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5-135
Driving your vehicle
5
Driving on hills
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
overheated and may not operate effi-
ciently.
On a long uphill grade, shift down
and reduce your speed to around 45
mph (70 km/h) to reduce the possibil-
ity of engine and transmission over-
heating.
If your trailer weighs more than the
maximum trailer weight without trailer
brakes, you should drive in D (Drive)
when towing a trailer. Operating your
vehicle in D (Drive) when towing a
trailer will minimize heat build-up and
extend the life of your transmission.
To prevent engine and/or trans-
mission overheating:
• When towing a trailer on steep
grades (in excess of 6%) pay
close attention to the engine
coolant temperature gauge to
ensure the engine does not
overheat. If the needle of the
coolant temperature gauge
moves towards "H" (HOT), pull
over and stop as soon as it is
safe to do so, and allow the
engine to idle until it cools
down.You may proceed once the
engine has cooled sufficiently.
• When towing a trailer, your vehi-
cle speed may be much slower
than the general flow of traffic,
especially when climbing an
uphill grade. Use the right hand
lane when towing a trailer on an
uphill grade. Choose your vehi-
cle speed according to the max-
imum posted speed limit for
vehicles with trailers, the steep-
ness of the grade, and your trail-
er weight.
Parking on hills
Generally, if you have a trailer attached
to your vehicle, you should not park
your vehicle on a hill.
However, if you ever have to park your
trailer on a hill, here's how to do it:
1. Pull the vehicle into the parking
area.
Turn the steering wheel in the
direction of the curb (right if head-
ed down hill, left if headed up hill).
2. Shift the vehicle to P (Park).
3. Set the parking brake and shut off
the vehicle.
4. Place wheel chocks under the
trailer wheels on the down hill side
of the wheels.
NOTICE
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