wheel TOYOTA HIGHLANDER 2003 XU20 / 1.G Owner's Guide

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HITCHES
If you wish to install a trailer hitch, you
should consult with your Toyota dealer.
Use only a hitch recommended by the
hitch manufacturer and the one which
conforms to the total trailer weight
requirement.
The hitch must be bolted securely to
the vehicle frame and installed accord-
ing to the hitch manufacturer ’s instruc-
tions.
The hitch ball and king pin should have
a light coat of grease.
Toyota recommends removing the trail-
er hitch whenever you are not towing
a trailer to reduce the possib ility of
additional damage caused by the hitch
if your vehicle is struck from behind.
After removing the hitch, seal any
mounting holes in the vehicle body to
prevent entry of pollutants such as ex-
haust fumes, dirt, water, etc.
NOTICE
Do not use axlemounted hitches as
they can cause damage to the axle
housing, wheel bearings, wheels or
tires.
1 Trailer ball load rating
2 Ball diameter
3 Shank length
4 Shank diameter
TRAILER BALL
Follow these easy steps to properly deter-
mine the correct trailer ball for your ap-
plication:
1. Determine the correct trailer ball size for the trailer coupler. Most couplers
are stamped with the required trailer
ball size. The sizes you will most likely
find stamped on the coupler are:
Trailer class
Typical trailer ball size
III2—5/16 in.
II2 in.
I1—7/8 in.
2. Select the appropriate trailer ball to match or exceed the gross trailer
weight rating of the trailer. The trailer
ball load rating should be printed on
the top of the ball.
3. When mounted in the ball mount, the threaded ball shank must protrude be-
yond the bottom of the lock washer
and nut at least 2 threads. The trailer
ball shank must be matched to the ball
mount hole diameter size.

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TRAILER LIGHTS
Your vehicle is equipped with a wire
harness stored in the rear end under
body. Some models are fitted with a
socket for trailer lights under the rear
bumper. Use either of them to connect
and operate the trailer lights. However,
the trailer lights must comply with fed-
eral, state/provincial and local regula-
tions. See your local recreational ve-
hicle dealer or rental agency for the
correct type of wiring and relays for
your trailer. Check for correct operation
of the turn signals and stop lights each
time you hitch up. Direct splicing may
damage your vehicle’s electrical system
and cause a malfunction of your lights. BREAKIN SCHEDULE
Toyota recommends that you do not
tow a trailer with a new vehicle or a
vehicle with any new power train com-
ponent (engine, transmission, differen-
tial, wheel bearings, etc.) for the first
800 km (500 miles) of driving.
MAINTENANCE
If you tow a trailer, your vehicle will
require more frequent maintenance due
to the additional load. For this informa-
tion, please refer to the scheduled
maintenance information in the “Sched-
uled Maintenance Guide” or “Owner ’s
Manual Supplement”.
Retighten all fixing bolts of the towing
ball and bracket after approximately
1000 km (600 miles) of trailer driving.
PRETOWING SAFETY CHECK
Check that your vehicle remains level
when a loaded or unloaded trailer is
hitched. Do not drive if the vehicle has
an abnormal noseup or nosedown
condition, and check for improper
tongue load, overload, worn suspension
or other possible causes.
Make sure the trailer cargo is securely
loaded so that it cannot shift.
Check that your rear view mirrors con-
form to any applicable federal, state/
provincial or local regulations. If not,
install the rear view mirrors required
for towing purposes.
TRAILER TOWING TIPS
When towing a trailer, your vehicle will
handle differently than when not tow-
ing. The three main causes of vehicle
trailer accidents are driver error, exces-
sive speed and improper trailer loading.
Keep these in mind when towing:
Before starting out, check operation of
the lights and all vehicletrailer connec-
tions. After driving a short distance,
stop and recheck the lights and con-
nections. Before actually towing a trail-
er, practice turning, stopping and back-
ing with a trailer in an area away from
traffic until you learn the feel.

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Backing with a trailer is difficult and
requires practice. Grip the bottom of
the steering wheel and move your hand
to the left to move the trailer to the
left. Move your hand to the right to
move the trailer to the right. (This pro-
cedure is generally opposite to that
when backing without a trailer.) Also,
just turn the steering wheel a little at
a time, avoiding sharp or prolonged
turning. Have someone guide you when
backing to reduce the risk of an acci-
dent.
Because stopping distance may be in-
creased, vehicletovehicle distance
should be increased when towing a
trailer. For each 16 km/h (10 mph) of
speed, allow at least one vehicle and
trailer length between you and the ve-
hicle ahead. Avoid sudden braking as
you may skid, resulting in jackknifing
and loss of control. This is especially
true on wet or slippery surfaces.
Avoid jerky starts or sudden accelera-
tion.
Avoid jerky steering and sharp turns.
The trailer could hit your vehicle in a
tight turn. Slow down before making a
turn to avoid the necessity of sudden
braking.
Remember that when making a turn,
the trailer wheels will be closer than
the vehicle wheels to the inside of the
turn. Therefore, compensate for this by
making a larger than normal turning
radius with your vehicle.
Crosswinds and rough roads will ad-
versely affect handling of your vehicle
and trailer, causing sway. Pay attention
to the rear from time to time to pre-
pare yourself for being passed by large
trucks or buses, which may cause your
vehicle and trailer to sway. If swaying
happens, firmly grip the steering wheel
and reduce speed immediately but
gradually. Never increase speed. Steer
straight ahead. If you make no extreme
correction with the steering or brakes,
the vehicle and trailer will stabilize.
Be careful when passing other ve-
hicles. Passing requires considerable
distance. After passing a vehicle, do
not forget the length of your trailer and
be sure you have plenty of room be-
fore changing lanes.
In order to maintain engine braking effi-
ciency, do not use overdrive.
Because of the added load of the trail-
er, your vehicle’s engine may overheat
on hot days (at temperatures over
30C [85 F]) when going up a long or
steep grade with a trailer. If the engine
coolant temperature gauge indicates
overheating, immediately turn off the air
conditioning (if in use), pull off the road
and stop in a safe spot. Refer to “If
your vehicle overheats” on page 219 in
Section 4.
Always place wheel blocks under both
the vehicle and trailer wheels when
parking. Apply the parking brake firmly.
Put the transmission in “P”. Avoid park-
ing on a slope with a trailer, but if it
cannot be avoided, do so only after
performing the following:
1. Apply the brakes and hold.
2. Have someone place wheel blocks un- der both the vehicle and trailer wheels.
3. When the wheel blocks are in place, release your brakes slowly until the
blocks absorb the load.
4. Apply the parking brake firmly.
5. Shift into “P” and turn off the engine.

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When restarting out after parking on a
slope:
1. With the transmission in “P” position, start the engine. Be sure to keep the
brake pedal depressed.
2. Shift into gear.
3. Release the parking brake and brake pedal and slowly pull or back away
from the wheel blocks. Stop and apply
your brakes.
4. Have someone retrieve the blo cks.CAUTION
Do not exceed 72 km/h (45 mph) or
the posted towing speed limit,
whichever is lower. Because insta-
bility (swaying) of a towing vehicle
trailer combination usually in-
creases as the speed increases, ex-
ceeding 72 km/h (45 mph) may
cause loss of control.
Slow down and downshift before
descending steep or long downhill
grades. Do not make sudden down-
shifts.
Avoid holding the brake pedal down
too long or too frequently. This
could cause the brakes to overheat
and result in reduced braking effi-
ciency.
Improving fuel economy is easy—just take
it easy. It will help make your vehicle last
longer, too. Here are some specific tips
on how to save money on both fuel and
repairs:
Keep your tires inflated at the cor-
rect pressure. Underinflation causes
tire wear and wastes fuel. See page
267 in Section 72 for instructions.
Do not carry unneeded weight in
your vehicle. Excess weight puts a
heavier load on the engine, causing
greater fuel consumption.
Avoid lengthy warmup idling. Once
the engine is running smoothly, begin
driving—but gently. Remember, howev-
er, that on cold winter days this may
take a little longer.
Keep the automatic transmission
overdrive turned on when engine
braking is not required. Driving with
the overdrive off will reduce the fuel
economy. (For details, see “Automatic
transmission” on page 115 in Section
16.)
Accelerate slowly and smoothly.
Avoid jackrabbit starts. Get into high
gear as quickly as possible.
How to save fuel and make
your vehicle last longer

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Avoid long engine idling. If you have
a long wait and you are not in traffic,
it is better to turn off the engine and
start again later.
Avoid engine lugging or overrev-
ving. Use a gear position suitable for
the road on which you are travelling.
Avoid continuous speeding up and
slowing down. Stopandgo driving
wastes fuel.
Avoid unnecessary stopping and
braking. Maintain a steady pace. Try
to time the traffic signals so you only
need to stop as little as possible or
take advantage of through streets to
avoid traffic lights. Keep a proper dis-
tance from other vehicles to avoid sud-
den braking. This will also reduce wear
on your brakes.
Avoid heavy traffic or traffic jams
whenever possible.
Do not rest your foot on the brake
pedal. This causes premature wear,
overheating and poor fuel economy.
Maintain a moderate speed on high-
ways. The faster you drive, the greater
the fuel consumption. By reducing your
speed, you will cut down on fuel con-
sumption.
Keep the front wheels in proper
alignment. Avoid hitting the curb and
slow down on rough roads. Improper
alignment not only causes faster tire
wear but also puts an extra load on
the engine, which, in turn, wastes fuel.
Keep the bottom of your vehicle free
from mud, etc. This not only lessens
weight but also helps prevent corro-
sion.
Keep your vehicle tunedup and in
top shape. A dirty air cleaner, improp-
er valve clearance, dirty plugs, dirty oil
and grease,brakes not adjusted, etc. all
lower engine performance and contrib-
ute to poor fuel economy. For longer
life of all parts and lower operating
costs, keep all maintenance work on
schedule, and if you often drive under
severe conditions, see that your vehicle
receives more frequent maintenance.
(For scheduled maintenance informa-
tion, please refer to the “Scheduled
Maintenance Guide” or “Owner ’s Manu-
al Supplement”.)
CAUTION
Never turn off the engine to coast
down hills. Your power steering and
brake booster will not function with-
out the engine running. Also, the
emission control system operates
properly only when the engine is run-
ning.

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Stop the vehicle on a level firm
ground, firmly set the parking brake
and put the transmission in “P”.
Block the wheel diagonally opposite
to the one being changed if neces-
sary.
Make sure to set the jack properly
in the jack point. Raising the ve-
hicle with jack improperly posi-
tioned will damage the vehicle or
may allow the vehicle to fall off the
jack and cause personal injury.
Never get under the vehicle when
the vehicle is supported by the jack
alone.
Use the jack only for lifting your
vehicle during wheel changing.
Do not raise the vehicle with some-
one in the vehicle.
When raising the vehicle, do not
place any objects on top of or un-
derneath the jack.
Raise the vehicle only high enough
to remove and change the tire.
NOTICE
Do not continue driving with a de-
flated tire. Driving even a short dis-
tance can damage a tire and wheel
beyond repair.
1. Get the required tools and spare
tire.
1. Jack handle
2. Wheel nut wrench
3. Front towing eyelet
4. Jack
5. Spare tire
To prepare yourself for an emergency, you
should fam iliarize yourself with the use of
the jack, each of the tools and their stor-
age locations.
—Required tools and spare
tire

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Turn the jack joint by hand.
To remove: Turn the joint in direction 1
until the jack is free.
To store: Turn the joint in direction 2 until
the jack is firmly secured to prevent it
flying forward during a collision or s udden
braking.To remove the spare tire:
1. Hang the deck board on the weather- strip.
2. Remove the spare tire cover.
3. Loosen the bolt and remove it.2. Block the wheel diagonally opposite the flat tire to keep the vehicle from
rolling when it is j acked up.
When blocking the wheel, place a wheel
block in front of one of the front wheels
or behind one of the rear wheels.
—Blocking the wheel

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Steel wheels
Aluminium wheels
3. Remove the wheel ornament.
Pry off the wheel ornament, using the
beveled end of the wheel nut wrench as
shown.
CAUTION
Do not try to pull off the ornament by
hand. Take due care in handling the
ornament to avoid unexpected person-
al injury.
4. Loosen all the wheel nuts.
Always loosen the wheel nuts before rais-
ing the vehicle.
Turn the wheel nuts counterclockwise to
loosen. To get maximum leverage, fit the
wrench to the nut so that the handle is
on the right side, as shown above. Grab
the wrench near the end of the handle
and pull up on the handle. Be careful that
the wrench does not slip off the nut.
Do not remove the nuts yet—just unscrew
them about onehalf turn.
—Removing wheel ornament —Loosening wheel nuts

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CAUTION
Never use oil or grease on the bolts
or nuts. The nuts may loose and the
wheels may fall off, which could cau-
se a serious accident.
5. Position the jack at the correct jack
point as shown.
Make sure the jack is positioned on a
level and solid place.6. After making sure that no one is in the vehicle, raise it high enough so
that the spare tire can be installed.
Remember you will need more ground
clearance when putting on the spare tire
than when removing the flat tire.
To raise the vehicle, insert the jack handle
into the jack (it is a loose fit) and turn it
clockwise. As the jack touches the vehicle
and begins to lift, doublecheck that it is
properly positioned.
—Positioning the jack —Raising your vehicle

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CAUTION
Never get under the vehicle when the
vehicle is supported by the jack
alone.
7. Remove the wheel nuts and change
tires.
Lift the flat tire straight off and put it
aside.
Roll the spare wheel into position and
align the holes in the wheel with the bolts.
Then lift up the wheel and get at least the
top bolt started through its hole. Wiggle
the tire and press it back over the other
bolts.Before putting on wheels, remove any cor-
rosion on the mounting surfaces with a
wire brush or such. Installation of wheels
without good metaltometal contact at the
mounting surface can cause wheel nuts to
loosen and eventually cause a wheel to
come off while driving.
—Changing wheels