If you want to follow Subaru's guidelines, then you are correct!

 

So I should wait until 137k correct?

You are correct. Exception: If the cooling system has been drained and refilled for some reason (e.g. a maintenance or repair procedure), even partially, that invokes the 72 month/75,000 mile change interval. I think the rationale is that even after a full drain and refill, some old coolant will remain in the system.

 

Great, thanks for confirming

 

...So I should wait until 137k correct?

The only other thing you want to be sure of is that the coolant has never been topped off with an incompatible antifreeze (besides Subaru Super Coolant, there are some other brands of "asian blue" coolants that are supposedly compatible). Some shops will do this without even asking, so you may want to check with any you've used if you think that's a possibility.

 

Good to keep in mind. thanks

 

Ugh! I don't understand manufacturers recommendation for fluid changes. They just don't make sense to me. CVT - Lifetime, Coolant - 11 years bla, bla bla.

Change the coolant at regular intervals. Granted the stuff is much better now and will last longer but 11 years/ 100,000+ miles, yea right. You have to keep in mind that yes the engine/radiator is made of Aluminum, but it still oxidizes, especially with liquids touching it and the coolant is formulated to prevent the oxidation. But it looses it's ability eventually (faster than you think).

The intervals that make the most sense are the "noted exceptions" (stop and go, towing, etc.). Use those numbers for regular changes. Fluids are cheap, compared to total cost of the vehicle and changing them is preventative maintenance. So for your vehicle, use the "6 years/ 75,000 miles" interval, period.

Also I have been back in the service bays of many dealers (being nice and a little "social engineering" gets me in), and here's something that will surprise many... they don't always use the "manufacturer" fluids. They use the same stuff we get at the local supply. Why? Cost. There are some exceptions (mainly power steering and transmission fluid), but otherwise most of time it's after market stuff (especially coolant).

Sorry for the rant, but this gets to me.

 

Ugh! I don't understand manufacturers recommendation for fluid changes. They just don't make sense to me. CVT - Lifetime, Coolant - 11 years bla, bla bla...

I'd love to know - what exactly do you think would motivate Subaru to specify such a long service interval? The vehicle won't be covered under any Subaru warranty by then. Do you really think they want the reputation of misleading their customers when all their high mileage cars start overheating? You know, the ones they like to brag about when they say stuff like, "97% of Subaru vehicles sold in the last 10 years are still on the road today".

Also, what qualifies you to judge the engineering of the cooling system? Or the way in which coolants have evolved in recent decades?

 

I said I was ranting!

But please ask Subaru or any manufacturer and their engineers the following question: "Please be specific of your definition of "Lifetime"?" Is 70,000, 100,000, 200,000, 1,000,000 miles? Is it when the warranty ends? What? They won't give you a specific number. Period.

Yes, the longevity of coolant has been increasing over the years. I remember when we just used water. Then the green came out, and guess what... It was sold as "Lifetime" coolant. We learned that wasn't true, we ended up having to change it out every year or two. Better chemistry, engineering has increased it's life to be longer and longer. Yes, there are some go a really long time. But it still need to be changed at some point.

Fluids are the life blood of an engine. Oils, coolant, etc. They are necessary to keep an engine working. Fluids don't last forever. When the fluids break down, the engine breaks down. Every tear open an engine that never had an oil change? It ain't pretty, trust me, I've seen it. Same holds true with coolant passages when the coolant has never been changed.

When machining parts, they are machined to a specified tolerance of a + or - dimension. Fluids are designed similarly, with Best Case (longer duration between change), and Worst Case (shorter duration between changes).

As for this situation, it's basically stated as Best Case: 11years/137,500 miles. Worst Case: 6 years/ 75,000 miles (also it's which ever comes first, the year or the mileage). With the SAME coolant. It's always better to error on the worst case side of things just to be safe. You can ask an engineer that's been around awhile, and they will say the same thing. Better safe than sorry.

Hence, when I see manual that has two different numbers for the change interval (one for "normal" driving, one for "heavy" driving) I personally just go for the "heavy" driving interval. Again, better safe than sorry. You may not agree.

Besides coolant is what $20 a gallon? Need 2, maybe 3 gallons? 40 or 60 bucks? Compared to what you paid for the car? To help it last longer, yeah, I'm going change it at the worst case scenario. I LIKE keeping my stuff for a long time (especially mechanical stuff, it's my thing. I guess growing up with a parent that was mechanical engineer helped).

Now if you really want to get picky... The date/mileage change interval is total BS. What you really want is a run time interval. i.e Change oil after 200 hours of run time. Change coolant after 1000 hours of run time, type of thing. We only use date/mileage is because it's convenient. There were cars in the past that actually had a run time clock and the manuals stated fluid changes in bracketed of hard or easy driving hours of run time. There weren't many, but they did exist.

Ok, my rant is over. I got it out of my system. I usually have a 5 year span between this topic/rant. I was past due. Sorry.

 

I said I was ranting!

But please ask Subaru or any manufacturer and their engineers the following question: "Please be specific of your definition of "Lifetime"?" Is 70,000, 100,000, 200,000, 1,000,000 miles? Is it when the warranty ends? What? They won't give you a specific number. Period

Of course they won't give you a specific number because there is no number.
It simply means that the fluid is expected to last longer than the other vital components of the transmission.
Why do you need a number?

 

think what really happens is there is a protected capsule that holds aqua regia hidden deep inside the CVT that is broken open when the odometer hits 100k miles. The acid mixes with the fluid and degrades it, as well as dissolves all critical components to ensure catastrophic failure of the CVT shortly after the warranty period. It can also track if you changed the fluid early by sending correspondence to Subaru through Starlink which sends your car's location to a hit man who will break some other component on your car, shortly after 100k was reached to make sure to give you what you had coming to you for disobeying and changing the fluid early.

Maybe Subaru should embed a self-destruct mechanism in their CVTs, set to go off at some specific mileage. They could even extend the doomsday date when you purchase a SAS "extended warranty."

Great minds think alike . haha