1996 Chevrolet Suburban Owner's Manual - Page 228

Turn Signals When Towing a Trailer When you tow a trailer, your vehicle has to have extra wiring (included in the optional trailering package). The green arrows on your instrument panel will flash whenever you signal a turn or lane change.Properly hooked up, the trailer lamps will also flash, telling other drivers you'reabout to turn, change lanes or stop. When towing a trailer, the green arrows on your instrument panel will flash for turns even if the bulbs on the trailer areburned out. Thus,you may think drivers behind you are seeing your signal when they are not. It's important to check occasionally to be sure the trailer bulbs are still working. Driving On Grades Reduce speed and shift to a lower gear before you start down a long or steep downgrade. If you don't shift down,you might have to use your brakes so much that they would get hot and no longer work well. On a long uphill grade, shift down and reduce your speed to around 45 mph (70 k d h ) to reducethe possibility of engine and transmission overheating. If you have an automatic transmissionyou should use DRIVE ( 3 )(or, as you need to, a lower gear) when towing a trailer. Operating your vehicle in DRIVE (3) when towing a trailer will minimize heat build-up and extend the lifeof your transmission. If you have a manual transmission and you are towing a trailer, it's better not to use FIFTH ( 5 ) gear. Just drive in FOURTH (4) gear (or, as you need to, a lower gear). When towing at high altitude on steep uphill grades, considerthe following: Engine coolant will boil at a lower temperature than at normal altitudes. If you turn your engine off immediately after towing at high altitude on steep uphill grades, your vehicle may show signs similarto engine overheating. To avoid this, let the engine run while parked (preferably on level ground) with the automatic transmission in PARK (P) (or the manual transmission out of gear and the parking brake applied) for few a minutes before turning the engine off.If you do get the overheat warning, see "Engine Overheating" in the Index. Parking on Hills You really should not park your vehicle, with a trailer attached, on a hill. If something goes wrong, your rig could start to move. People can be injured, and both your vehicle and the trailer can be damaged. But if you ever have to park your rig on a hill, here's how to do it: 1. Apply your regular brakes, but don't shift into PARK (P) yet, or in gear for a manual transmission.