I have a 2006 Subaru Outback LL Bean Edition sedan with the 3.6L 6-cylinder engine. It has a 5-speed automatic with Sport mode and a manu-matic shifting option. I bought it 5 years ago with 110K miles, it currently has about 185K. Occasionally, the Check Engine, Sport mode indicator and Cruise Control lights will all come on together, with the Sport light blinking. The car still operates as normal, except the Cruise is disabled. The lights will slowly reset themselves over the course of a few days. This would happen about once a month until I realized it seemed to be connected to my use of the Sport mode. It’s a fun car to drive, especially on winding Ozark highways, and I would commonly use the Sport mode to raise the shift points. It was during these times that the error would occur. The problem hasn’t happened since I stopped using Sport mode a couple years ago. I asked the local Subaru dealer about it and was told that it’s a sensor somewhere in the transmission and hinted that it may be the first step in transmission failure, but they didn’t really seem too concerned.
So, what’s up with that?