During towing, among the factors involved are the towing capacity of both vehicles, the type of trailer towing and the towed vehicle. The maximum amount of weight towed should be in line with the vehicles towing capacity for safety purposes. The maximum weight the vehicle can carry safely is used to determine the gross combination weight of the vehicle then used to determine the towing limit. The vehicle occupants, water tanks and any other personal cargo must be considered together with a proper tongue weight. The right amount of weight of the trailer that is pressing on the towing vehicle referred to as the tongue weight reduces the risk of trailer accidents.
Acceleration
Increasing the mass of the vehicle or speeding increases the momentum of the vehicle while its ability to resist change decreases. Bringing the vehicle to a complete stop will, therefore, require more energy and time which could be tragic in emergencies. Downshifting of gears could go a long way in ensuring control of your vehicle. Additionally, more effort has to be put to accelerate a larger mass when towing. More time and energy is required for acceleration as compared to when the vehicle is on normal circumstances. Speeding could damage your vehicle, especially when going downhill as it will make control more difficult.
Swaying
Among some of the problems that could result in the swaying of a vehicle is unbalanced load and overloading. This could have serious implications on the stability of a vehicle if the towing capacity is not adhered to. Swaying could lead to loss of control of the towing vehicle rocking the tow vehicle resulting in an accident. Therefore cautious speeds must be observed and correctional factors applied once swaying is observed. Arranging heavier items toward the front of the vehicle helps to create a balanced load and one that is easy to control.
Damage
There are various towed cars that cannot travel on their four wheels without damaging their transmission. The safety of the vehicle to travel with four wheels down must be ensured before using a tow bar. Front-wheel vehicles with manual transmission are mostly safe to be towed with four wheels down. It is recommendable to confirm with the manufacturer if a vehicle is convenient for such travel. Rear-wheel, four-wheel and all-wheel vehicles may require disconnection of the drive shaft of the vehicle before towing with rear wheels down. Not all the towing companies have the complete technical knowledge of towing, read the post about preventing problems from exceeding towing capacity to ensure everything goes well.