Trailers can help you move things a lot more easily with your vehicle. They’re useful whether you have a horse, you’ve rented a trailer to go cross country, or you are hauling goods from one place to another. One thing that you have to do when you are towing a trailer makes sure that you are careful. Below are nine tips that you can use to help you tow your trailer safely.
Understand Weight Limits
Be sure the trailer and anything that you were hauling is within the hauling a towing capacity of the vehicle. Check your owner’s manual and find a trailer kinds that the vehicle can haul and the maximum weight it’s able to pull. Make sure you’re using the right hitch and that it’s been hitched correctly.
Evenly Distribute the Weight
If your trailer is fishtailing or swinging when you’re accelerating, come off of the gas to see if it continues. If you continue to fishtail after picking up speed, pull over and see how you distribute your weight in the trailer. The weight may not be evenly distributed from one side to another, or the weight also may be too far in your trailer so that there’s not enough load on your hitch ball.
You should try carrying 5 to 10% of the load in the trailer on your hitch. Make sure you redistribute your load as needed before you continue.
Make Sure Your Trailer’s Lights Work
Connect your signal and brake lights. Double check and make sure the turn signals, break, and taillights synchronize with your tow vehicle.
Make Sure Your Tires are Properly Inflated
This is essential. Otherwise, you are going to have tire blowouts.
Along with making sure you’re in the weight limits for the rig, make sure your tires are properly inflated and in excellent condition. Make sure that you’re checking the wheel bearings as well. A bearing that is overheated is going to sideline your rig just like a flat.
Remember Your Vehicle’s Going to Handle Differently
When you’re towing, you’re going to operate a vehicle combination that is going to be heavier and longer than it is typically. Make sure you’re adjusting your driving accordingly.
It’s going to be tricky to back up, but it’s something that you can learn. Until you have the experience, it’s a good idea to have another person stand outside and direct you in spots that are tight or in places where you don’t have a lot of visibility.
Avoid turning suddenly. This might sound like something it’s obvious, but a lot of people forget about it. If you take a sharp turn, your vehicle might find itself upside down due to the trailer.
Remember to be ready for anything when it comes to towing accidents. You hope that nothing will happen, but there’s always the chance.
Buckle Up
This is something that you should always do, but it’s even more important when you’re towing a trailer.
Give Yourself More Time to Stop
This is simple physics. When you’re towing, you’re going to have a lot more momentum than you have when you’re just driving your car. Keep in mind that stopping is going to require more distance and time. Pay attention to the road and steer clear of tailgating. You want to be aware of what is going on in front of you and around you.
Look Around You
This is especially true if you were in a hurry when you were loading up your trailer. Whether it’s forgetting to fasten the chains, securing your hitch, or properly tying down your payload, it’s possible that you had forgotten something. After you’re driving, you want to check out your mirrors frequently to ensure that everything is looking good in the back. Being aware of what is going on in the back can save you a lot of heartache and problems.
Upgrade the Protection for Your Transmission
Towing will place a lot of stress on the transmission of your car. In fact, due to the horrible heat, towing is probably the top thing that kills transmissions.
Because of this, towing packages that many trucks have include transmission oil coolers. You also want to use a better synthetic lubricant. It will reduce the friction as well as provide some better resistance to extreme heat, which will help your transmission run cooler, last longer, and shift confidently.
These are the nine tips that you should use when you were towing a trailer to help you get you and your cargo from point A to point B safely. It gets a lot easier when you know what to expect, but you always should be careful and be aware of the conditions of the road around you and the people who are on the road with you.
