Proper trailer setup and maintenance are the keys to a successful tow trip. So before you head out to the road, make sure your truck and trailer are roadworthy. Where did I learn to tow a trailer? Or how to set one up? I learned the hard way, by towing a succession of second-hand rigs with whatever I had that had the power to pull. Some of these truck and trailer setups were really evil-handling beasts, and I was lucky to bring them (and myself) home in one piece. Don't confuse driving your car or truck with towing a trailer. The skill set overlaps only slightly. Everything takes longer when you are towing-speeding up, slowing down and cornering. Remember, you've got a second center of mass 10 or 20 ft behind you, and it's easy for the tail wag the dog. Aside from just physically getting the trailer hitched to the truck, here's a list of a few things to watch. We sure needed them for the heavy lifting during our exclusive comparison testpitting the new Ford F-150 and Dodge Ram against the competition. 1. Proper Tongue Weight Set tongue weight to 10 to 15 percent of the trailer's total [...]
