If I got a flat in my 04 OBW I would just put the spare on and drive away happy. I had no idea that I had to mess with fuses. Subaru gave me the spare it should work fine. Maybe they should just give a full size spare and avoid the problem. I know if I changed to spare and then had AWD issues I'd bring it in for repair under warranty. Subaru would pay $$$$$ to repair my AWD when they could have just given a full size spare and avoided problems.
Or you could read your owners manual.
Agreed. Why should product designers have to idiot-proof the world when doing so adds unnecessary cost for those who actually read the documentation on the products that have unique features not found on other items in the class?
Now, more constructively, Subaru could certainly stamp a reminder on the jack case cover or near the spare tire compartment for next to nothing. But then again, when I got my flat I consulted the owners manual to a) verify the jack point locations and b) get help finding the service jack's black crank which is niftily hidden on the black background of plastic tire well cover.
Best Regards,
-- Todd H.
2001 Legacy Outback Wagon, 2.5L H-4 Chicago, Illinois USA
writes:
When I picked up my car, the dealer walked me through all of the unique features and their requirements. Granted, this doesn't help the used market, but when buying a car, shouldn't you be reading the manual before driving it much anyways?
I don't actually think that there will be significant damage to the drivetrain if the temp spare is used as it is intended to be. Short distances, low speeds. I'm almost willing to bet the fuse is there so that when people use the temp spare for days at a time that damage will not occur.
What unnecessary costs? A full size tire on a cheap steel rim cannot possibly cost much more than the cheesy donut. I normally never buy a vehicle with a temp spare as it shows cheapness and lack of attention to detail bt the maker.
A full size spare prevents this totally
Thats normal. But who would think a fuse is necessary? I'd rather make subaru eat the cost of repair for their stupidity.
I used to work p/t in a tire shop. Jeep says do not go over 50 miles on the space saver spare. We had a customer who drove 500 miles, screwed up his viscous couplings, & Jeep denied the warranty because of "abuse".
Read the letter re: head gasket leaks. Subaru says if you let the coolant get low & overheat the engine (even though it's caused by bad head gaskets) it's "abuse" & not covered.
BTW - has the recall sealer added & bought a spare bottle - all of $1.49 with tax.
Mike '01 OBW
I personally hate full size spares[1]. Why should I lug around a beast of a tire for the one day every 5 years I need it? I'd rather not have the weight in my trunk. I'd rather have the extra trunk space for regular stuff. Shrink those spares I say. I know where the fuse is.
[1] Which I wouldn't be surprised to find out are actually cheaper.
I agree with the original poster. It should be idiot proofed because there will always be a situation where the driver does not know about the fuse - such as if he loans the car to someone. My nissan 4x4 came with a full size spare. They could have easily said in the owners manual, "don't use 4x4 when the spare is installed". Instead, they did the common sense thing and gave me a full size spare. Come to think of it, I believe my Forester has a full-size spare - it has to or else the viscous couplng in the center diff and rear diff would get fried.
-Rob
I *DID* read the manual when I got my car. The fuse info is on the last page of the section, the left-page as you look at the manual opened up. If I wanted to hide that info that's exactly where I'd put it. Once they told me where the jack and such were located, and where to put the jack, it's too late.
The fuse info is not prominently presented anywhere, which to me means it's not very important. If it was, then there would be a sticker on the spare tire itself.
-John O
Actually, where IS that fuse stored when not in use?
Mine is under the hood in the fusebox that you have to open to put the spare in.
Nothing wrong with a donut spare as long as it is the same diameter (at normal air pressure) as the other wheel on the opposite side of the differential.
A full size spare having a wrong diameter or used with low air pressure is worse than a donut spare with the correct diameter used at the recommended air pressure. Width isn't everything!
There are tradeoffs.
My 2001 Liberty Wagon (Australian name for the Legacy) has a full size spare & identical tyre. Being a wagon, there is obviously plenty of room under the rear floor panel to store it.
Don't know about the Aussie spec Liberty sedans - obviously don't have that space available in the boot (trunk) so I'm not sure if they have space saver wheels or full size
Spinifex
92 Liberty RS Turbo Sedan Manual 2.0T 85 Leone Sedan Manual 1.8L 01 Liberty Wagon Manual 2.0
My 2003 Forester has a full sized spare. It's been on the car for months after one of the original tires picked up a bolt from the road. The spare was the same model and size of tire as the original. The original was repaired and became the spare. No, the rims don't match cosmetically.
-DanD
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