangerous areas or
over rough terrain. y Slow down and employ extra caution at
all times. When driving off-road, you will
not have the benefit of marked traffic
lanes, banked curves, traffic signs and the
like. y Do not drive across steep slopes. In-
stead, drive either straight up or straight
down the slopes. A vehicle can much
more easily tip over sideways than it can
end over end. Avoid driving straight up or
down slopes that are too steep. y Avoid sharp turning maneuvers, espe-
cially at higher speeds. y Do not grip the inside or spokes of the
steering wheel. A bad bump could jerk the
wheel and injure your hands. Instead drive
with your fingers and thumbs on the out-
side of the rim. y If driving through water, such as when
crossing shallow streams, first check the
depth of the water and the bottom of the
stream bed for firmness and ensure that
the bed of the stream is flat. Drive slowly
and completely through the stream. The
water should be shallow enough that it
does not reach the vehicle’s undercar-
riage. Water entering the engine air intake
or the exhaust pipe or water splashing onto electrical parts may damage your ve-
hicle and may cause it to stall. Never at-
tempt to drive through rushing water; re-
gardless of its depth, it can wash away the
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 the 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
y Always maintain a safe driving
speed according to the road and
weather conditions in order to
avoid having an accident on a
sharp turn, during sudden braking
or under other similar conditions.
yAlways use the utmost care in
driving – overconfidence because
you are driving an All-Wheel Drive
vehicle could easily lead to a seri-
ous accident.

Driving tips 8-23
– CONTINUED –
Connection of trailer lights to your vehi-
cle’s electrical system requires modifica-
tions to the vehicle’s lighting circuit to in-
crease its capacity and accommodate wir-
ing changes. To ensure the trailer lights
are connected properly, please consult
your SUBARU dealer. Check for proper
operation of the turn signals, the brake
lights and parking lights each time you
hitch up. T
Tires
Make sure that all the tires on your vehicle
are properly inflated to the pressure spec-
ified on the tire placard located on the driv-
er’s side center pillar.
Trailer tire condition, size, load rating and
proper inflation pressure should be in ac-
cordance with the trailer manufacturer’s
specifications. „
Trailer towing tips
TBefore starting out on a trip
y Check that the vehicle and vehicle-to-
hitch mounting are in good condition. If
any problems are apparent, do not tow the
trailer. y Check that the vehicle sits horizontally
with the trailer attached. If the vehicle is
tipped sharply up at the front and down at
the rear, check the total trailer weight,
GVW, GAWs and tongue load again, then
confirm that the load and its distribution
are acceptable. y Check that the tire pressures are cor-
rect. y Check that the vehicle and trailer are connected properly. Confirm that
– the trailer tongue is connected prop-
erly to the hitch ball.
– the trailer lights connector is connect-
ed properly and trailer’s brake lights illu-
minate when the vehicle’s brake pedal
is pressed, and that the trailer’s turn sig-
nal lights flash when the vehicle’s turn
signal lever is operated.
– the safety chains are connected prop-
erly.
– all cargo in the trailer is secured safe-
ty in position.
– the side mirrors provide a good rear-
ward field of view without a significant
blind spot.
y 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. T Driving with a trailer
y You should allow for considerably more
stopping distance when towing a trailer.
Avoid sudden braking because it may re-
sult in skidding or jackknifing and loss of
control. y Avoid abrupt starts and sudden acceler-
ations. If your vehicle has a manual trans-
mission, always start out in first gear and
release the clutch at moderate engine rev-
Never tow a trailer when the tempo-
rary spare tire is used. The tempo-
rary spare tire is not designed 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.
y Never exceed 45 mph (72 km/h)
when towing a trailer in hilly coun-
try on hot days.
y When towing a trailer, steering,
stability, stopping distance and
braking performance will be dif-
ferent from normal operation. For
safety’s sake, you should employ
extra caution when towing a trail-
er and you should never speed.
You should also keep the follow-
ing tips in mind:

9
In case of emergency
If you park your vehicle in case of an emergency .................................................. 9-2
Temporary spare tire (if equipped) ................... 9-2
Flat tires .............................................................. 9-3 Changing a flat tire ................................................. 9-3
Jump starting ...................................................... 9-7 How to jump start ................................................... 9-8
Engine overheating ............................................ 9-10 If steam is coming from the engine compartment ......................................................... 9-10
If no steam is coming from the engine compartment ......................................................... 9-10
Towing ................................................................. 9-10 Towing and tie-down hooks .................................. 9-11
Using a flat-bed truck ............................................. 9-12
Towing with all wheels on the ground .................. 9-12
Rear gate – if the rear gate cannot be unlocked .......................................................... 9-13
Moonroof – if the moonroof cannot be closed ............................................................... 9-13
Maintenance tools .............................................. 9-14 Jack and jack handle .............................................. 9-14