Driving tips

Do not drive with your foot resting on the clutch pedal and do not use the clutch to hold your vehicle at a standstill on an upgrade. Either of those actions may cause clutch damage.

Do not drive with your hand resting on the shift lever. This may cause wear on the transmission components.

When it is necessary to reduce vehicle speed due to slow traffic, turning corners, or driving up steep hills, downshift to a lower gear before the engine starts to labor.

On steep downgrades, downshift the transmission to 5th, 4th, 3rd or 2nd gear as necessary; this helps to maintain a safe speed and to extend brake pad life. In this way, the engine provides a braking effect. Remember, if you “ride” (over use) the brakes while descending a hill, they may overheat and not work properly. The engine may, on rare occasions, knock when the vehicle rapidly accelerates or rapidly pulls away from a standstill. This phenomenon does not indicate a problem.

    See also:

    Outback 2.5i, 2.5i Special Edition & 2.5i Limited
    For the best mileage, the 2.5i manual is your best bet, rated at 20/27 mpg city/highway. Along with 1 mpg better highway mileage, the five-speed stick will help you get better acceleration out of ...

    Seek tuning (SEEK)
    If you press the “” or “” side of the “SEEK” button briefly, the radio will automatically search for a receivable station and stop at the first one it finds. This function may not be available, ...

    Lubrication oil circulation in the refrigerant circuit
    Operate the air conditioner compressor at a low engine speed (at idle or low driving speeds) a few minutes each month during the off-season to circulate its oil. ...