Purchasing a truck for your towing needs is a blessing for transporting heavy and bulky items. Although your friends constantly ask you to help them move, it’s nice to reap the rewards on your time. Before you get behind the wheel of your hauling vehicle, you should learn the most common towing mistakes new truck owners make to avoid them.
Carrying Oversized Loads
We understand getting a new truck will make you eager to see what it’s capable of. Nevertheless, you should never exceed the vehicle’s load capacity. The GCWR (gross combined weight rating) is a number you don’t want to test because surpassing it could lead to major problems.
Always ensure you’re within the manufacturer-recommended towing capacities, no matter what you’re hauling. Towing accessories are a worthwhile investment that’ll improve your experience behind the wheel. However, they won’t improve the durability of your truck’s motor, hitch, or frame.
Relying on Your Ordinary Mirrors
If you were a regular car owner in the past and had to rent a moving truck to transport your items into your new digs, you would quickly realize the difference when looking at the side and rearview mirrors. Similarly, you’ll see different blind spots if you only use your standard mirrors while towing something. Towing mirrors will significantly improve your field of view. You should get them if they aren’t already in your vehicle. In certain cases, this is a more effective and less expensive alternative to a fancy camera system.
Ignoring the Tire Pressure
Maintaining proper tire pressure is crucial whether driving or towing a trailer. Better tire pressure results in increased road grip, thus aiding with stopping distances and maneuverability. Additional benefits include better gas mileage, decreased wind resistance, and extending your tire lifespan.
The trailer and car tires should have the correct PSI written on them, and it’s vital to make the appropriate adjustments for seasonal and geographical temperature changes. Overinflating the tire doesn’t make it more robust, considering it will be more prone to pop. The last thing you want to experience is a blown tire while you’re going 65 mph carrying a trailer.
Driving Too Fast
Speaking of your speed, attempting to race or accelerate rapidly to your destination is also not a good idea, particularly if you’re going downhill while dragging large cargo. Fulfilling your need for speed while towing a trailer is dangerous for you and your vehicle since it’s one of the more frequent reasons for accidents.
Neglecting the Engine’s Temperature
Even if you have a top-rated diesel engine, you can still see a twisted cylinder head, broken pistons, and scarred cylinder walls due to overheating. This is why the engine needs a proper cooling-off period. Ideally, the temperature should never exceed 210 degrees Fahrenheit in the transmission, as almost any transmission fluid will rapidly deteriorate and glaze over the clutch material at 270 degrees Fahrenheit, leading to a scrapped transmission.
Grasping the most common towing mistakes new truck owners make ensures that your truck, trailer, and, more importantly, you remain in one piece. When in doubt, always play on the safer side to maintain peak performance for all your future towing jobs.
