How to Tow a Trailer
Trailer towing is a skill that every driver must learn and practice. However, most motorists do not know how to properly tow a trailer. When towing a trailer, there are lots of factors to consider. Trailers have their own brakes, lights and turn signals that could affect your driving experience with them. Plus it’s critical for you to know what kind of hitch you need before you start shopping for a new trailer. The following guide will go over everything from the correct way to prepare your vehicle for towing, basic driving tips, and how to properly park after you reach your destination.
Weight of Your Vehicle
The weight of your trailer when towing can be a huge determining factor in how well your rig performs and how much gas you’re burning. The first step is to make sure that you are only hauling what your trailer can handle. If you are towing anything that exceeds the weight capacity of your trailer, then you will have a dangerous situation on your hands. The weight of the tow vehicle plus the weight of the passengers and cargo should not exceed the maximum gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR), which is marked on the vehicle’s door frame or in a label in the driver-side door jamb. Obviously, it all comes down to the weight of your load. However, there are also several other factors that affect fuel efficiency if you’re hauling motorcycles or any other cargo on your vehicles.
Hitches
Trailer hitches are the connection between your vehicle and the trailer hitch. They are used to attach a trailer to a vehicle. Trailer hitches can be found on cars, trucks, RVs and other vehicles that tow trailers. Trailer hitches are the key components of a tow vehicle. They combine to function as the connection point between a trailer and the tow vehicle. These connection points are not standardized, so you have to make sure your hitches are compatible with your vehicle. The first thing most people know about the trailer hitch is the receiver. The receiver is the part of the hitch that attaches to the vehicle frame and accepts the ball. It can be made out of steel or aluminum, depending on how much weight it needs to support. It is extremely important that you know which hitch you need.
Hooking Up
Now that you know the weight of your vehicles and the proper hitch for it, it’s time to hook it up for towing. First you will need to secure the ball mount in the hitch’s receiver tube. Then you will need to back up your vehicle to line up the hitch perfectly with the ball. The hitch will need to be higher than the ball. Once perfectly lined up, park your vehicle and go over to the trailer hitch. Grab the handle and start cranking it so that the hitch goes down towards the ball until they meet. Use the latch to secure the hitch, remove the trailer jack and you’ll be on your way.
Safety
When it comes to towing a trailer, safety is of the utmost importance. Never drive faster than 65 miles per hour and always obey speed limits. When you’re driving in inclement weather, reduce speed by 20 miles per hour. The most important thing to remember when towing a trailer is that you will go faster than usual. Your speedometer will show a lower speed than the actual speed you are going because the tires on your vehicle will be turning more quickly. Know that when you look down and see 50 mph on the speedometer, but only 30 mph out the front windshield, you are doing 70 mph realistically. A trailer is extra weight that you will have to pull behind your vehicle. It can significantly reduce handling ability and braking distance. You need to understand how your vehicle handles with a trailer in tow before you hit the road. The speed at which you are traveling when you apply the brakes will determine how quickly you are able to come to a complete stop. If you are traveling at highway speeds, then it could take several hundred feet or more to come to a halt. You must be prepared for this by testing your braking and how it feels before heading out on the road.
We hope this article has given you a better understanding of the best practices to follow when towing a trailer. To learn more about TrailerLegs and how they can increase your safety, visit https://www.trailerlegs.com/ now!