2004 TOYOTA SEQUOIA towing

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To release the concave end tab, insert the
key into the hole on buckle 1 (with light
gray buckle−release button) and allow the
belt to retract.CAUTION
Do not use the center seat belt of the
third seats with either buckle re-
leased. Fastening only the shoulder
belt or lap belt may cause severe per-
sonal injury in case of sudden brak-
ing or a collision.
Second
Third
—Stowing seat belt buckles of
t h e seco n d an d th ird seat s

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The seat belt buckles of the second
and third seats can be stowed when
not in use.
Seat belt buckles must be stowed before
you fold the seat back. (See “—Tumbling
second seats for luggage space” on page
47, “—Tumbling third seats for luggage
space” on page 50 and “—Removing third
seats” on page 53 in this Section.)
STOWING THE CENTER SEAT BELT OF
THE THIRD SEATS
To stow the center seat belt of the third
seats, pull the seat belt out of its cov-
er. It will automatically roll back part-
way. Roll the seat belt backward and
insert it into the slot of its cover as
shown above. Make sure the tabs are
securely locked in the cover.
Seat belt must be stowed before you fold
the seatback. (See “—Tumbling third seats
for luggage space” on page 50 or “—Re-
moving third seats” on page 53 in this
Section.)
NOTICE
Stow the center seat belt of the third
seats except when you are wearing it.
—Stowing the center seat belt
of the third seats

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Idling for a long period with the air
conditioning on in stop−and− go traffic.
Towing a trailer.
NOTICE
Do not remove the thermostat in
the engine cooling system as this
may cause the engine to overheat.
The thermostat is designed to con-
trol the flow of coolant to keep the
temperature of the engine within
the specified operating range.
 Do not continue driving with an
overheated engine. See “If your ve-
hicle overheats” on page 332 in
Section 4.
Normal
driving
Idling
The oil pressure gauge indicates engine
oil pressure when the ignition switch is
on. Check it while driving to make sure
that the needle is in the proper range.
If the oil pressure should stay below the
normal range, pull off the road to a safe
place and stop the engine immediately.
Call a Toyota dealer or qualified repair
shop for assistance.
Oil pressure may not build up when the
oil level is too low. The oil pressure
gauge is not designed to indicate oil level,
and the oil level must be checked using
the level dipstick.
NOTICE
Do not drive the vehicle with the oil
pressure below the normal range until
the cause is fixed—it may ruin the
engine.
Oil pressure gauge

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(b) Overdrive switch
You can select either third gear (with
overdrive off) or fourth gear (with over-
drive on) by pushing this switch.
To turn the overdrive off, push the switch.
The “O/D OFF” indicator light should come
on. To turn the overdrive on again, push
the switch again. The “O/D OFF” indicator
light should go off.
Always drive your vehicle with the over-
drive on for better fuel economy and
quieter driving.
If the engine is turned off when the over-
drive is off and restarted, the overdrive
will be on automatically.When the cruise control is being used,
even if you downshift the transmission by
pushing and releasing the overdrive
switch, engine braking will not be enabled
because the cruise control is not can-
celled.
For ways to decrease the vehicle speed,
see “Cruise control” on page 159 in this
Section.
(c) Normal driving
1. Start the engine as instructed in “How to start the engine” on page 310 in
Section 3. The transmission must be in
“P” or “N”.
When the front drive control lever is in
“L4” (low −speed position, four −wheel
drive), the driving pattern selector setting
has no effect on gear shift timing. (See
“Four −wheel drive system” on page 147 in
this Section for information of the front
drive control lever.)
2. With your foot holding down the brake pedal, shift the selector lever to “D”.
When the lever is in the “D” position, the
automatic transmission system will select
the most suitable gear for running condi-
tions such as normal cruising, hill climb-
ing, hard towing, etc. Always turn the overdrive on for better
fuel economy and quieter driving. If the
engine coolant temperature is low or when
the front drive control lever is in “L4”
(low
−speed position, four −wheel drive), the
transmission will not shift into the over-
drive gear even with the overdrive on.
(See “Four −wheel drive system” on page
147 in this Section for information of the
front drive control lever.)
CAUTION
Never put your foot on the accelera-
tor pedal while shifting.
3. Release the parking brake and brake pedal. Depress the accelerator pedal
slowly for smooth starting.
If the automatic locking operation linked to
shift lever position is set, all doors are
automatically locked when the shift lever
is moved out of “P” position after the
ignition switch is turned to the “ON” posi-
tion and all the doors are closed. For
details, see “—Automatic door locking and
unlocking functions” on page 16 in Section
1 −2.

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NOTICE
Be careful not to overrev the en-
gine. Watch the tachometer to keep
engine rpm from going into the red
zone. The approximate maximum al-
lowable speed for each position is
given above for your reference:
Twowheel drive models “2” 110 km/h (68 mph) . . . . . . .
“L” 60 km/h (38 mph) . . . . . . . .
Fourwheel drive models Front drive control lever in “H”
(2WD) or “H” (4WD)“2” 110 km/h (68 mph) . . . . . . .
“L” 60 km/h (38 mph) . . . . . . . .
Front drive control lever in “L4” “2” 45 km/h (28 mph) . . . . . . . .
“L” 25 km/h (16 mph) . . . . . . . .
 Do not continue hill climbing or
hard towing for a long time in the
“2” or “L” position. This may cause
severe automatic transmission dam-
age from overheating. To prevent
such damage, “D” position should
be used in hill climbing or hard
towing.
(f) Backing up
1. Bring the vehicle to a complete stop.
2. With the brake pedal held down with your foot, shift the selector lever to the
“R” position.
NOTICE
Never shift into reverse while the ve-
hicle is moving.
(g) Parking
1. Bring the vehicle to a complete stop.
2. With the brake pedal pressed down, fully depress the parking brake pedal
to apply the parking brake securely.
3. With the brake pedal pressed down, shift the selector lever to the “P” posi-
tion.
CAUTION
Never attempt to move the selector
lever into “P” position under any cir-
cumstances while the vehicle is mov-
ing. Serious mechanical damage and
loss of vehicle control may result.
If the automatic unlocking operation linked
to shift lever position is set, all doors are
automatically unlocked when the selector
lever is moved to “P” position after the
ignition switch is turned to “ON” position.
For details, see “—Automatic door locking
and unlocking functions” on page 16 in
Section 1 −2.
(h) Good driving practice
If the transmission repeatedly shifts up
and down between third gear and over-
drive when climbing a gentle slope, the
overdrive should be turned off. Be sure
to turn the switch on immediately after-
ward.
When towing a trailer, in order to main-
tain engine braking efficiency, do not
use overdrive.
CAUTION
Always keep your foot on the brake
pedal while stopped with the engine
running. This prevents the vehicle
from creeping.

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Vehicle load limits include total load
capacity, seating capacity, towing ca-
pacity and cargo capacity. Follow the
load limits shown below.
Total load capacity: 567 kg (1250 lb.)
Total load capacity means com-
bined weight of occupants, cargo
and luggage. Tongue load is in-
cluded when trailer towing.
Seating capacity: Vehicles without third seats: Total 5 (Front 2, Rear 3)
Vehicles with third seats: Total 8 (Front 2, Rear 6)
Seating capacity means the maxi-
mum number of occupants whose
weight is supposed to be 68 kg (150
lb.) per person. Depending on the
weight of person, the seating ca-
pacity given may exceed the total
load capacity.
NOTICE
Even if the number of occupants
are within the seating capacity,
do not exceed the total load ca-
pacity.
Towing capacity: Tw o −wheel drive models
2948 kg (6500 lb.)
Four −wheel drive models
2812 kg (6200 lb.)
Towing capacity means the maxi-
mum gross trailer weight (trailer
weight plus its cargo weight) that
your vehicle is able to tow.
Cargo capacity
Cargo capacity may increase or de-
crease depending on the size (weight)
and the number of occupants. For de-
tails, see “Capacity and distribution”
that follows.
CAUTION
Do not apply the load more than
each load limit. That may cause
not only damage to the tires, but
also deterioration to the steering
ability and braking ability, which
may cause an accident.
When stowing cargo or luggage in the
vehicle, observe the following:  Put cargo or luggage in the lug-
gage compartment when at all
possible. Be sure all items are se-
cured in place.
 Be careful to keep the vehicle bal-
anced. Locating the weight as far
forward as possible helps maintain
balance.
 For better fuel economy, do not
carry unneeded weight.
CAUTION
To prevent cargo or l uggage
from sliding forward during
braking, do not stack anything
in the luggage compartment
higher than the seatbacks.
Keep cargo or luggage low, as
close to the floor as possible.
Vehicle load limits Cargo and luggage—
—Stowage precautions

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Never allow anyone to ride in
the luggage compartment. It is
not designed for passengers.
They should ride in their seats
with their seat belts properly
fastened. Otherwise, they are
much more likely to suffer seri-
ous bodily injury, in the event
of sudden braking or a colli-
sion.
 Do not drive with objects left
on top of the instrument panel.
They may interfere with the
driver’s field of view. Or they
may move during sharp vehicle
acceleration or turning, and im-
pair the driver’s control of the
vehicle. In an accident they
may injure the vehicle occu-
pants.Cargo capacity depends on the to-
tal weight of the occupants.
(Cargo capacity) = (Total load capac-
ity) – (Total weight of occupants)
STEPS FOR DETERMINING
CORRECT LOAD LIMIT
1. Determine the combined weight of the driver and passengers that will
be riding in your vehicle.
2. Subtract the combined weight of the driver and passengers from
XXX kilograms or XXX pounds.
3. The resulting figure equals the available amount of cargo and lug-
gage load capacity. For example,
if the “XXX” am ount equals 1400
lbs. and there will be five 150 lb.
passengers in your vehicle, the
amount of available cargo and lug-
gage load capacity is 650 lbs.
(1400–750 (5x150)=650 lbs). 4. Determine the combined weight of
luggage and cargo being loaded
on the vehicle. That weight may
not safely exceed the available
cargo and luggage load capacity
calculated in Step 3.
5. If your vehicle will be towing a trailer, load from your trailer will
be transferred to your vehicle.
Consult this manual to determine
how this reduces the available car-
go and luggage load capacity of
your vehicle.
For details about trailer towing, see
page 316.
—Capacity and distribution

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STARTING AND DRIVING
Starting and driving
Before starting the engine310
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How to start the engine 310
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Tips for driving in various conditions 311
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Off −road driving precautions 313
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Winter driving tips 314
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Dinghy towing 315
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Trailer towing 316
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How to save fuel and make your vehicle last longer 324
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SECTION 3