Towing Tips - Airstream Excella 1975 Owner's Manual

Towing Tips
A few hours of towing practice in a large
empty supermarket parking lot will make
pulling your Airstream over the road much
easier. Line out two comers for both left and
right turns. You may also use these corners to
practice backing and parking. Observe that
the tracks made by the trailer wheels are
distinctly different from those made by your
car. Studying this will make it easier for you
to correct mistakes. Truck or trailer type
fender or door grip rear view mirrors are a
must for maximum visibility and in most
States they are required by law.
You are now ready to tow. After checking the
traffic, signal that you are about to pull away
and start slowly. Look often in your mirrors,
and observe the action of the trailer, then
carefully move into the proper lane of traffic.
Remember that the trailer wheels will not
follow the path of the car's wheels, therefore,
wider turns are necessary when turning to the
left or to the right.
On freeways or expressways try to pick the
lane you want, and stay in it. Always main¬
tain plenty of space between you and the car
ahead, at least the length of the car plus
trailer, for every ten miles per hour. Remem¬
ber that in order to pass another vehicle, you
will need longer to accelerate. You must also
allow for the length of the trailer when
returning to the right hand lane. On a two
lane road, cars will be lining up behind you
because you travel at a lower speed. It is both
courteous and sensible to signal, pull onto the
Tracking
shoulder, and let them pass. Your Airstream is
designed to be towed easily at any legal speed,
so if you are not careful you may be inclined
to forget it is there. Your car brakes will
automatically apply the trailer brakes first if
properly adjusted. This will make you stop as
if you were driving the car alone and keep
your car and trailer in a straight line.
When trailering, you might encounter a tem¬
porary cooling system overload during severe
conditions — such as hot days when pulling
on a long grade, when slowing down after
higher-speed driving, or driving long idle
periods in traffic jams. If the hot indicator
light comes on and you have your air condi¬
tioning turned on, turn it off. If the light
doesn't go off in about a minute, pull over in
a safe place and put on your emergency
brake. Don't turn off the engine. Increase the
engine idle speed. Lift the engine hood and
check for fluid leaks at the radiator hoses,
radiator or radiator overflow outlet. Check to
see that all drive belts are intact and the fan is
turning. Light should go off within one
minute. When the light is out, proceed on the
highway a little slower. Ten minutes later
resume normal driving. Caution: Never open a
radiator cap when the car is hot! Check the
car coolant level when the car is cool.
When going downhill in dry weather, down
shift so that engine compression will slow the
whole rig down. Take dips and depressions in
the road slowly and do not resume normal
driving speeds until you are sure that the
trailer wheels are clear of the dip.
On slippery pavement do not use engine drag
to help slow down as this may cause the rear
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