Looking to join in
#11
04-11-2012, 10:17 AM
I think Canadian (maybe just Ontario?) child seat laws have ruined this plan for you. You can't use a booster seat or regular child seat with the rear fold down seats.
I have installed mud flaps and 3M tape on the doglegs - up the lower rear doors around the wheel wells.
Another thing to note is that FM reception is horrible on my 2009 - CD, SAT and AUX are fine. I think that is vehicle and listener dependent.
I have installed mud flaps and 3M tape on the doglegs - up the lower rear doors around the wheel wells.
Another thing to note is that FM reception is horrible on my 2009 - CD, SAT and AUX are fine. I think that is vehicle and listener dependent.
As for the radio reception... Not really an issue. Where we live, the first ~10 miles of my drive is in poor radio reception, so I am accustom to it. That being said, I really don't like the roof antenna and would be opting for a hidden solution like I had done on my Caliber SRT4. The only kicker to this is if (which I suspect is the case) the antenna is multi-purpose (GPS,FM, SAT). If this is the case, I can't go with the hidden antenna I have in mind.
I have the '07.
I've had one warrantied issue. One of the rear wheel sensors died early and through the system into limp home mode. That was annoying.
Just in the last few weeks, we've noticed that the padding that is supposed to keep water out from inside the door has hardened. So if you roll the window down, it makes a popping sort of noise.
i'm sure others are tired of hearing this, but the transmission fluid really burns my ****. there is no easily available aftermarket transmission fluid. So you have to go to the stealership to buy it. If you have them do it, you spend the same amount of money and they only get 1/4 of the old fluid out.
As far as the interior plastics...I had a '93 eclipse and the plastic in the trunk area is the same stuff. Mitsu just really likes that stuff. I heard though that they made the interior nicer for the '09...so by '12 you should be good.
I've had one warrantied issue. One of the rear wheel sensors died early and through the system into limp home mode. That was annoying.
Just in the last few weeks, we've noticed that the padding that is supposed to keep water out from inside the door has hardened. So if you roll the window down, it makes a popping sort of noise.
i'm sure others are tired of hearing this, but the transmission fluid really burns my ****. there is no easily available aftermarket transmission fluid. So you have to go to the stealership to buy it. If you have them do it, you spend the same amount of money and they only get 1/4 of the old fluid out.
As far as the interior plastics...I had a '93 eclipse and the plastic in the trunk area is the same stuff. Mitsu just really likes that stuff. I heard though that they made the interior nicer for the '09...so by '12 you should be good.
Two questions about these two issues;
Can the limp mode be cleared with a scan gauge or battery disconnect? Home is ~50 miles from the dealership. Would be a very long drive to the dealer if I can't clear it and buy some time in normal mode. I am assuming it's like my car where if it's not a fatal issue, you can possible buy some normal driving time by a battery disconnect.
For the tranny fluid, why/how is it a dealership item?
Is it a special fluid that nothing else uses? or is the access to the tranny drain/fill ports too hard to get to without special tools?
#12
04-11-2012, 03:57 PM
I kind of like the third row seat idea. With a young family (2 boys under 3yrs old), I can say that we rarely use more then 4 seats in our 7 seat minivan, but when we need them, it's great to have. With our current van (which this is replacing), we are using it in a similar manner where the seats are stowed until we need them.
Thanks for the input. I can see how the black or darker colors would be a pain for marks. My 08 SRT4 is brilliant Black and it's a pain to keep looking good.
As for the stone chips, are you talking about the lower rocker panel or as far up as the lower doors? I am for sure putting on some small mud flaps and may consider fender flares depending on how they look. I do plan to do some light off roading myself.
Thanks for the input. I can see how the black or darker colors would be a pain for marks. My 08 SRT4 is brilliant Black and it's a pain to keep looking good.
As for the stone chips, are you talking about the lower rocker panel or as far up as the lower doors? I am for sure putting on some small mud flaps and may consider fender flares depending on how they look. I do plan to do some light off roading myself.
#13
04-11-2012, 04:58 PM
I think boosters may be fine on the third row. In our van, we've pretty much always kept the two boys (ages 1 and going on 3) in the middle row buckets, saving the space behind them for cargo. On the rare occation, we have had people in the third row of the van, but it was rare enough to consider the Outlander's third row as fine.
As for the radio reception... Not really an issue. Where we live, the first ~10 miles of my drive is in poor radio reception, so I am accustom to it. That being said, I really don't like the roof antenna and would be opting for a hidden solution like I had done on my Caliber SRT4. The only kicker to this is if (which I suspect is the case) the antenna is multi-purpose (GPS,FM, SAT). If this is the case, I can't go with the hidden antenna I have in mind.
Thank you for that bit of info. You are the first person I have heard give solid faults with this vehicle.
Two questions about these two issues;
Can the limp mode be cleared with a scan gauge or battery disconnect? Home is ~50 miles from the dealership. Would be a very long drive to the dealer if I can't clear it and buy some time in normal mode. I am assuming it's like my car where if it's not a fatal issue, you can possible buy some normal driving time by a battery disconnect.
For the tranny fluid, why/how is it a dealership item?
Is it a special fluid that nothing else uses? or is the access to the tranny drain/fill ports too hard to get to without special tools?
As for the radio reception... Not really an issue. Where we live, the first ~10 miles of my drive is in poor radio reception, so I am accustom to it. That being said, I really don't like the roof antenna and would be opting for a hidden solution like I had done on my Caliber SRT4. The only kicker to this is if (which I suspect is the case) the antenna is multi-purpose (GPS,FM, SAT). If this is the case, I can't go with the hidden antenna I have in mind.
Thank you for that bit of info. You are the first person I have heard give solid faults with this vehicle.
Two questions about these two issues;
Can the limp mode be cleared with a scan gauge or battery disconnect? Home is ~50 miles from the dealership. Would be a very long drive to the dealer if I can't clear it and buy some time in normal mode. I am assuming it's like my car where if it's not a fatal issue, you can possible buy some normal driving time by a battery disconnect.
For the tranny fluid, why/how is it a dealership item?
Is it a special fluid that nothing else uses? or is the access to the tranny drain/fill ports too hard to get to without special tools?
To its credit, it did fault soon...none of the others have had problems since then.The fluid mine uses is DiaQueen ATF-J2 for the automatic 6-speed tranny. Not even Amsoil makes an equivalant. So you have to go to the stealership and buy the J2 fluid. Changing is rather easy...though guesstimating how much to put back in is a bit odd. I did guess correctly the first time! phew!
#14
04-12-2012, 08:02 AM
I believe the problem with rock chips was more on the lower panel and installing mud flaps was what most owners with the problem were doing. I've never had the problem and to be honest it's been at least a couple of years since I've heard anyone complain about it. Most of the complaints seemed to be back in 2007 - 2008 when the current generation Outlander was first introduced.
no, the limp home mode is implemented when the computer cannot see all speed sensors. resetting the battery won't bring back a sensor. To its credit, it did fault soon...none of the others have had problems since then.
The fluid mine uses is DiaQueen ATF-J2 for the automatic 6-speed tranny. Not even Amsoil makes an equivalant. So you have to go to the stealership and buy the J2 fluid. Changing is rather easy...though guesstimating how much to put back in is a bit odd. I did guess correctly the first time! phew!
To its credit, it did fault soon...none of the others have had problems since then.The fluid mine uses is DiaQueen ATF-J2 for the automatic 6-speed tranny. Not even Amsoil makes an equivalant. So you have to go to the stealership and buy the J2 fluid. Changing is rather easy...though guesstimating how much to put back in is a bit odd. I did guess correctly the first time! phew!
The idea of doing a reset is that sometimes these sensors have a hickup. Maybe a connection or a failing sensor. I've seen in some cases where you could reset the car and get to where you need to go. Generally that is straight to the garage (home garage or dealer).
I know some cars require a special tool to reset these modes (Star Scanner for example).
As for the tranny oil, thank you for that info. That gives me something to look into.
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