How to Back Up Your Trailer
One of the more challenging tasks you have to accomplish when towing a trailer is reversing. While backing up your car by itself is easy enough to master, a trailer adds in a whole new dimension to the process and failure to do it properly can result in your trailer jackknifing in the opposite direction or getting stuck at a weird angle that’s hard to straighten out again. You might even accidentally back into something if you’re not careful!
So how do you back up a trailer? Flat Rock Trailers in Hewitt is your Texas trailer dealer, serving Killeen and Waco. This how-to guide to backing up your trailer should help you with all that tricky reversing so that you can tow with confidence.
Hitch With Care
Always make sure that your trailer is securely hitched to your towing vehicle before attempting to drive at all! Use towing chains crossed in an X shape underneath the tongue of your trailer’s hitch to make sure that the trailer stays attached even if the hitch comes apart. Double-check your hitch connection to determine that it’s secure. This will help you to relax while trying to reverse.
Change Hand Placement
While your average driving manual will have you place your hands at the 10 o’clock and 2 o’clock positions on your steering wheel, this is somewhat counterintuitive when trying to reverse your trailer. Place your hands at the bottom, around 8 o’clock and 4 o’clock instead. As you turn the wheel with your left hand moving upwards, the trailer will move to the left, and as you move the wheel with your right hand, the trailer will move to the right.
Go Slowly
Trying to reverse quickly is only going to end in problems. Even if you’re in a hurry, take your time and go slowly as you reverse, especially with a smaller trailer. A small trailer responds faster to your maneuvers than a large trailer does, so you have to be ready to readjust how you’re reversing.
Get a Spotter
Having someone stand outside of your vehicle to watch you back up your trailer can be really helpful. Have them give you hand signals or shout directions if they think you’re going to hit something or your reversing angle isn’t correct.
Put in Practice
If you really want to become confident with reversing your trailer, take your hitched-up trailer to an empty parking lot or other open area and set up some cones to mimic a parking space that you want to reverse into. Practice reversing (either alone or with your spotter helping you) until you feel like it’s second nature.
Looking to purchase a new trailer? Stop by our dealership in Hewitt, TX, today to check out our wide range of new and used trailers for sale. Flat Rock Trailers proudly serves our customers coming from Waco and Killeen, TX.