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When towing a trailer, the arrows on your instrument
panel will flash for turns even if
the
bulbs on the trailer
are burned out. Thus, you may think drivers behind
you are seeing your signal when they are not. It's
important to check occasionally to be sure the trailer
bulbs are still working.
Driving On Grades
Reduce speed and shift to a lower gear before you start
down a long or steep downgrade. If you don't shift
down, you might have to use your brakes so much that
they would get hot and no longer work well.
On a long uphill grade, shift down and reduce your
speed to around 45 mph (70
k m / h )
to reduce the
possibility of engine and transmission overheating.
If you are towing a trailer that weighs more than
2,000 lbs. (900 kg), you should drive in THIRD (3)
instead of AUTOMATIC OVERDRIVE
(a)
or, as you
need to, a lower gear. This will help your transmission.
Parking on Hills
You really should not park your vehicle, with a trailer
attached, on a hill. If something goes wrong, your rig
could start to move. People can be injured, and both
your vehicle and the trailer can be damaged.
But if you ever have to park your rig on a hill, here's
how to do it:
1. Apply your regular brakes, but don't shift into
PARK (P) yet.
2. Have someone place chocks under the trailer wheels.
3. When the wheel chocks are in place, release the
regular brakes until the chocks absorb the load.
4. Reapply the regular brakes. Then apply your parking
5.
Release the regular brakes.
brake, and then shift to PARK (P).
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