2012 SUBARU FORESTER Owners Manual

3-34Instruments and controls
Refer to “Windshield washer
fluid ”F 11-37.
Also, when driving the vehicle in
freezing temperature, use non-
freezing type wiper blades.
. Do not clean the wiper blades
with gasoline or a solvent, such
as paint thinner or benzine. This
will cause deterioration of the
wiper blades.
NOTE . The wipers operate only when the
ignition switch is in the “ON ”or “Acc ”
position. . The front wiper motor is protected
against overload by a circuit breaker. If
the motor operates continuously under
an unusually heavy load, the circuit
breaker may trip to stop the motor
temporarily. If this happens, park your
vehicle in a safe place, turn off the
wiper switch, and wait for approxi-
mately 10 minutes. The circuit breaker
will reset itself, and the wipers will
again operate normally.. Clean your wiper blades and win-
dow glass periodically with a washer
solution to prevent streaking, and to
remove accumulations of road salt or
road film. Keep the washer button depressed at least for 1 second so that
washer solution will be sprinkled all
over the windshield or rear window..
Grease, wax, insects or other mate-
rial on the windshield or the wiper
blade results in jerky wiper operation
and streaking on the glass. If you
cannot remove those streaks after
operating the washer or if the wiper
operation is jerky, clean the outer sur-
face of the windshield or rear window
and the wiper blades using a sponge or
soft cloth with a neutral detergent or
mild abrasive cleaner. After cleaning,
rinse the window glass and wiper
blades with clean water. The glass is
clean if no beads form on the glass
when you rinse with water.. If you cannot eliminate the streaking
even after following this procedure,
replace the wiper blades with new
ones. For replacement instructions,
refer to “Replacement of wiper blades ”
F 11-39. &
Windshield wiper and washer switches
The wipers operate only when the ignition
switch is in the “ON ”or “Acc ”position.
! Windshield wipers
OFF: Off: Intermittent
LO: Low speed
HI: High speed
To turn the wipers on, push the wiper
control lever down.
To turn the wipers off, return the lever to the “OFF ”position.

!Wiper intermittent time control
When the wiper switch is in the “”
position, turn the dial to adjust the operat-
ing interval of the wipers.
The operating interval can be adjusted in
nine steps. !
Mist (for a single wipe)For a single wipe of the wipers, pull the
lever toward you. The wipers also operate
until you release the lever. !
WasherTo wash the windshield, push the washer
button at the end of the wiper control lever.
The washer fluid sprays until you release
the washer button. The wipers also
operate while you push the button. Instruments and controls
3-35
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3-36Instruments and controls
&Rear window wiper and
washer switch
The wiper and washer operate when the
ignition switch is in the “ON ”or “Acc ”
position.
: Washer (accompanied by wiper operation)
ON: Continuous
INT: Intermittent
OFF: Off
: Washer
! Rear wiper
To turn the rear wiper on, turn the knob at
the end of the wiper control lever upward
to the “INT ”or “ON ”position.
To turn the wiper off, return the knob to the“ OFF ”position.
With the switch turned to the “INT ”
position, the rear wiper will operate inter- mittently at intervals corresponding to the
vehicle speed (longer when the vehicle
speed is low; shorter when the vehicle
speed is high).
When you subsequently shift the trans-
mission into reverse, the rear wiper will
automatically switch to continuous opera-
tion. When the transmission is shifted to a
position other than reverse, the rear wiper
will return to intermittent operation. !
Washer
To wash the rear window while the rear
wiper is operating, turn the knob upward tothe “
”position. The washer fluid sprays
until you release the knob.
To wash the rear window when the rear
wiper is not in use, turn the knob down-
ward to the “
”position. The washer fluid
sprays, and 2 seconds later the rear wiper
operates. Releasing the knob stops the
washer fluid spray, and 3 seconds later
the rear wiper stops. Mirrors
Always check that the inside and outside
mirrors are properly adjusted before you
start driving. &
Inside mirror
The inside mirror has a day and night
position. Pull the tab at the bottom of the
mirror toward you for the night position.
Push it away for the day position. The
night position reduces glare from head-
lights of vehicles behind you.

&Auto-dimming mirror/com-
pass (if equipped)
1) Auto dimming indicator
2) Left (mirror) button
3) Photosensor
4) Right (compass) button
5) Compass display
The auto-dimming mirror has an anti-glare
feature which automatically reduces glare
coming from headlights of vehicles behind
you. It also contains a built-in compass. . By pressing and releasing the left
button, the automatic dimming function is
toggled on or off. When the automatic
dimming function is on, the auto dimming
indicator light (green) located on the left
button will illuminate. . By pressing and releasing the right button, the compass display is toggled on
or off. When the compass is on, an
illuminated compass reading will appear
in the upper right corner of the mirror.
Even with the mirror in anti-glare mode,
the mirror surface turns bright if the
transmission is shifted into reverse. This
is to ensure good rearward visibility duringreversing. !
Photosensors
The mirror has a photosensor attached on
both the front and back sides. If the glare
from the headlights of vehicles behind you
strikes the mirror, these sensors detect it
and make the reflection surface of the
mirror dimmer to help prevent you from
being blinded. For this reason, use care
not to cover the sensors with stickers, or other similar items. Periodically wipe the
sensors clean using a piece of dry soft
cotton cloth or an applicator. !
Compass zone adjustment
Compass calibration zones
1. The zone setting is factory preset to
Zone 8. Refer to the “Compass calibration
zones ”map shown above to verify that the
compass zone setting is correct for your
geographical location.
2. Press and hold the right button for 3
seconds then release, and the word“ ZONE ”will briefly appear and then the
zone number will be displayed.
3. Press the right-hand button repeatedly
to cycle the display through all possible
zone settings. Stop cycling when the
correct zone setting for your location is Instruments and controls
3-37
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3-38Instruments and controls
displayed.
4. Releasing the button for 3 seconds will
exit the zone setting mode. ! Compass calibration
1. For optimum calibration, switch off all
nonessential electrical accessories (rear
window defogger, heater/air conditioning
system, spotlight, etc.) and ensure all
doors are shut.
2. Drive to an open, level area away from
large metallic objects or structures and
make certain the ignition switch is in the“ ON ”position.
3. Press and hold the right button for 6 - 7
seconds then release, and the compass
will enter the calibration mode. “CAL ”and
direction will be displayed.
4. Drive slowly in a circle until “CAL ”
disappears from the display (approxi-
mately two to three circles). The compass
is now calibrated.
5. Further calibration may be necessary
should outside influences cause the mirror
to read inaccurately. You will know that
this has occurred if your compass begins
to read in only limited directions. Should
you encounter this situation, return to step
one of the above procedure and recali-
brate the mirror. &
Auto-dimming mirror/com-
pass with HomeLink
®(if
equipped)
1) HomeLink®button 1
2) HomeLink®button 2
3) LED
4) HomeLink
®button 3
5) Sensor
6) Automatic dimming on/off button
7) Compass display button
8) Compass display
The auto-dimming mirror has an anti-glare
feature which automatically reduces glare
coming from headlights of vehicles behind
you. It also contains a built-in compass
and HomeLink
®wireless control system.
. By pressing the automatic dimming on/
off button, the automatic dimming function
is toggled on or off. When the automatic dimming function is on, the LED indicator
will illuminate.
Even with the mirror in the automatic
dimming mode, the mirror surface turns
bright if the transmission is shifted into
reverse. This is to ensure good rearward
visibility during reversing. .
By pressing the compass display but-
ton, the compass display is toggled on or
off. When the compass is on, an illumi-
nated compass reading will appear in the
upper right corner of the mirror.
When cleaning the mirror, use a paper
towel or similar material dampened with
glass cleaner. Do not spray glass cleaner
directly on the mirror as that may cause
the liquid cleaner to enter the mirror
housing and damage the mirror.

!Photosensors
The mirror has a photosensor attached on
both the front and back sides. During
nighttime driving, these sensors detect
distracting glare from vehicle headlights
behind you and automatically dim the
mirror to eliminate glare and preserve
your vision. For this reason, use care not
to cover the sensors with stickers, or other
similar items. Periodically wipe the sen-
sors clean using a piece of dry soft cotton
cloth or an applicator. !
Compass zone adjustmentCompass calibration zones
1. Refer to the “Compass calibration
zones ”map shown above to verify that
the compass zone setting is correct for
your geographical location.
2. Press and hold the compass display
button for 3 seconds until the zone
selection comes up (a number will be
displayed in the mirror compass window).
3. Press the compass display button
repeatedly until the correct zone setting
for your location is displayed.
4. Releasing the button for 5 seconds will
exit the zone setting mode. !
Compass calibration
1. If a “C ” is displayed in the compass
window, the compass needs to be cali-brated.
2. Drive the vehicle in a circle at 5 mph (8
km/h) or less until the display reads a direction.
3. You can also calibrate the compass by
driving your vehicle on your everyday
routine. The compass will be calibrated
once it has tracked a complete circle.
4. To recalibrate your compass, push and
hold the compass display button for 9
seconds until a “C ” appears in the
compass window.
5. Calibrate the compass according to
step 2 or step 3. ! HomeLink
®Wireless Control Sys-
tem
The HomeLink
®Wireless Control System
can be used to activate remote control
devices such as gate operators, garage
door openers, door locks, home lighting
and security systems.
There are three HomeLink
®buttons on the
mirror, each of which can be programmed
for operation of one desired device. For
details on the device types which can be
operated by this system, consult the HomeLink
®website at:
Instruments and controls
3-39
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3-40Instruments and controls
www.homelink.com or call 1-800-355- 3515.
Note the following information about this system.
If your vehicle is equipped with the HomeLink
®Wireless Control System, it
complies with Part 15 of the Federal
Communications Commission Rules in
the U.S. and the RSS-210 of Industry
Canada in Canada. Its operation is subject
to the following two conditions:
(1) this device may not cause harmful
interference, and (2) this device must
accept any interference received, includ-
ing interference that may cause undesiredoperation.
Changes and modifications to this system
by anyone other than an authorized
service facility could void authorization to
use this equipment. HomeLink
®and the HomeLink®house are
registered trademarks of Johnson Con-
trols, Inc.
WARNING
. When programming the
HomeLink
®Wireless Control Sys-
tem, you may be operating a
garage door opener or other
device. Make sure that people and objects are out of the way of
the garage door or other device
to prevent potential harm ordamage.
. Do not use the HomeLink
®Wire-
less Control System with a gar-
age door opener that lacks the
safety stop and reverse feature
as required by applicable safety
standards. A garage door opener
which cannot detect an object,
signaling the door to stop and
reverse, does not meet these
safety standards. Using a garage
door opener without these fea-
tures increases risk of serious
injury or death. For more infor-
mation, consult the HomeLink
®website at www.homelink.com or
call 1-800-355-3515.
CAUTION
When programming the HomeLink
®Wireless Control System to operate
a garage door opener or an entrance
gate, unplug the device ’s motor
from the outlet during programming
to prevent motor burnout. NOTE .
After programming your HomeLink
®Wireless Control System for the de-
sired devices, retain the hand-held
transmitters for further programming
or device testing in the event of aproblem..It is recommended that you insert a
new battery in the hand-held transmit-
ter of a device to ensure correctprogramming. ! Garage door opener programming in
the U.S.A.
NOTE
When programming the HomeLink
®Wireless Control System for a garage
door opener, it is suggested that you
park the vehicle outside the garage.
1. Unplug the motor of the garage door
opener from the outlet. NOTE
If any of the HomeLink
®buttons are
already programmed for other devices,
skip step 2 because it clears the
memory of all three buttons.

1) HomeLink®button 1
2) HomeLink®button 2
3) HomeLink®button 3
2. Press and hold the two outer HomeLink
®buttons (button 1 and button
3) until the indicator light begins to flash
(after approximately 20 seconds). Then
release both buttons.
3. Hold the end of the garage door opener ’s hand-held transmitter between
1 and 3 inches (25 and 76 mm) away from
the HomeLink
®button you wish to pro-
gram.
4. Simultaneously press and hold both
the hand-held transmitter button and the
desired HomeLink
®button. DO NOT re-
lease the buttons until step 5 has beencompleted. NOTE
Some gate operators and garage door
openers may require you to replace
this programming step 4 with proce-
dures in
“Programming for entrance
gates and garage door openers inCanada ”F 3-42.
5. Hold down both buttons until the
HomeLink
®indicator light flashes, first
slowly then rapidly. When the indicator
light flashes rapidly, both buttons may be
released. (The rapidly flashing light indi-
cates successful programming of the new
frequency signal.)
6. Press and hold the programmed but-
ton and check the HomeLink
®indicator
light. If the indicator light stays on con-
tinuously, your garage door should acti-
vate and the programming is completed.
If the indicator light flashes rapidly for 2
seconds and then stays on continuously,
your garage door opener may be pro-
tected by a rolling code feature. In this
case you need to perform additional steps.
Refer to “Programming rolling-code-pro-
tected garage door openers in the U.S.A. ”
F 3-41. !
Programming rolling-code-protected
garage door openers in the U.S.A.
If your garage door opener has a rolling
code feature, program the HomeLink
®Wireless Control System for it by following
steps 1 through 5 in “Garage door opener
programming in the U.S.A. ”F 3-40. Then
continue with the following steps. NOTE
The assistance of a second person
may make the programming quicker
and easier.
1. Locate the training button on the
garage door opener motor head unit.
The exact location and color of the button
may vary by brand of garage door opener.
If it is difficult to locate the training button,
refer to your garage door opener ’s instruc-
Instruments and controls
3-41
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