Towing a Trailer
Towing Safety
Your vehicle will not stop as quickly
with a trailer in tow. Leave extra
distance between your vehicle and
other vehicles. Avoid braking or
turning suddenly. This could cause
the trailer to jackknife or possibly
turn over.
Keep in mind that your total vehicle
is now much longer. Leave more
room when making turns. The trailer
tracks a smaller arc than the vehicle
and can hit or run over something
that the vehicle misses. When
passing another vehicle, make sure
the trailer is clear before changing
lanes.
The vehicle/trailer combination is
more affected by crosswinds and
buffeting. When being passed by a
large vehicle, keep a constant speed
and steer straight ahead. If there is
too much wind buffeting, slow down
to get out of the other vehicle's air
turbulence.
Towing a trailer puts an extra load
on your vehicle. You should have
your vehicle serviced according to
the "Maintenance Schedule under
severe driving conditions" on page
166
.
This extra load is magnified when
you are driving in hilly terrain.
Watch the temperature gauge
closely when climbing hills. If it gets
near the hot area, turn off the air
conditioning (if it is on). If this does
not reduce the heat, it may be
necessary to pull to the side of the
road and wait for the engine to cool.
If the automatic transmission shifts
frequently between 3rd and 4th
gears, put it in D
3
.
This will help
prevent the transmission from
overheating. Help keep the brakes
from overheating by shifting to a
lower gear when going downhill.
If you have to stop while going uphill,
do not hold the vehicle in place by
pressing on the accelerator. This can
cause the automatic transmission to
overheat. Use the parking brake or
footbrake.
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