The Personal Safety System provides an
improved overall level of frontal crash
protection to front seat occupants and is
designed to help further reduce the risk of
airbag-related injuries. The system is able to
analyze different occupant conditions and
crash severity before activating the
appropriate safety devices to help better
protect a range of occupants in a variety of
frontal crash situations.
The Vehicle Personal Safety System consists
of:
•
Driver and passenger dual-stage airbag
supplemental restraints.
• Front seat outboard safety belts with
pretensioners, energy management
retractors and safety belt usage sensors.
• Driver seat position sensor.
• Front passenger sensing system.
• Passenger airbag off and on indicator
lamp.
• Front crash severity sensors.
• Restraints control module with impact
and safing sensors. •
Restraint system warning light and
backup tone.
• The electrical wiring for the airbags, crash
sensors, safety belt pretensioners, front
safety belt usage sensors, driver seat
position sensor, front passenger sensing
system and indicator lights.
How Does the Personal Safety System
Work?
The Personal Safety System can adapt the
deployment strategy of the safety devices
according to crash severity and occupant
conditions. A collection of crash and
occupant sensors provides information to
the restraints control module. During a crash,
the restraints control module may deploy the
safety belt pretensioners, one or both stages
of the dual-stage airbags based on crash
severity and occupant conditions.
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™
RV & Trailer Towing Guide Online
http://www.fleet.ford.com/towing-guides/
Website
TRAILER SWAY CONTROL (If Equipped) WARNING
Turning off trailer sway control
increases the risk of loss of vehicle
control, serious injury or death. Ford does
not recommend disabling this feature except
in situations where speed reduction may be
detrimental (such as hill climbing), the driver
has significant trailer towing experience, and
can control trailer sway and maintain safe
operation. Note:
This feature does not prevent trailer
sway, but reduces it once it begins.
Note: This feature cannot stop all trailers
from swaying. Note:
In some cases, if vehicle speed is too
high, the system may activate multiple times,
gradually reducing vehicle speed.
This feature applies your vehicle brakes at
individual wheels and, if necessary, reduces
engine power. If the trailer begins to sway,
the stability control light flashes and the
message TRAILER SWAY REDUCE SPEED
appears in the information display. The first
thing to do is slow your vehicle down, then
pull safely to the side of the road and check
for proper tongue load and trailer load
distribution.
See Load Carrying (page 249).
RECOMMENDED TOWING
WEIGHTS
Note: Do not exceed the trailer weight
for your vehicle configuration listed in
the chart below. Note:
Make sure to take into
consideration trailer frontal area. Do not
exceed 20 ft² (1.86 m²) for vehicles
without towing package, or 30 ft² (2.79
m²) for vehicles with towing package.
Note: For high altitude operation,
reduce the gross combined weight by
2% per
1,000 ft (305 m) starting at the
1,000 ft (305 m) elevation point.
Note: Certain states require electric
trailer brakes for trailers over a specified
weight. Be sure to check state
regulations for this specified weight. The
maximum trailer weights listed may be
limited to this specified weight, as the
vehicle ’s electrical system may not
include the wiring connector needed to
activate electric trailer brakes.
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ESSENTIAL TOWING CHECKS
Follow these guidelines for safe towing:
•
Do not tow a trailer until you drive your
vehicle at least 1000 miles (1600
kilometers).
• Consult your local motor vehicle laws for
towing a trailer.
• See the instructions included with towing
accessories for the proper installation
and adjustment specifications.
• Service your vehicle more frequently if
you tow a trailer. See your scheduled
maintenance information.
• If you use a rental trailer, follow the
instructions the rental agency gives you.
You can find information on load
specification terms found on the tire label
and Safety Compliance label as well as
instructions on calculating your vehicle's load
in the Load Carrying chapter. See Load Limit
(page 251).
Remember to account for the trailer tongue
weight as part of your vehicle load when
calculating the total vehicle weight. Hitches
Do not use a hitch that either clamps onto
the bumper or attaches to the axle.
Distribute the trailer load so 10-15% of the
total trailer weight is on the tongue.
Safety Chains
Note:
Never attach safety chains to the
bumper.
Always connect the safety chains to the hook
retainers of your vehicle hitch.
To connect the safety chains, cross them
under the trailer tongue and allow enough
slack for turning tight corners. Do not allow
the chains to drag on the ground.
Trailer Brakes WARNING
Do not connect a trailer's hydraulic
brake system directly to your vehicle's
brake system. Your vehicle may not have
enough braking power and your chances of
having a collision greatly increase. Electric brakes and manual, automatic or
surge-type trailer brakes are safe if you install
them properly and adjust them to the
manufacturer's specifications. The trailer
brakes must meet local and federal
regulations.
The rating for the tow vehicle's braking
system operation is at the gross vehicle
weight rating, not the gross combined
weight rating.
Trailer Lamps
WARNING
Never connect any trailer lamp wiring
to the vehicle's tail lamp wiring; this
may damage the electrical system resulting
in fire. Contact your authorized dealer as
soon as possible for assistance in proper
trailer tow wiring installation. Additional
electrical equipment may be required. Trailer lamps are required on most towed
vehicles. Make sure all running lights, brake
lights, turn signals and hazard lights are
working.
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Before Towing a Trailer
Practice turning, stopping and backing up to
get the feel of your vehicle-trailer
combination before starting on a trip. When
turning, make wider turns so the trailer
wheels clear curbs and other obstacles.
When Towing a Trailer
•
Do not drive faster than 70 mph (113
km/h) during the first 500 miles (800
kilometers).
• Do not make full-throttle starts.
• Check your hitch, electrical connections
and trailer wheel lug nuts thoroughly after
you have traveled 50 miles (80
kilometers).
• When stopped in congested or heavy
traffic during hot weather, place the
gearshift in position P to aid engine and
transmission cooling and to help A/C
performance.
• Turn off the speed control with heavy
loads or in hilly terrain. The speed control
may turn off automatically when you are
towing on long, steep grades. •
Shift to a lower gear when driving down
a long or steep hill. Do not apply the
brakes continuously, as they may
overheat and become less effective.
• If your transmission is equipped with a
Grade Assist or Tow/Haul feature, use
this feature when towing. This provides
engine braking and helps eliminate
excessive transmission shifting for
optimum fuel economy and transmission
cooling.
• Allow more distance for stopping with a
trailer attached. Anticipate stops and
brake gradually.
• Avoid parking on a grade. However, if
you must park on a grade:
1. Turn the steering wheel to point your vehicle tires away from traffic flow.
2. Set your vehicle parking brake.
3. Place the automatic transmission in position
P.
4. Place wheel chocks in front and back of the trailer wheels. (Chocks not included
with vehicle.) Launching or Retrieving a Boat or
Personal Watercraft (PWC)
Note:
Disconnect the wiring to the trailer
before
backing the trailer into the water.
Note: Reconnect the wiring to the trailer
after
removing the trailer from the water.
When backing down a ramp during boat
launching or retrieval:
• Do not allow the static water level to rise
above the bottom edge of the rear
bumper.
• Do not allow waves to break higher than
6 inches (15 centimeters) above the
bottom edge of the rear bumper.
Exceeding these limits may allow water to
enter vehicle components:
• Causing internal damage to the
components.
• Affecting driveability, emissions, and
reliability.
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