towing DODGE SPRINTER 2005 1.G User Guide

STARTING AND OPERATING 189
5
Towing a TrailerThere are many different laws, including speed limit
restrictions, having to do with trailer towing. Make
sure that your vehicle-trailer combination will be legal,
not only for where you reside, but also for where you
will be driving. A good source for this information can
be the police or local authorities.
Before you start driving with the trailer, check the
trailer hitch, break-away switch, safety chains,
electrical connections, lighting and tires. Also adjust
the mirrors to permit unobstructed view beyond rear
of trailer.
If the trailer has electric brakes, start your vehicle and
trailer moving slowly, and then apply only the trailer
brake controller by hand to be sure the brakes are
working properly.
When towing a trailer, check occasionally to be sure
that the load is secure, and that lighting and trailer
brakes (if so equipped) are functioning properly.
Always secure items in the trailer to prevent load shifts
while driving. Take into consideration that when towing a trailer, the
handling characteristics are different and less stable
from those when operating the vehicle without a
trailer. It is important to avoid sudden maneuvers. The
vehicle and trailer combination is heavier, and
therefore is limited in acceleration and climbing ability,
and requires longer stopping distances. It is more
p r o n e t o r e a c t i n g t o s i d e w i n d g u s t s , a n d r e q u i r es m o r e
sensitive steering input.
In order to gain skill and an understanding of the
vehicle’s behavior, you should practice turning, stopping
and backing up in an area which is free from traffic.If possible, do not brake abruptly, but rather engage
the brake slightly at first to
permit the trailer to activate
its brake. Then increase the braking force.

190 STARTING AND OPERATING
WARNING!
Take into consideration that when towing a trail-
er, the handling characteristics are different and
less stable from those when operating the vehicle
without a trailer.
It is important to avoid sudden maneuvers.
Sudden maneuvers may lead to loss of control
over the vehicle-trailer combination. This could
cause an accident resulting in property damage or
injury to you or others.
CAUTION!
If the transmission hunts between gears on
inclines, manually shift to a lower gear (select
"4",
"3", "2" or
"1"). A lower gear and reduction of
speed reduces the chance of engine overloading
and / or overheating.
When going down a long hill, shift into a lower
gear and use the engine’s braking effect. Avoid
riding the brakes, thus overheating the vehicle
and trailer brakes.
If the engine coolant rises to an extremely high
temperature (coolant temperature needle
approaching the red zone) when the air
conditioner is on, turn off the air conditioner.
Engine coolant heat can be additionally vented by
opening the windows, switching the climate
control fan speed to high and setting the
temperature control to the maximum hot position.

WHAT TO DO IN EMERGENCIES
6
CONTENTS

Hazard Warning Flasher Switch . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196


Fire Extinguisher (Optional) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197


Vehicle Tool Kit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197


Changing the Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
Spare Wheel Location . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200


Jack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
Using the Jack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203


Removing a Wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206


Installing a Wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206


Jump Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209


Towing the Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
If the Engine is Damaged . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
If the Transmission is Damaged . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
If the Front Axle is Damaged . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
If the Rear Axle is Damaged . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212

WHAT TO DO IN EMERGENCIES 211
6
TOWING THE VEHICLE
*Vehicle Type 2500 only
WARNING!
Do not tow the vehicle if the key cannot be turned
in the ignition lock.
If the key cannot be turned, the ignition lock re-
mains locked and the vehicle cannot be steered.
With the engine not running there is no power
assistance for the braking and steering systems.
In this case, it is important to keep in mind that a
considerably higher degree of effort is necessary
to brake and steer the vehicle.
The vehicle must not be towed with the front axle
raised and the key in position 2 in the ignition
lock as the drive wheels could then lock due to the
acceleration skid control (ASR) or the optional
Electronic Stability Program (ESP)
*.

212 WHAT TO DO IN EMERGENCIESIf the Engine is DamagedFor towing distances up to 30 miles (about 50 km)
 Shift gear selector lever to "N" position.
 Do not exceed a towing speed of 30 mph (50 km / h).
For towing distances greater than 30 miles (about
50 km)
 Remove the propeller shafts leading to the drive axles.
The vehicle can be towed without restriction.If the Transmission is Damaged Remove the propeller shafts leading to the drive
axles.
If the Front Axle is Damaged Raise the front axle.
 Observe the same towing restrictions as for engine damage.IftheRearAxleisDamagedRaise the rear axle.
NOTE: Comply with local legal regulations regarding
towing vehicles.

INDEX 285
10
Relay Assignment, Standard Equipment . . . . . . . . . 242
Remote Keyless Entry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Replacing Batteries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Unlocking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Removing a Wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
Replacing Wiper Blades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230
Reporting safety Defects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275
Reserve Fuel Indicator Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Residual Engine Heat Utilization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Residual Engine Heat Utilization (REST) . . . . . . . . 122
Restraints, Occupant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Retrofitting Seat Mounting Cups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Reversing Aid Audible Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Ribbed V-Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222
Roof Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
RPMs, Constant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143SSafety Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Seat Belt Warning Lamp and Airbag Malfunction . . 44
Seat Belts Belt Tensioners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Fastening and Removing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Height Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Seat Heater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Seats Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Armrest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Driver’s and Front Passenger’s Seat . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Folding Seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Head Restraint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Heater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Lumbar Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Rear Seat Bench . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Security System with Towing and Passenger
Compartment Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Audible Alarm. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Switching off the Alarm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Visual Alarm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Service Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217 Disposal of Service Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218
Skid Control, Acceleration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164

286 INDEXSliding Door . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Snow Chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Spare Wheel Location . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Special Maintenance Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Speed Control. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Sprinter Original Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
SRS Malfunction Indicator Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Standard Fuse and Relay Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
Starter Switch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Starting the Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Stopping the Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Suggestions For Obtaining Service For Your Vehicle .
272
Sun RoofElectrical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Mechanical Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Sun Roof, Electrical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Switch Locations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Switch,Starter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13TTachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99, 101
Telephone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84 Tie Down Rings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Tire Grip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Tire Pressure Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Tire Pressures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Tires
Changing the Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
Comfort Tire Pressures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Hydroplaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Installing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
Jack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
Pressure Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Removing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
Snow Chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Spare Wheel Location . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Tire Grip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Tire Pressures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Tire Pressures Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Tires, Wheels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Towing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Towing a Trailer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Towing Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

INDEX 287
10
Switching off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Towing Protection and Passenger Compartment
Protection Switch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Towing the Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211 If the Engine is Damaged. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
If the Front Axle is Damaged . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
If the Rear Axle is Damaged . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
If the Transmission is Damaged . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Trailer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Attaching a Trailer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Checking Weights of Vehicle and Trailer . . . . . . 188
Electrical Connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Loading a Trailer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
Parking a Trailer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Towing a Trailer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Trailer Hitches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Vehicle and Trailer Weights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
Transmission, Automatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Trip Meter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Two Way Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
UUsing the Jack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203VVehicle / Engine Emission Label . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Vehicle Alteration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
Vehicle and Trailer Weights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
Vehicle Loading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Vehicle Safety Certification Label . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Vehicle Tool Kit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
Vehicle Washing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
Ventilation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Ventilation, Heating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116WWading Capability. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
Warning Buzzer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100, 153
Warnings and Cautions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Warranty Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275
Water in Fuel Indicator Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Wheels and Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Window Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235
Window Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 Electric . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Mechanical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74