Hi,
I recently bought a used 2000 Outback, and have noticed what seems to
be a fairly serious problem when shifting into drive. It isn't just a
delay, but will (sporadically, not every time, which is why I didn't
catch it before buying) simply not shift into drive until I apply some
gas, and then it jolts into drive.
This is most noticeable when shifting from reverse to drive, where if
I let up on the brake, it will continue to roll backward, unless I hit
the gas, at which point it jolts forward (although sometimes with an
additional brief delay -- I can see and hear the RPMs go up before it
starts going forward, but that never translates into backwards
acceleration, luckily).
As you can imagine, this isn't a lot of fun when trying to get in and
out of tight parking spaces.
Any idea what might be causing it?
Thanks for your help,

Brian