forester2002s

I have the pdf versions of the Factory Service Manuals for: - 2002 Forester, and - 2004 Impreza. (not the same as yours, I know, but may give a guide). The wiring for the Seat Heaters are shown to be similar for both cars (although the wire colours differ slightly). Each seat has two heater elements. Connecting one to 12V gives the 'High' setting. Connecting 12V across the two elements in series gives the 'Low' setting. If you see a Black wire in the seat, that is probably meant to be grounded. All that the switch (mounted in the centre console in my 2002 Forester) does is to switch the incoming 12V to the correct combination of heater elements. Good luck.

I have a Canadian 2002 Forester. I have not received any notification from Subaru Canada (but I am on their mailing list, because they send me some advertising stuff every so often). But then maybe the 2002s are not eligible for the HG goo?

This may be too obvious, and you've probably checked it, but... - Is the oil filter screwed on properly, and does the rubber gasket seal well? - Is the oil drain-plug leaking? Is the metal gasket OK?

Fuel filter? How long since last changed? Or have you filled up with some dirty gas, or water in gas?

And, if you are connecting to the battery, you'll need some sort of overcurrent device: fuse, fusable-link, breaker.... Otherwise you're heading for a fire in your Sube.

With all the technical advances of recent times, maybe it is time to rethink how a speedometer should work. Could a speed-signal be taken from the road surface below the car, e.g. using a laser beam perhaps? That would eliminate all of the variables listed in the above response from SOA. Just thinking out aloud...

"To turn the Audible signal off, unluck the doors by pushing "UNLOCK/DISARM" button and then simultaneously depress "LOCK/ARM' and "UNLOCK/DISARM" buttons for more than two seconds. The horn will sound two times to inform you that the audible signal has been turned off. To turn the audible signal on, unluck the doors by pushing "UNLOCK/DISARM" button and then simultaneously depress "LOCK/ARM' and "UNLOCK/DISARM" buttons for more than two seconds. The horn will sound one more time to inform you that the audible signal has been turned on." - above text from 2002 Forester Owner's Manual.

Thanks for this description. I'll file it away for future reference. All I need on my Forester now, is some way for the heater-switch to cancel itself after a predetermined time, or to reset when the ignition goes off. Mine stays on (annoyingly) until physically switched off.

On my 2002 Forester, the horn-beep can be disabled when using the keyless remote. My Drivers' Handbook has instructions on how to do this; it may or may not be the same as for other models. Let me know if you need to know the details.

I bought the Auterra Dyno-Scan about a year ago. It is a handy little device, and runs on my Sony Clie PDA. So far I've only used used it seriously for reading and clearing codes. But it does other wonderful things that I've only played with: it displays all sorts of readings in either digital or graphical form, and does a 'freeze-frame' of engine conditions as you drive, for later analysis. It is a bit pricey at USD299, and there are many other cheaper scan tools. But the Auterra Dyno-Scan certainly works....

8 years, that's pretty good. My batteries don't last nearly that long. You say that you upgraded to a higher CCA. I did the same thing a while ago on another (non-Subaru) vehicle; I had bought the new battery at Walmart. The battery died after two or three years, but Walmart would not honour the remaining time on the warranty; they said that because I hadn't bought the battery listed as being the correct one for my vehicle, then the warranty was invalid. I tried to reason that I had bought a better battery for my vehicle, but to no avail. So be prepared for an invalid warranty. Maybe Sears are better than Walmart. Or maybe you'll get another 8-years on your new battery!

I always use my parking brake. If it is adjusted correctly, it holds really well, and I CANNOT drive away with it engaged (and there is a red warning light on the dash too). I once saw the inside of a Dodge transmission, and saw that the parking-pin was about 3mm diameter. It could easily shear off. In fact this happened to a friend of mine - his parked van full of plumbing supplies took off down a hill and destroyed itself; he now always uses his parking brake.

Just a thought: If the wind noise comes from the triangular gap between the mirror and the mirror-mount, then why not try sealing this gap? Could you try using duct-tape, or even scotch-tape around this gap, as a temporary fix, to see if the noise lessens?

A friend of mine had a (1950?) Rover, that had an OEM oil level gauge. Actually there was a single gauge for fuel/oil level, and a toggle switch to select which one. I recall that the oil level reading was pretty steady, and didn't fluctuate even when driving. I have no idea how it worked.

The Factory Service Manual for my 2002 Forester says: Wheel nut torque = 88 N.m (65 ft-lb)

Same thing happened to me recently, when I bought new tires at Canadian Tire. When I got home, the first thing that I did was to check the wheel-nut torques. They were all beyond the range of my 100 ft-Lb torque-wrench. I wasn't surprised. It always happens. This is one of the reasons why I hate to have 'professionals' touch my car.

I use a solid 'white-stick' silcone lubricant for my door seals. Wipe some on to a rag, and use this to wipe along the rubber seals. I think that apart from the 'anti-stick' properties, the silicone also seals the pores of the rubber, and stops water infiltration into the rubber (which might later freeze). I use WD-40 in my locks. I try to apply this when the lock-mechanism is bone dry. With a bit of luck, this will last all winter, and prevents freeze-up of the lock.

My Factory Service Manual (2002 Forester) says to torque the bleeder screws to 8 N.m (5.8 ft-lb). This isn't much torque, and so don't overdo it. I've sheared off more than my fair share of bleeder screws.

I keep away from filling stations when the tanker truck is there. But my main reason is safety. That truck is like a bomb. I don't want to be anywhere near it when something goes wrong. Same goes for propane trucks. On a related note, one of my most frightening driving experiences involved a tanker truck. I was passing a tanker truck on the freeway; we were both going at high speed; when I was exactly level with the truck's rear axle, one of his tires exploded, and he started fishtailing. Boy oh boy, I thought that my days were over. Fortunately, the truck driver regained control, and we both lived to tell the tale.

Tires: I've heard stories from the North about tires developing ''flat-spots' in very cold weather. This happens if the car is parked in the cold, say overnight; the rubber 'freezes', and it takes a while for the flat-spots to 'thaw-out'. Maybe some rubbers are designed for the cold, and avoid this phenomenom. Anyone know?

I once worked in a research lab, testing new gears. Two things helped prolong the life of gear teeth: Running-in; and Clean oil. Running-in of new gears in the lab was done by not allowing full-load to be applied until after the gear-teeth had been 'polished' by applying a slowly-increasing amount of load. i.e. go easy on the throttle for about 1000km. I don't think that high RPMs will do too much harm; it is more important to keep the torque low. Clean-oil: I changed my engine oil, gearbox-oil, and rear-diff oil at 1000km on my new 2004 Forester 5MT. The drained rear-diff oil was grey and opaque, and the drain-plug magnet was covered in metal filings. The gearbox-oil was a bit cleaner, and the engine-oil was fine. I repeated the oil-changes at 3000km, and found all 3 drained oils to be 'normal'. I figured that the run-in period was over. As someone has pointed out, I'll never know whether this worked, but it didn't cost me much, and gave me peace of mind.

I've also noticed that little notch on the dipstick, above the 'full' mark (2002 Forester). I get an oil-smeared dipstick (both sides) regardless of how I pull the dipstick: slow; fast; hot; cold; overnight or at gas-station. It usually takes a few tries and wipes, to guess at the level. Maybe the oil level isn't too critical, as long as it is above the starvation level???

Thank dsmith for that write-up. That explains a lot. Are any Subaru design engineers reading this?

My 2002 Forester will go about 40km after the yellow light comes on. Then it starts to misfire, and I assume that the tank is almost empty.

Oh boy, Oh boy! Here we go again. This question comes up with monotonous regularity. Just check down the page, and you'll see the most recent one. Or else do a search for 'synthetic oil', and you'll find more info than you can digest.