1997 TOYOTA RAV4 length

31
Inspect the belt system periodical-
ly. Check for cuts, fraying and
loose parts. Damaged parts
should be replaced. Do not disas- semble or modify the system.
Keep the belts clean and dry. If
they need cleaning, use a mild
soap solution or lukewarm water.
Never use bleach, dye, or abrasive
cleaners-they may severely weak-
en the belts.
Replace the belt assembly (includ-
ing bolts) if it has been used in a
severe impact. The entire assem-
bly should be replaced even if
damage is not obvious.
Adjust the seat as needed (front seats only) and sit up straight and well back
in the seat. To fasten your belt, pull it
out of the retractor and insert the tab
into the buckle.
You will hear a click when the tab locks into the buckle.
The seat belt length automatically adjusts
to your size and the seat position.
The retractor will lock the belt during a
sudden stop or on impact. It also may lock
if you lean forward too quiclky. A slow, easy motion will allow the belt to extend,
and you can move around freely. If the seat belt cannot be pulled out of the
retractor,
firmly pull the belt and release it.
You will then be able to smoothly pull the
belt out of the retractor.
When a passenger's shoulder belt is com-
pletely extended and is then retracted
even slightly, the belt is locked in that posi-
tion and cannot be extended. This feature
is used to hold the child restraint system
securely. (For details, see Child restraintº
in this chapter.) To free the belt again, fully
retract the belt and then pull the belt out
once more.
ÐFront seat belts and rear outside seat belts

34
Sit up straight and well back in the
seat. To fasten your belt, insert the tab
into the buckle.
You will hear a click when the tab locks into the buckle.
If the belt is not long enough for you, hold the tab at a right angle to the belt and pull
on the tab.
CAUTION!
After inserting the tab, make sure
the tab and buckle are locked and
that the belt is not twisted.
Do not insert coins, clips, etc. in the
buckle as this may prevent you
from properly latching the tab and buckle.
If the seat belt does not function
normally, immediately contact your
Toyota dealer. Do not use the seat
until the seat belt is fixed. It cannot
protect an adult occupant or your
child from injury.
Remove excess length of the belt and adjust the belt position.
To shorten the belt, pull the free end of the belt. Position the lap belt as low as possible on your hips-not on your waist, then adjust it
to a snug fit.
CAUTION!
High-positioned and loose-fitting
lap belts could cause severe injuries due to sliding under the lap belt dur-
ing a collision. Keep the lap belt
positioned as low on hips as pos-sible.
ÐRear center seat belt (4-door models)

35
To release the belt, press the buckle-
release button.The rear seat belts can be stowed
when not in use.
Seat belts must be stowed before you fold
the seatback. (See Rear seats-Folding
up rear seatsº in this chapter.) If your seat belt cannot be fastened se- curely because it is not long enough, a
personalized seat belt extender is avail-
able from your Toyota dealer free of charge.
Please contact your local Toyota dealer
so that the dealer can order the proper re-
quired length for the extender. Bring the heaviest
coat you expect to wear for prop-
er measurement and selection of length.
Additional ordering information is avail-
able at your Toyota dealer.
ÐStowing the rear seat belts (4-door models)
ÐSeat belt extender

126
TIRES
Ensure that your vehicle's tires are
properly inflated. See Chapter 7-2 forinstructions.
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 correcttype 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. MAINTENANCE
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, ex-
cessive speed and improper trailer
loading.
Keep these in mind when tow-
ing: 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.
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.

127

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 sudden braking.
Backing w ith a trailer is difficult and re-
quires practice. Grip the bottom of thesteering 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 procedure 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 back-
ing to reduce the risk of an accident.
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 atten-
tion to the rear from time to time to pre-
pare yourself for being passed by largetrucks 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 sta- bilize.
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 ef-
ficiency, do not use fifth gear (manual
transmission or overdrive (automatic transmission).
Because of the added load of the trail-
er, your vehicle's engine may overheat
on hot days (at temperatures over30 5C [85 5F]) when going up a long or steep
grade with a trailer. If the engine
coolant termperatue 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 overheatsº in Part 4 ofthis manual.
Always place wheel blocks under both
the vehicle and trailer wheels whenparking. Apply the parking brake firm-
ly. Put the transmission in Pº (auto-
matic) or in first or reverse (manual).
Avoid parking on a slope with a trailer, but if it cannot be avoided, do so onlyafter 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 frimly.
5. Shift into first or reverse (manual) or Pº (automatic) and turn off the engine.

194
2-door models4-door models
215/70R16 tires235/60R16 tires215/70R16 tires235/60R16 tires
Overall length mm (in.)3740 (147.2)3755 (147.8)4150 (163.4)4165 (164.0)
Overall width mm (in.)1695 (66.7)1760 (69.3)1695 (66.7)1760 (69.3)
Overall height mm (in.)1655 (65.2)*1
1645 (64.8) *21636 (64.4)1660 (65.4)*1
1650 (65.0) *21640 (64.6
)
Wheelbase mm (in.)2200 (86.6)2200 (86.6)2410 (94.9)2410 (94.9)
Front tread mm (in.)1460 (57.5)1480 (58.3)1460 (57.5)1480 (58.3)
Rear tread mm (in.)1465 (57.7)*3
1470 (57.9) *41490 (58.7)1465 (57.7)*3
1470 (57.9) *41490 (58.7)
Vehicle capacity weight
(occupants + luggage) kg(lb)
720 (1588)
801 (1766)*3
794 (1751) *4

*1
:Unladen vehicle (four-wheel drive models)
*2
:Unladen vehicle (two-wheel drive models)
*3
:Four-wheel drive models
*4
:Two-wheel drive models
Dimensions and weight