1996 TOYOTA TACOMA ESP

11 5
HITCHES
Use only a weight carrying hitch de-
signed for the total trailer weight. Toyo-
ta does not recommend using a weight
distribution (load equalizing) hitch.
The hitch must be bolted securely to
the vehicle frame and installed accord-
ing to the hitch manufacturer's instruc- tions.
If using a fifth wheel hitch, the center
of the king pin must be forward of the
axis of the vehicle's rear wheels, and
installed according to the manufactur-
er's instructions.
The hitch ball and king pin should havea light coat of grease.
Toyota recommends that the trailer
hitch, except fifth wheel hitch, be re- moved when not towing to prevent in-jury and/or damage by the hitch in
event of a rear end collision. After re-moving the hitch, the installation area
should be sealed to prevent entry of exhaust fumes and mud.
Do not use an axle-mounting hitch
as it may cause damage to the axle
housing, wheel bearings, wheelsand/or tires.
NOTICE
BRAKES AND SAFETY CHAINS Toyota recommends trailers with brakes
that conform to any applicable federal
and state/provincial regulations.
A safety chain must always be used
between the towing vehicle and the
trailer. Leave sufficient slack in the
chain for turns. The chain should cross
under the trailer tongue to prevent the tongue from dropping to the ground in
case it becomes damaged or sepa-
rated. For correct safety chain proce-
dures, follow the hitch or trailer
manufacturer 's recommendations.
CAUTION
If the total trailer weight exceeds
453 kg (1000 lb.), trailer brakes are required.
Never tap into your vehicle's hy- draulic system as it would lower
its braking effectiveness.
Never tow a trailer without using a
safety chain securely attached to
both the trailer and the vehicle. If
damage occurs to the coupling
unit or hitch ball, there is danger of
the trailer wandering over into
another lane.!
TIRES Ensure that your vehicle's tires are
properly inflated.
The trailer tires should be inflated to
the pressure recommended by the
trailer manufacturer in respect to the
total trailer weight.
TRAILER LIGHTS Trailer lights must comply with federal,
state/provincial and local regulations. See your local recreational vehicle
dealer or rental agency for the correct type of wiring and relays for your trail-
er. Check for correct operation of the
turn signals and stop lights each time
you hitch up. Direct splicing may dam-
age your vehicle's electrical system
and cause a malfunction of your lights.
BREAK-IN SCHEDULE Toyota recommends that you do not
tow a trailer with a new vehicle or a ve-
hicle with any new power train compo-
nent (engine, transmission, differen- tial, wheel bearing, etc.) for the first
800 km (500 miles) of driving.

11 6MAINTENANCE
If you tow a trailer, your vehicle will re-
quire more frequent maintenance due
to the additional load. For this informa-
tion, please refer to the scheduled
maintenance information in the Own-
er 's Manual Supplement/Maintenance Scheduleº.
Retighten all fixing bolts of the towing
ball and bracket after approximately
1000 km (600 miles) of trailer driving.
PRE-T OWING 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 nose-up or nose-down
condition, and check for improper
tongue load, overload, worn suspen-
sion 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 regulation. If not,
install the rear view mirrors required
for towing purpose. 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 vehicle-trailer con-
nections. After driving a short dis-
tance, stop and recheck the lights and
connections. Before actually towing a
trailer, practice turning, stopping and
backing with a trailer in an area away
from traffic until you learn the feel.
Backing w ith a trailer is difficult and re-
quires 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 procedureis 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 back-
ing to reduce the risk of an accident.
Because stopping distance may be in-
creased, vehicle-to-vehicle distance
should be increased when towing a
trailer. For each 16 km/h (10 mph) ofspeed, 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. If your vehicle has manual trans-
mission, prevent excessive clutch slip-
page by keeping engine rpm low and
not racing the engine. Always start out
in first gear.
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 suddenbraking.
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.

Part 5Protecting your Toyota from corrosion
137
CORROSION
PREVENTION AND APPEARANCECARE
Protecting your Toyota from corrosion
Washing and waxing your
Toyota
Cleaning the interior
Toyota, through its diligent research, de-
sign and use of the most advanced
technology available, has done its part to
help prevent corrosion and has provided you with the finest quality vehicle
construction. Now, it is up to you. Proper
care of
your Toyota can help ensure long-
term corrosion prevention.
The most common causes of corro-
sion to your vehicle are: The accumulation of road salt, dirt and
moisture in hard-to-reach areas un- der the vehicle.
Chipping of paint, or undercoating
caused by minor accidents or by
stones and gravel.
Care is especially important if you live
in particular areas or operate your ve-
hicle under certain environmentalconditions: Road salt or dust control chemicals will
accelerate corrosion, as will the pres-
ence of salt in the air near the sea-
coast or in areas of industrial pollution.
High humidity accelerates corrosion
especially when temperatures rangejust above the freezing point.
Wetness or dampness to certain parts
of your vehicle for an extended period
of time, may cause corrosion even
though other parts of the vehicle may
be dry.
High temperatures will cause corro-
sion to those components of the ve-
hicle which are prevented from quick-
drying due to lack of proper ventilation.
The above signifies the necessity to keep
your vehicle, particularly the underside,
as clean as possible and to repair any
damage to paint or protective coatings as
soon as possible.
To help prevent corrosion on your
Toyota, follow these guidelines:
Wash your vehicle frequently. It is, of
course, necessary to keep your vehicle
clean by regular washing, but to preventcorrosion, the following points should be observed: If you drive on salted roads in the winter
or if you live near the ocean, you should
hose off the undercarriage at least once
a month to minimize corrosion.
High pressure water or steam is effec-
tive for cleaning the vehicle's under-
side and wheel housings. Pay particu-
lar attention to these areas as it is
difficult to see all the mud and dirt. It
will do more harm than good to simply
wet the mud and debris without remov-
ing them. The lower edge of doors,
rocker panels and frame members
have drain holes which should not be
allowed to clog with dirt as trapped wa-
ter in these areas can cause corrosion.

140
When cleaning the inside of thewindows, be careful not to scratch
or damage the heater wires on therear window.
NOTICE
Air conditioning control panel, car au-
dio, instrument panel, console panel,
and switches Use a soft damp cloth for cleaning.
Soak a clean soft cloth in water or luke-
warm water then lightly wipe off any dirt.

Do not use organic substances(solvents, kerosene, alcohol, gas-
oline, etc.) or alkaline or acidicsolutions. These chemicals cancause discoloring, staining or
peeling of the surface.
If you use cleaners or polishingagents, make sure their ingredi-
ents do not include the sub-stances mentioned above.
If you use a liquid car freshener,
do not spill the liquid onto the ve-hicle's interior surfaces. It maycontain the ingredients men-
tioned above. Immediately clean any spill using the method men-tioned above.
NOTICE
Leather Interior
The leather upholstery may be cleaned
with neutral detergent for wool. Remove dirt using a soft cloth dampened with 5% solution of neutral detergent for
wool. Then thoroughly wipe off all traces
of detergent with a clean damp cloth.
After cleaning or whenever any part of the
leather gets wet, dry with a soft clean
cloth. Allow the leather to dry in a venti-
lated shaded area.

If a stain should fail to come outwith a neutral detergent, apply a
cleaner that does not contain anorganic solvent.
Never use organic substancessuch as benzine, alcohol or gaso-line, or alkaline or acid solutionsfor cleaning the leather as these
could cause discoloring.
Use of a nylon brush or syntheticfiber cloth, etc. may scratch the
fine grained surface of the leather.
NOTICE
Mildew may develop on soiled
leather upholstery. Be especially
careful to avoid oil spots. Try tokeep your upholstery alwaysclean.
Long exposure to direct sunlight
may cause the leather surface toharden and shrink. Keep your ve-
hicle in a shaded area, especiallyin the summer.
The interior of your vehicle is apt to heat up on hot summer days, so
avoid placing on the upholsteryitems made of vinyl or plastic or
containing wax as these tend to stick to leather when warm.
Improper cleaning of the leatherupholstery could result in discol-
oration or staining.
If you have any questions about the
cleaning of your Toyota, your local To-
yota dealer will be pleased to answer them.

Part 6Maintenance requirements
141
VEHICLE
MAINTENANCE AND CARE
Maintenance requirements
General maintenance
Does your vehicle need repairing?
For scheduled maintenance information, please refer to the
separate Owner's ManualSupplement/MaintenanceScheduleº.
Your Toyota vehicle has been designed
for fewer maintenance requirements with longer service intervals to save both your
time and money. However, each regular
maintenance, as well as day-to-day
care, is more important than ever before
to ensure smooth, and trouble-free, safe,
and economical drivings.
It is the owner's responsibility to make sure
the specified maintenance, including
general maintenance service, is per-
formed. Note that both the new vehicle
and emission control system warranties
specify that proper maintenance and care
must be performed. See Owner's Guide,
Owner 's Manual Supplement or W arranty
Booklet for complete warranty informa-tion.
General maintenance General maintenance items are those
day-to-day care practices that are impor-
tant to your vehicle for proper operation.
It is the owner's responsibility to ensure
that the general maintenance items are
performed regularly.
These checks or inspections can be done
either by yourself or a qualified technician,
or if you prefer, your Toyota dealer will be
pleased to do them at a nominal cost. Scheduled maintenance
The scheduled maintenance items listed
in the Owner's Manual Supplement/
Maintenance Scheduleº are those re-
quired to be serviced at regular intervals.
For details of your maintenance schedule,
read the separate Owner's Manual Sup- plement/Maintenance Scheduleº.
It is recommended that any replace-
ment parts used for maintenance or
for the repair of the emission control
system be Toyota supplied.
The owner may elect to use non-Toyo- ta supplied parts for replacement pur-
poses without invalidating the emis-
sion control system warranty.
However, use of replacement parts
which are not of equivalent quality
may impair the effectiveness of the
emission control systems.
You may also elect to have mainte-
nance, replacement, or repair of the
emission control devices and system
performed by any automotive repair
establishment or individual without
invalidating this warranty. See Own-
er's Guide, Owner's Manual Supple-
ment or Warranty Booklet for complete
warranty information.

150
If you perform maintenance by your-
self, be sure to follow the correct pro- cedure given in this part.
You should be aware that improper or in- complete servicing may result in operat-
ing problems.
Performing do-it-yourself maintenance
during the warranty period may affect your warranty coverage. Read the sepa-
rate Toyota Warranty statement for details
and suggestions.
This part gives instructions only for those
items that are relatively easy for an owner
to perform. As explained in Part 6, there
are still a number of items that must be
done by a qualified technician with special
tools.
For information on tools and parts for do-
it-yourself maintenance, see Parts andtoolsº.
Utmost care should be taken when work-
ing on your vehicle to prevent accidental
injury. Here are a few pr ecautions that you
should be especially careful to observe:
Fuse locations
Do-it-yourself service precautions

188Traction A, B, C
ÐThe traction grades,
from highest to lowest, are A, B, and C,
and they represent the tire's ability to stop
on wet pavement as measured under
controlled conditions on specified govern-
ment test surfaces of asphalt and con-
crete. A tire marked C may have poor trac-
tion performance.
Warning: The traction grade assigned to this tire is based on braking (straight
ahead) traction tests and does not include
cornering (turning) traction.
Temperature A, B, C ÐThe temperature
grades are A (the highest), B, and C, rep-
resenting the tire's resistance to the gen-
eration of heat and its ability to dissipate heat when tested under controlled condi- tions on a specified indoor laboratory test
wheel. Sustained high temperature can
cause the material of the tire to degener- ate and reduce tire life, and excessive
temperature can lead to sudden tire fail-
ure. The grade C corresponds to a level of
performance which all passenger car tires
must meet under the Federal Motor Ve-
hicle Safety Standard No. 109. Grades B
and A represent higher levels of perfor-mance on the laboratory test wheel than
the minimum required by law. Warning: The temperature grade for this
tire is
established for a tire that is properly
inflated and not overloaded. Excessive speed, underinflation, or excessive load- ing, either separately or in combination, can cause heat buildup and possible tirefailure. This
information has been prepared in ac-
cordance with regulation issued by the
National Highway Traffic Safety Adminis-
tration of the U.S. Department of Trans-
portation. It provides the purchasers and/
or prospective purchasers of Toyota
vehicles with information on truck-camp-
er loading. Your Toyota dealer will help an-
swer any questions you may have as you
read this information.
Camper informationÐ