Toyota RAV4 EE Owner's Manual page 441

Avoid jerky starts or sudden accelera-
D
tion. If your vehicle has a manual
transmission, prevent excessive clutch
slippage by keeping engine rpm low
and not racing the engine. Always start
out in first gear.
Avoid jerky steering and sharp turns.
D
The trailer could hit your vehicle in a
tight turn. Slow down before making a
turn to avoid the necessity of sudden
braking.
Backing with a trailer is difficult and
D
requires practice. Grip the bottom of
the steering wheel and move your hand
to the left to move the trailer to the
left. Move your hand to the right to
move the trailer to the right. (This pro-
cedure is generally opposite to that
when backing without a trailer.) Also,
just turn the steering wheel a little at
a time, avoiding sharp or prolonged
turning. Have someone guide you when
backing to reduce the risk of an acci-
dent.
Remember that when making a turn,
D
the trailer wheels will be closer than
the vehicle wheels to the inside of the
turn. Therefore, compensate for this by
making a larger than normal turning
radius with your vehicle.
Crosswinds and rough roads will ad-
D
versely affect handling of your vehicle
and trailer, causing sway. Pay attention
to the rear from time to time to pre-
pare yourself for being passed by large
trucks or buses, which may cause your
vehicle and trailer to sway. If swaying
happens, firmly grip the steering wheel
and reduce speed immediately but
gradually. Never increase speed. If it is
necessary to reduce
slowly. Steer straight ahead. If you
make no extreme correction with the
steering or brakes, the vehicle and
trailer will stabilize.
RAV4_EE
STARTING AND DRIVING
Be careful when passing other ve-
D
hicles. Passing requires considerable
distance. After passing a vehicle, do
not forget the length of your trailer and
be sure you have plenty of room be-
fore changing lanes.
To maintain engine braking efficiency,
D
when using engine braking, do not use
fifth gear (5−speed manual transmis-
sion),
transmission) or "D" (automatic trans-
mission or Multidrive).
Because of the added load of the trail-
D
er, your vehicle's engine may overheat
on hot days (at temperatures over
30_C [85_F]) when going up a long or
steep grade with a trailer. If the engine
coolant temperature gauge indicates
overheating, immediately turn off the air
conditioning (if in use), pull off the road
and stop in a safe spot. Refer to "If
your vehicle overheats" on page 444 in
Section 4.
Always place wheel blocks under both
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the vehicle and trailer wheels when
parking. Apply the parking brake firmly.
Put the transmission in "P" (automatic
transmission or Multidrive) or in first or
reverse (manual transmission). Avoid
parking on a slope with a trailer, but
if it cannot be avoided, do so only
after performing the following:
1. Apply the brakes and hold.
2. Have someone place wheel blocks un-
der both the vehicle and trailer wheels.
3. When the wheel blocks are in place,
release your brakes slowly until the
blocks absorb the load.
4. Apply the parking brake firmly.
speed, brake
5. Shift into first or reverse (manual
transmission) or "P" (automatic trans-
mission or Multidrive) and turn off the
engine.
sixth gear (6−speed manual
Finish
431