Skoda 2014 Rapid Owner's Manual page 115

Safety eyelet
The purpose of the safety eyelet
of the trailer.
When attaching the breakaway cable to the safety eyelet, it must sag freely
against the vehicle in all trailer positions (sharp bends, in reverse etc.).
Exterior mirrors
You have to have additional exterior mirrors fitted if you are not able to see
the traffic behind the trailer with the standard rear-view mirrors. The national
legal requirements must be observed.
Headlights
The front of the vehicle may lift up when a trailer is being towed and the head-
lights may dazzle other road users.
Adjust the headlights using the headlight beam control
Driving speed
For safety reasons, do not drive faster than 80 km/h when towing a trailer.
Immediately reduce your speed as soon as even the slightest swaying of the
trailer is detected. Never attempt to stop the trailer from "swaying" by acceler-
ating.
Brakes
Apply the brakes in good time! If the trailer is fitted with a trailer brake, apply
the brakes gently at first, then brake firmly. This will avoid brake jolts resulting
from the trailer wheels locking.
On downhill sections shift down a gear in good time to also use the engine as
a brake.
Engine overheating
If the needle for the coolant temperature gauge moves into the right-hand
area or the red area of the scale, the speed must be reduced immediately.
Stop and switch off the engine if the warning light
ter » page 32 starts to flash or lights up. Wait a few minutes and check the lev-
el of coolant » page 133.
The following guidelines must be observed
The coolant temperature can be reduced by switching on the heating.
» Fig. 108 is to attach the breakaway cable
B
» page 54.
in the instrument clus-

» page 32.
WARNING
Never use the safety eyelet for towing!
■
Adapt your speed to the conditions of the road surface and to the traffic
■
situation.
Improper or incorrectly connected electrical installations can energise the
■
trailer and cause functional faults to the vehicle's entire electrical system
as well as accidents and severe injuries.
Work on the electrical system must only be carried out by specialist ga-
■
rages.
Never directly connect the trailer's electrical system with the electrical
■
connections for the tail lights or other current sources.
After coupling the trailer and connecting the power socket, check that
■
the rear lights on the trailer are working correctly.
Note
If there is an error in the trailer lighting, check the fuses in the fuse box in
■
the dash panel » page 160.
Contact between the breakaway cable and the safety eyelet can result in
■
mechanical wear on the surface protection of the eyelet. Such wear does not
impair the functioning of the safety eyelet and does not constitute a fault. It is
excluded from the warranty coverage.
If you tow a trailer frequently, you should also have your vehicle inspected
■
between service intervals.
The handbrake on the towing vehicle must be applied when coupling and un-
■
coupling the trailer.
Anti-theft alarm system

Read and observe on page 112 first.
When the vehicle is locked, the alarm is activated when the electrical connec-
tion to the trailer is interrupted.
Always switch off the anti-theft alarm system before a trailer is coupled or un-
coupled » page 49.
Conditions for including a trailer in the anti-theft alarm system.
The vehicle is factory-fitted with an anti-theft alarm system and towing

device.
The trailer is electrically connected to the towing vehicle via the trailer

socket.

113
Hitch and trailer