2012 SUBARU OUTBACK engine

be applied. !Frequent operation warning
The brake system warning light flashes for
20 seconds and a chirp sound will be
heard if the parking brake switch is
operated too frequently. In this case, the
operation of the parking brake switch is
restricted to protect the electronic parking
brake system. NOTE
Wait until the warning light turns off. ! Emergency released warning
The brake system warning light flashes
when the parking brake is automatically
released in case of an emergency. & Hill Holder indicator light
WARNING
If the Hill Holder indicator light does
not illuminate even when the Hill
Holder switch is pressed to activate
the Hill Holder function, the electro-
nic parking brake system may be
malfunctioning. Immediately stop
the vehicle in a safe location and
contact your SUBARU dealer. The light illuminates when the Hill Holder
switch is pressed to activate the Hill
Holder function. For details about the Hill
Holder function,
“Hill Holder function ”F 7-
32.
& Low fuel warning light
The low fuel warning light illuminates
when the tank is nearly empty approxi-
mately 2.6 US gal (10.0 liters, or 2.2 Imp
gal). It only operates when the ignition
switch is in the “ON ”position.
NOTE
This light does not turn off unless the
tank is replenished up to an internal
fuel quantity of approximately 3.7 US
gal (14 liters, 3.1 Imp gal).
CAUTION
Promptly put fuel in the tank when-
ever the low fuel warning light
illuminates. Engine misfires as a
result of an empty tank could cause
damage to the engine. &
Door open indicator light
When any of the doors, the rear gate
(Outback) or the trunk lid (Legacy) is not
fully closed, the door open indicator light
illuminates. This function is effective even
if the ignition switch is in the “LOCK ”or
“ Acc ”position or the key is removed from
the ignition switch.
The open door is indicated by the corre-
sponding part of the door open warninglight.
Always make sure this light is not illumi-
nated before you start to drive. & Windshield washer
fluid warning light
This light illuminates when the fluid level in
the windshield washer fluid tank de-
creases to the lower limit (approximately
0.6 US qt, 0.6 liter, 0.5 Imp qt). Instruments and controls
3-19
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3-20Instruments and controls
&All-Wheel Drive
warning light (AT and
CVT models)
WARNING
Continued driving with the AWD
warning light flashing can lead to
powertrain damage. If the AWD
warning light flashes, promptly park
in a safe place then check whether
all four tires are the same diameter
and whether any of the tires has a
puncture or has lost air pressure for
some other reason.
NOTE
If the temporary spare tire is used, the
AWD warning light may flash. Use of
the temporary spare tire should there-
fore be restricted to the minimum time
necessary. Replace the temporary
spare tire with a conventional tire as
soon as possible.
This light flashes if the vehicle is driven
with tires of different diameters fitted on its
wheels or with the air pressure exces-
sively low in any of its tires. &
Vehicle Dynamics
Control warning light/
Vehicle Dynamics Con-
trol operation indicatorlight
!Vehicle Dynamics Control warning light
CAUTION
The Vehicle Dynamics Control sys-
tem provides its ABS control
through the electrical circuit of the
ABS system. Accordingly, if the ABS
is inoperative, the Vehicle Dynamics
Control system becomes unable to
provide ABS control. As a result, the
Vehicle Dynamics Control system
becomes inoperative, causing the
warning light to illuminate. Although
both the Vehicle Dynamics Control
and ABS systems are inoperative in
this case, the ordinary functions of
the brake system are still available.
You will be safe while driving in this
condition, but drive carefully and
have your vehicle checked at a
SUBARU dealer as soon as possi-ble. NOTE .
If the electrical circuit of the Vehicle
Dynamics Control system itself mal-
functions, the warning light only illumi-
nates. At this time, the ABS (Anti-lock
Brake System) remains fully opera-tional.. The warning light illuminates when
the electronic control system of the
ABS/Vehicle Dynamics Control systemmalfunctions.
The Vehicle Dynamics Control system is
probably inoperative under any of the
following conditions. Have your vehicle
checked at a SUBARU dealer immedi-
ately. . The warning light does not illuminate
when the ignition switch is turned to the “ ON ”position.
. The warning light illuminates while the
vehicle is running. NOTE
If the warning light behavior is as
described in the following examples,
the Vehicle Dynamics Control system
may be considered normal. . The warning light illuminates right
after the engine is started but turns off
immediately and remains off.. The warning light illuminates after
the engine has started and turns off

while the vehicle is subsequently being driven..The warning light illuminates during
driving, but turns off immediately and
remains off. ! Vehicle Dynamics Control opera-
tion indicator light
The indicator light flashes during activa-
tion of the skid suppression function and
during activation of the traction controlfunction. NOTE . The light may remain illuminated for
a short period of time after the engine
has been started, especially in cold
weather. This does not indicate the
existence of a problem. The light
should turn off as soon as the engine
has warmed up.. The indicator light illuminates when
the engine has developed a problem
and the CHECK ENGINE warning light/
malfunction indicator light is on.
The Vehicle Dynamics Control system is
probably malfunctioning under the follow-
ing condition. Have your vehicle checked
at a SUBARU dealer as soon as possible. . The light does not turn off even after
the lapse of several minutes (the engine
has warmed up) after the engine has started.
& Vehicle Dynamics
Control OFF indicatorlight
The light illuminates when the Vehicle
Dynamics Control OFF switch is pressed
to deactivate the Vehicle Dynamics Con-
trol system.
The Vehicle Dynamics Control system is
probably malfunctioning under any of the
following conditions. Have your vehicle
checked at a SUBARU dealer immedi-
ately. .The light does not illuminate when the
ignition switch is turned to the “ON ”
position.. The light does not turn off even after a
period of approximately 2 seconds after
the ignition switch has been turned to the“ ON ”position.
& Security indicator light
This indicator light shows the status of the
alarm system. It also indicates operation
of the immobilizer system. !Alarm system
It blinks to show the driver the operational
status of the alarm system. For detailed
information, refer to “Alarm system ”F 2- 15. !
Immobilizer system
This light blinks approximately 60 seconds
after the ignition switch is turned from“ ON ”position to the “Acc ”or “LOCK ”
position or immediately after the key is
pulled out. Refer to “Immobilizer ”F 2-3.
If the indicator light does not flash, it may
indicate that immobilizer system may be
malfunctioning. Contact your nearest
SUBARU dealer immediately.
In the event that an unauthorized key (for
example, an unauthorized duplicate) is
used, the security indicator light illumi-nates. NOTE
Even if the security indicator light
flashes irregularly or its fuse blows
(the light does not flash if its fuse is
blown), the immobilizer system will
function normally. Instruments and controls
3-21
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&Cruise control indica-
tor light
This light illuminates when the “CRUISE ”
main switch is pressed to activate the
cruise control function. NOTE . If you press the main switch button
while turning the ignition switch “ON ”,
the cruise control function is deacti-
vated and the “CRUISE ”indicator light
flashes. To reactivate the cruise control
function, turn the ignition switch back
to the “Acc ”or “LOCK ”position, and
then turn it again to the “ON ”position.
. If this indicator light and the CHECK
ENGINE warning light/malfunction in-
dicator light flash simultaneously dur-
ing driving, have the vehicle checked
by your nearest SUBARU dealer.
& Cruise control set in-
dicator light
This light illuminates when vehicle speed
has been set to use the cruise controlfunction. &
Headlight indicator light
This indicator light illuminates under the
following conditions. .when the light switch is turned to the
“
” or “”position
. when the light switch is in the “AUTO ”
position and the headlights illuminate automatically & Front fog light indicator
light (if equipped)
This indicator light illuminates while the
front fog lights are illuminated. Clock NOTE
Your SUBARU dealer can change the
settings of activating/deactivating the
automatic adjustment of the clock by
the GPS (Global Positioning System)
(for models with the genuine SUBARU
navigation system). Contact your
SUBARU dealer for details.
The clock shows the time while the
ignition switch is in the
“Acc ”or “ON ”
position.
To adjust the time shown by the clock,
press the “+ ” button or the “ ” button. If
you press the “+ ” button, the indicated
time will change in one-minute incre-
ments. If you press the “ ” button, the
Instruments and controls
3-23
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22 to 122 8F( 30 to 50 8C).
The indicator can give a false reading
under any of the following conditions: . When there is too much sun.
. During idling; while running at low
speeds in a traffic jam; when the engine
is restarted immediately following a shut-down. . When the actual outside temperature
falls outside the specified indicator range. ! Road surface freeze warning indi- cation
1) U.S. spec. models
2) Except U.S. spec. models
When the outside temperature drops to 37 8F(3 8C) or lower, the temperature
indication flashes to show that the road surface may be frozen.
If the outside temperature drops to 37
8F
(3 8C) or lower while the display is giving
an indication other than the outside
temperature, the display switches to the
outside temperature indication and flashes
for 5 seconds before returning to its
original indication.
If the display is already indicating an
outside temperature of 37 8F(3 8C) or lower
when the ignition switch is turned to the“ ON ”position, the indication does not
flash. NOTE
The outside temperature indication
may differ from the actual outside
temperature. The road surface freeze
warning indication should be treated
only as a guide. Be sure to check the
condition of the road surface beforedriving. &
Average fuel consumption
1) U.S. spec. models
2) Except U.S. spec. models
This indication shows the average rate of
fuel consumption since the trip meter was
last reset.
Pressing the trip knob toggles the indica-
tion between the average fuel consump-
tion corresponding to the A trip meter
indication and the average fuel consump-
tion corresponding to the B trip meterindication.
When either of the trip meter indications is
reset, the corresponding average fuel
consumption value is also reset. Instruments and controls
3-25
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Light control switch
The light control switch only operates
when the key is inserted into the ignitionswitch.
Regardless of the position of the light
control switch, the illuminated lights are
turned off when the key is removed from
the ignition switch. NOTE .Even if the key is removed from the
ignition switch, the lights can be illu-
minated by operating the light control
switch position from “OFF ”to “
”
and/or “”.
. If the driver ’s door is opened while
the lights are illuminated and the key is
removed from the ignition switch, the
chirp sound informs the driver that the
lights are illuminated.
CAUTION
. Use of any lights for a long period
of time while the engine is not
running can cause the battery todischarge.
. Before leaving the vehicle, make
sure that the light control switch
is turned to the “OFF ”position. If
the vehicle is left unattended for a long time with the light control
switch set to a position otherthan
“OFF ”, the battery may be
discharged.
& Headlights
To turn on the headlights, turn the knob on
the end of the turn signal lever.
first position
Instrument panel illumination, tail lights,
front side marker lights and license plate
lights are on.
second position
Headlights, instrument panel illumination,
front side marker lights, tail lights and
license plate lights are on.
: Auto on/off headlights
When the ignition switch is in the “ON ”
position, the headlights, instrument panel
illumination, front side marker lights, tail
lights and license plate lights are auto-
matically on or off depending on the level
of the ambient light. NOTE
The sensitivity of the auto on/off head-
lights can be changed by your
SUBARU dealer. Contact your SUBARU
dealer for details. ! Sensor for the auto on/off head- lights
The sensor is on the instrument panel as
shown in the illustration. Instruments and controls
3-27
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3-28Instruments and controls
CAUTION
If any object is placed on or near the
sensor, the sensor may not detect
the level of the ambient light cor-
rectly and the auto on/off headlights
may not operate properly.
& High/low beam change (dimmer)
To change from low beam to high beam,
push the turn signal lever forward. When
the headlights are on high beam, the high
beam indicator light “
”on the combina-
tion meter is also on.
To switch back to low beam, pull the lever
back to the detent position. &
Headlight flasher
CAUTION
Do not hold the lever in the flashing
position for more than just a fewseconds.
To flash the headlights, pull the lever
toward you and then release it. The high
beam will stay on for as long as you hold
the lever. The headlight flasher works
even though the lighting switch is in the“ OFF ”position.
When the headlights are on high beam,
the high beam indicator light “
”on the
combination meter also illuminates. &
Daytime running light system
WARNING
The brightness of the illumination of
the high beam headlights is reduced
by the daytime running light system.
The light switch must always be
turned to the “
”position when it
is dark outside.
The high beam headlights will automati-
cally illuminate at reduced brightness
when the engine has started, under the
following conditions. . The parking brake is fully released.
. The light switch is in the “OFF ”or “
”
position. . The light switch is in the “AUTO ”
position and the headlights do not turn
on automatically. . The select lever is in a position other
than the “P ” position (AT and CVT mod-
els).
NOTE
When the light switch is in the “
”
position, the front side marker lights,
tail lights and license plate lights areilluminated.

Ventilator control................................................. 4-2
Center ventilators ................................................ 4-2
Side ventilators ................................................... 4-2
Climate control panel .......................................... 4-3
Type A ................................................................ 4-3
Type B ................................................................ 4-4
Automatic climate control system (type B) ....... 4-5
Temperature sensors ........................................... 4-5
Manual climate control ....................................... 4-6
Airflow mode selection ........................................ 4-6
Temperature control ............................................ 4-7
Fan speed control ............................................... 4-7
Air conditioner control ........................................ 4-7
Air inlet selection ................................................ 4-7
Defrosting ............................................................ 4-8 Operating tips for heater and air
conditioner ........................................................ 4-8
Cleaning ventilator grille ...................................... 4-8
Efficient cooling after parking in direct sunlight ............................................................. 4-8
Lubrication oil circulation in the refrigerant circuit ................................................................ 4-9
Checking air conditioning system before summer season .............................................................. 4-9
Cooling and dehumidifying in high humidity and low temperature weather condition ..................... 4-9
Air conditioner compressor shut-off when engine is heavily loaded ................................................ 4-9
Refrigerant for your climate control system ... ....... 4-9
Air filtration system ............................................. 4-9
Replacing an air filter ......................................... 4-10Climate control
4