Subaru Forester Questions- Oil/ATF/Filter

[HK_Ace]

I think I have my 4Runner sorted out but now have questions on my 2006 NA Automatic Forester. If you guys have any oil recommendations, please let me know. I think the Forester is picky and not into Mobil 1. Anyway, I can always put PP OR should I try a Euro 0W-30 or 5W-30? Will Euro oil hurt it? I have been using Baldwin filters but is there a better option- OEM, Mobil 1 for better flow or better specs that match OEM for flow or bypass valve psi?

Next, the transmission recently had the fluid changed and we used Subaru fluid but the transmission seems a bit notchy now and there seems to be a jerk or lash once in a while going into 4th gear when in brake-and-go traffic on the highway. Is there any ATF recommended in place of the Subaru ATF?

I have had the Subaru since it was new and it has been reliable 100% of the time. I would like to start babying it a bit for durability and it has 68,000 miles on it now. I live in Colorado.

 

[Oregoonian]

If the manuel recommends 5w or 0w-30...stick with it.

Regarding filters...it depends on what your OCI's you plan on using:

Short: (5 to 6K)...Puro Clasic, Napa Gold, Wix, Motorcraft.
Middle: (7 to 9K)...Puro PureOne, Bosch Preminum
Long: (9 to 12.5K)...Mobil 1 EP, Bosch Distance, Fram EP

OCI should depend on your driving habits.
_________________________________________
2003 Ford Focus SE (2.3) / 88K
Mobil 1 5w20EP / OCI; 1 year or 10K +/-
Filter: Mobil 1 EP

 

[Solo2driver]

Regular PP or PU should be fine for non-turbo Subarus. I recommend the OEM filter for the bypass valve setting but to be honest I am running a clearance-bin TotalGrip filter on my Legacy right now with the PU.

There are few things I stick with OEM parts with: Fuel filters (ask me about two separate near-fires in two separate Hondas), transmission fluid, and power steering fluid. If it still feels notchy, you can have the dealer check and see if there are any updated reflashes. Subarus are not notorious for being luxuriously-shifting or smooth at all. The AWD tends to buck things around also. Due to those complains though they may have a firmware update, but not known about that year. Never hurts to ask.

207K miles on my Legacy, had 204K on my Impreza when I sold it...your Forester is just getting broken in Don't forget to change the front and rear diff oils every 30K or so. Every Subaru I've owned (I think I'm at 5 now) has had horrible diff fluid because people just never changed the oil out. Good thing they are durable, even with poor maintenance they take a beating-- but that's no excuse to not maintain it!

 

[HK_Ace]

Thanks, conservative driver here with few hard accelerations or braking. I'm gentle on my vehicles 95% of the time. I have changed the front and rear diff fluids at 30K and 60K too. I'll ask the dealer the next time- it may be the AWD bucking or something once in a while. Last time, I did not take it to the dealer and I think that shop used Castrol (prob synthetic) in the diffs. The time before that, I had the shop use Motul 75-90 gear oil.

 

[thunderchild]

My Subaru get's:

Oil: Shell Rotella T6 5w-40

Oil Filter: Mobil1 Extended Life (Synthetic Media)

ATF: Subaru ATF-HP (ONLY)!!!!!

 

[sicko]

Non-turbo Subarus are pretty gentle on oil, put any 5w-30 in there and you should be good. People put everything from Xw-20 to Xw-40 in their Subarus and i've never heard of one having an oil related issue.

I always used 5w-30 in my last Subaru, and I'm currently using M1 0w-30 in my current Forester (non-turbo). No reason for the synthetic other then I was able to get the oil and PureOne oil filter for about $15 per oil change, so I figured I'd give it a shot.

As for the transmission, check subaruforester.org and search their forums. I want to say I've heard of people having the same problem, but after disconnecting the battery to reset the ECU everything smoothed out. But I'm only vaguely remembering the details, so check out that forum and do a google search and you should be able to find everything you need