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Towing a Trailer
Driving Safely With a Trailer
The added weight, length, and
height of a trailer will affect your
vehicle's handling and performance,
so driving with a trailer requires
some special driving skills and
techniques.
For your safety and the safety of
others, take time to practice driving
maneuvers before heading for the
open road, and follow the guidelines
discussed below.
Towing Speeds and Gears
Drive slower than normal in all
driving situations, and obey posted
speed limits for vehicles with trailers.
If you have an automatic
transmission, use the D or D
5
position when towing a trailer on
level roads. D is the proper shift
3
lever position to use when towing a
trailer in hilly terrain. (See ''
'' in the following column for
on Hills
additional gear information.)
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Driving
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When towing a trailer in the
Sequential SportShift mode, select
Fourth, Third, Second, or First gear;
depending on the vehicle speed and
road condition. Do not use Fifth gear.
The recommended speed range for
each gear position is shown in the
table.
Gear position
1
2
3, 4
4
Driving
Making Turns and Braking
Make turns more slowly and wider
than normal. The trailer tracks a
smaller arc than your vehicle, and it
can hit or run over something the
vehicle misses. Allow more time and
distance for braking. Do not brake or
turn suddenly as this could cause the
trailer to jackknife or turn over.
Speed range
Driving on Hills
When climbing hills, closely watch
0
37 mph
your temperature gauge. If it nears
(0
60 km/h)
the red (Hot) mark, turn the air
conditioning off, reduce speed and, if
12
68 mph
necessary, pull to the side of the
(20
110 km/h)
road to let the engine cool.
over 25 mph
If the automatic transmission shifts
(over 40 km/h)
frequently between 4th and 5th
gears while going up a hill, shift to
D . And if the transmission shifts
4
frequently between 3rd and 4th
gears, shift to D .
3
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