2011 Subaru Forester Owner's Manual - Page 274

Starting and operating 7-15 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 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 is not an indication of a problem in your vehicle. Automatic transmission The automatic transmission is electronically controlled and provides 4 forward speeds and 1 reverse speed. Also, it has a manual mode and a SPORT mode. WARNING Do not shift from the "P" or "N" position into the "D" or "R" position while depressing the accelerator pedal. This may cause the vehicle to jump forward or backward. "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 select lever in the "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. CAUTION . Shift into the "P" or "R" position only after the vehicle is completely stopped. Shifting while the vehicle is moving may cause damage to the transmission. . Do not race the engine for more than 5 seconds in any position except the "N" or "P" position when the brake is set or when chocks are used in the wheels. This may cause the automatic transmission fluid to overheat. . Avoid shifting from one of the forward driving positions into the NOTE . When the engine coolant temperature is still low, the automatic 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 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 - CONTINUED -