March 17, 2011
Can I put my 2000 Subaru Impreza to front wheel drive to save gas ? Will this hurt my car?
I can place a fuse into the main fuse box to put my car in front wheel drive according to the manuel. I am wondering if this will hurt the car or not. Because there is no point of All wheel drive during the summer.
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Filed under Gas Conservation FAQ by on Mar 17th, 2011. Comment. 
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Comments on Can I put my 2000 Subaru Impreza to front wheel drive to save gas ? Will this hurt my car?
unless you physically disconnect the wheels from the half shafts you will not gain anything mileage wise. Everything in the drive line turns it does not matter if it under power from the engine or spinning because the wheels are driving it. In the old days of 4wheel drive you had manually disconnecting hubs, some jeeps have automatic hubs, most all wheel drive vehicles do not. Second point is if you check you will find that your Subaru is in front wheel drive anyway and only engages the back wheels if slippage is detected.
Subarus (at least Legacy) with Automatic transmissions have a fuse you can pull out that disengages the AWD and puts the car in FWD (front wheel drive). A “FWD” light will come on the dash when this is engaged.
I hear it only adds 1-2 mi/gal … so it’s really not worth it. There’s also a chance that the car’s drivetrain isn’t sturdy enough to handle front wheel only … since it’s generally AWD, which means you may wear out part of the drivetrain faster than normally.
So, I’d say .. $3.00/gal stinks, but it’s still cheaper than a new viscous coupler.
It will make very little difference in fuel economy, I have seen former customers try this on their Subarus and they say it is not worth the bother.
Now that you are used to driving your car, you may not realize how much you “use” the AWD in the summertime. It make a big difference in handling and it’s not just for improved traction in the snow and rain. Oh. It rains in August sometimes, doesn’t it? Even if it DOESN’T rain, you are benefitting from AWD quite a bit of the time as you drive. Not to mention, the accident avoidance aspect of things…
I didn’t buy my Subaru just so I could get to work in the snow.