Safety considerations to properly towing a vehicle

Towing is the process of pulling or drawing behind a chain, line, bar or some other form of coupling that is the most visibly performed by road vehicles. There are lots of safety considerations to appropriately towing a car, trailer or travel trailer starting with vehicle towing capacity and ranging through equalizer hitches to appropriately and legally connecting the safety chains as well. According to the law of National Highway Traffic Safety Association, more than 65,000 crashes involving passenger vehicles towing trailers occurred in 2004 in the AU, increasing nearly 20 percent from the previous year.

The study of Towing Troubles included responses from trailer owners across the country and found that while the majority of vehicle owners believe they know what they are doing when it comes to towing. The majority was lacking the proper education and according the information 70 percent of vehicle owners did not fully know the correct way to tow their vehicle. The key factor in towing safety is tongue weight, the weight with which the automobile presses down on the tow vehicle's hitch. Extra tongue weight can cause problems with the tow vehicle.

There are many examples where you may find yourself needing to tow a car and this can happen in the event of a vehicle breakdown or accident or if you are planning to bring it along behind your camper on a family tour. Towing a car requires special care in order to avoid preventable safety issues and injury that’s why numerous people commit a series of errors and mistakes when it comes to towing a car. Neglect or ignorance could lead to an accident or fines so make sure the first time you do it right.

Carefully check that you have everything that you will need to tow your car properly. This includes making sure that the hitch you are using is the right one for your vehicle as well as the weight restrictions are according to law that must match up. Stipulation you try to force a hitch to work that is not the right size, the car could come loose while you are towing it and also confirm that all electrical components are working as they should be and secure the safety chains. Take care that they are secure by testing them first if you have never hitched a car for towing before, ask someone to show you how it is done correctly.

Once you have hitched your car up and checked that everything is correct you are almost ready to get traveling. Before you attempt to drive away towing your car, don’t forget to release the parking brake and put the car into mainstream. If you forget to do this you could seriously damage your car since the wheels will resist and remain locked as you attempt to pull it so make a note of this to prevent accident.

Source: /articles/besttofind.com