Subaru 2004 Legacy - Manual (Page 275)

7-2
Starting and operating
Starting and operating
Fuel
Use of a fuel which is low in quality or use of an
inappropriate fuel additive may cause engine
damage.
„ Fuel requirements
T 2.5 Liter models
The 2.5 Liter engine is designed to operate using un-
leaded gasoline with an octane rating of 87 AKI or
higher.
T 3.0 Liter models
The 3.0 Liter engine is designed to operate using pre-
mium unleaded gasoline with an octane rating of 91
AKI or higher. Regular unleaded gasoline with an oc-
tane rating of 87 AKI may be used if necessary. For
optimum engine performance and driveability, it is rec-
ommended that you use premium grade unleaded
gasoline.
T Fuel octane rating
This octane rating is the average of the Research Oc-
tane and Motor Octane numbers and is commonly re-
ferred to as the Anti Knock Index (AKI).
Using a gasoline with a lower octane rating can cause
persistent and heavy knocking, which can damage the
engine. Do not be concerned if your vehicle some-
times knocks lightly when you drive up a hill or when
you accelerate. See your dealer or a qualified service
technician if you use a fuel with the specified octane
rating and your vehicle knocks heavily or persistently.
T Unleaded gasoline
The neck of the fuel filler pipe is designed to accept
only an unleaded gasoline filler nozzle. Under no cir-
cumstances should leaded gasoline be used because
it will damage the emission control system and may
impair driveability and fuel economy.
T California fuel
If your vehicle was certified to California Emission
Standards as indicated on the underhood tune-up la-
bel. It is designed to optimize engine and emission
control system performance with gasoline that meets
the clean burning low-sulfur California gasoline speci-
fications. If you live in any other state than California,
your vehicle will operate on gasoline meeting Federal
specifications. Gasoline sold outside California is per-
mitted to have higher sulfur levels, which may affect
the performance of your vehicle’s catalytic converter