2012 SUBARU LEGACY dead battery

2-6Keys and doors
&Battery drainage prevention function
If a door or the rear gate (Outback) is not
completely closed, the interior lights will
remain illuminated as a result. However,
several lights are automatically turned off
by the battery drainage prevention func-
tion to prevent the battery from going
dead. The following interior lights are
affected by this function.
Item Switch
position Automatically turning
off
Map lights OFF
*1Approximately 20 minutes later
Dome lights DOORApproximately 20
minutes later
Ignition
switch light —
Approximately 20
minutes later
Door steplights —
None
*2
Cargo arealightDOORApproximately 20
minutes later
*1: The map lights can be controlled by the
battery drainage prevention function only when
the map light switches are in the OFF position
and the door interlock switch is in the DOOR
position. For the switch positions, refer to “Map
light ”F 6-2
.
*2: The door step lights are not affected by the
battery drainage prevention function, so the lights do not turn off automatically. To turn off
the lights, it is necessary that each door is
completely closed.
The operational/non-operational setting of
this function can be changed by a
SUBARU dealer. Contact the nearest
SUBARU dealer if you would like to
change the setting. NOTE .
The factory setting (default setting)
for this function is set as “operational ”.
. When leaving the vehicle, please
make sure that all doors and the rear
gate (Outback) are completely closed.. The battery drainage prevention
function does not operate while the
key is in the ignition switch. Power door locking switches
1) Lock
2) Unlock
All doors and the rear gate (Outback) can
be locked and unlocked by the power door
locking switches located at the driver ’s
side and the front passenger ’s side doors.
To lock the doors, press the front side of
the switch.
To unlock the doors, press the rear side of
the switch.
When you close the doors after you set
the door locks, the doors remain locked.
NOTE
Make sure that you do not leave the key
inside the vehicle before locking the

Ignition switch
WARNING
. Never turn the ignition switch to
“ LOCK ”while the vehicle is
being driven or towed because
that will lock the steering wheel,
preventing steering control. And
when the engine is turned off, it
takes a much greater effort than
usual to steer.
. Before leaving the vehicle, al-
ways remove the key from the
ignition switch for safety and
never allow an unattended child
to remain in the vehicle. Failure
to follow this procedure could
result in injury to a child or
others. Children could operate
the power windows, the moon-
roof or other controls or even
make the vehicle move.
CAUTION
Do not attach a large key holder or
key case to either key. If it banged
against your knees or hands while
you are driving, it could turn the
ignition switch from the “ON ”posi- tion to the
“Acc ”or “LOCK ”posi-
tion, thereby stopping the engine.
Also, if the key is attached to a
keyholder or to a large bunch of
other keys, centrifugal force may act
on it as the vehicle moves, resulting
in unwanted turning of the ignitionswitch.
The ignition switch has four positions:
LOCK, Acc, ON and START.
NOTE . Keep the ignition switch in the
“ LOCK ”position when the engine is
not running. . Using electrical accessories for a
long time with the ignition switch in the“ ON ”or “Acc ”position can cause the
battery to go dead. .
If the ignition switch will not move
from the “LOCK ”position to the “Acc ”
position, turn the steering wheel
slightly to the left and right as you turn
the ignition switch. & LOCK
The key can only be inserted or removed
in this position. The ignition switch will lock
the steering wheel when you remove the
key.
If turning the key is difficult, turn the
steering wheel slightly to the right and left
as you turn the key.
The key can be turned from “Acc ”to
“ LOCK ”only when the key is pushed in
while turning it (all models) and the select
lever is in the “P ” position (AT and CVT
models). Instruments and controls
3-3
– CONTINUED –

7-18Starting and operating
than 5 seconds in any position
except the “N ” or “P ” position
when the brake is applied or
when chocks are used in the
wheels. This may cause the
transmission fluid to overheat.
. Avoid shifting from one of the
forward driving positions into the“ R ” position or vice versa until
the vehicle has completely
stopped. Such shifting may
cause damage to the transmis-sion.
. When parking the vehicle, first
securely apply the parking brake
and then place the select lever inthe “P ” position. Avoid parking
for a long time with the select
lever in any other position as
doing so could result in a dead
battery.
NOTE . For AT models, when the engine
coolant temperature is still low, the
transmission will upshift to higher
engine speeds than when the coolant
temperature is sufficiently high in order
to shorten the warm-up time and
improve driveability. The gearshift tim-
ing will automatically shift to the nor- mal timing after the engine has warmedup..
Immediately after transmission fluid
is replaced, you may feel that the
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 as the vehicle
continues to be driven for a while.. When driving a vehicle that is
equipped with CVT under continuous
heavy load conditions such as towing a
camper or climbing a long, steep hill,
the engine speed or the vehicle speed
may automatically be reduced. This is
not a malfunction. This phenomenon
results from the engine control func-
tion maintaining the cooling perfor-
mance of the vehicle. The engine and
vehicle speed will return to a normal
speed when the engine is able to
maintain the optimum cooling perfor-
mance after the heavy load decreases.
Driving under a heavy load must be
performed with extreme care. Do not
try to pass a vehicle in front when
driving on an uphill slope while towing.. The continuously variable transmis-
sion is a chain type system that provides superior transmission effi-
ciency for maximum fuel economy. At
times, depending on varying driving
conditions, a chain operating sound
may be heard that is characteristic of
this type of system.
& Select lever
: With the brake pedal depressed, shift
while pressing the button in
: Shift while pressing the button in: Shift without pressing the button
The select lever has four positions, “P ”,
“ R ”, “N ”, “D ”and also has a manual gate
for using the manual mode. ! P (Park)
This position is for parking the vehicle and
starting the engine.