2006 Subaru Outback Owner's Manual - Page 257

7-18 Starting and operating 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 transmission. When parking the vehicle, first securely apply the parking brake and then place the selector lever in the "P" position. Avoid parking for a long time with the selector lever in any other position as doing so could result in a dead battery. 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. In this position, the transmission is mechanically locked to prevent the vehicle from rolling freely. When you park the vehicle, first set the parking brake fully, then shift into the "P" position. Do not hold the vehicle with only the transmission. To shift the selector lever from the "P" to any other position, you should depress the brake pedal fully then move the selector lever. This prevents the vehicle from lurching when it is started. Selector lever NOTE NOTE (3.0-liter models only) When the engine coolant temperature is still low, your vehicle's automatic transmission will up-shift at higher engine speeds than when the coolant temperature is sufficiently high in order to shorten the warm-up time and improve driveability. The gearshift timing will automatically shift to the normal timing after the engine has warmed up. Immediately after ATF (automatic transmission fluid) is replaced, you may feel that the automatic transmission operation is somewhat unusual. This results from invalidation of data which the on-board computer has collected and stored in memory to allow 700107 To protect the engine while the "P" position is selected, the engine is controlled such that the engine speed does not become too high even if the accelerator pedal is pressed hard. R (Reverse) This position is for backing the vehicle. To shift from the "N" to "R" position, stop the vehicle completely then move the lever to the "R" position. N (Neutral) This position is for restarting a stalled engine. In this position the wheels and transmission are not locked. In this position, the : Shift possible with brake pedal depressed : Shift possible with brake pedal not depressed The selector lever has four positions, "P", "R", "N", "D" and also has manual gate for using "SPORT" mode or manual mode. P (Park) This position is for parking the vehicle and starting the engine.