5 Tips for Towing Your Own Vehicle Safely
If you need to tow a broken down vehicle somewhere, you may be wondering how to do that safely. To prevent injuring yourself, your vehicle or other drivers, there are critical tips you need to keep in mind. Take a look at these ideas.
1. Make Sure You Use the Right Straps
When towing something, you need to ensure that the tow straps you select are able to handle the task. Most tow straps have weight limits, and you need to ensure that your vehicle is under that limit. Otherwise, you may need to use heavy duty towing chains.
2. Damper the Connection
When you connect the two vehicles, you may want to throw a coat or a small rug over the place where the straps connect to each other. That dampers the connection and prevents it from springing loose and hitting someone. If the tow straps break away from each other whilst a coat or other soft item is on the straps, the coat weighs down the two straps so that they don't swing out wildly.
3. Try Not to Stand Between the Vehicles
Once the two vehicles have been connected, make sure that you don't stand in between them. If the lead vehicle moves and tows the other vehicle forward, you may be smashed. Also, make sure to put ample space between the two vehicles. That prevents them from smashing into each other while you are driving.
4. Drive Slowly and Carefully
When you're finally ready to start towing, take the process slowly. It's easier to stop when you're driving slowly, and that applies to both vehicles. If you are driving too quickly and you slam on the brakes, the vehicle being towed may hit the vehicle doing the towing.
Also, when it's time to turn, remember that you need to take wide turns. After you do a few turns, you will be able to guage how wide you need to take future turns. Finally, make sure that you have a driver in the back car. They can steer and brake if necessary.
5. Hire a Professional
Towing a vehicle is not easy, and if you want to ensure that the process is safe, you may want to hire a professional. They can come to your site with a heavy duty tow truck, and they can tow vehicles of all sizes. To learn more, reach out to a towing professional today.
