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• Lock the trailer hitch coupler with a pin orlock to prevent the coupler from inadver-
tently becoming unlatched.
• Avoid abrupt starts, acceleration or stops.
• Avoid sharp turns or lane changes.
• Always drive your vehicle at a moderate speed.
• When backing up, hold the bottom of the steering wheel with one hand. Move your
hand in the direction in which you want the
trailer to go. Make small corrections and
back up slowly. If possible, have someone
guide you when you are backing up.
Always block the wheels on both vehicle and
trailer when parking. Parking on a slope is not
recommended; however, if you must do so:
CAUTION
If you push the park button to engage the P
(Park) position before blocking the wheels
and applying the parking brake, transmis-
sion damage could occur. 1. Apply and hold the brake pedal.
2. Have someone place blocks on the down-
hill side of the vehicle and trailer wheels.
3. After the wheel blocks are in place, slowly release the brake pedal until the blocks
absorb the vehicle load.
4. Apply the parking brake.
5. Push the park button to engage the P (Park) position.
6. Turn off the engine.
To drive away:
1. Start the vehicle.
2. Apply and hold the brake pedal.
3. Shift the transmission into gear.
4. Release the parking brake.
5. Drive slowly until the vehicle and trailer are clear from the blocks.
6. Apply and hold the brake pedal.
7. Have someone retrieve and store the blocks. • While going downhill, the weight of the
trailer pushing on the tow vehicle may de-
crease overall stability. Therefore, to main-
tain adequate control, reduce your speed
and shift to a lower gear. Avoid long or
repeated use of the brakes when descend-
ing a hill, as this reduces their effectiveness
and could cause overheating. Shifting to a
lower gear instead provides “engine brak-
ing” and reduces the need to brake as
frequently.
• If the engine coolant temperature rises to a high temperature, see “If your vehicle over-
heats” (P. 6-14).
• Trailer towing requires more fuel than nor- mal circumstances.
• Avoid towing a trailer for your vehicle's first 500 miles (805 km).
•For the first 500 miles (805 km) that you do
tow, do not drive over 50 mph (80 km/h).
• Have your vehicle serviced more often than at intervals specified in the recommended
maintenance schedule in the “Maintenance
and schedules” section of this manual.
• When making a turn, your trailer wheels will be closer to the inside of the turn than your
vehicle wheels. To compensate for this,
make a larger than normal turning radius
during the turn.
Technical and consumer information10-29
Page 614 of 636

• Crosswinds and rough roads will adverselyaffect vehicle/trailer handling, possibly
causing vehicle sway. When being passed
by larger vehicles, be prepared for possible
changes in crosswinds that could affect
vehicle handling.
Do the following if the trailer begins to sway:
1. Take your foot off the accelerator pedal to allow the vehicle to coast and steer as
straight ahead as the road conditions al-
low. This combination will help stabilize
the vehicle.
– Do not correct trailer sway by steering or applying the brakes.
2. When the trailer sway stops, gently apply the brakes and pull to the side of the road
in a safe area.
3. Try to rearrange the trailer load so it is balanced. For additional information, see
“Pre-towing tips” (P. 10-28).
• Be careful when passing other vehicles. Passing while towing a trailer requires con-
siderably more distance than normal pass-
ing. Remember, the length of the trailer
must also pass the other vehicle before you
can safely change lanes. • Downshift the transmission to a lower gear
for engine braking when driving down
steep or long hills. This will help slow the
vehicle without applying the brakes.
• Avoid holding the brake pedal down too long or too frequently. This could cause the
brakes to overheat, resulting in reduced
braking efficiency.
• Increase your following distance to allow for greater stopping distances while tow-
ing a trailer. Anticipate stops and brake
gradually.
• INFINITI recommends that the cruise con- trol not be used while towing a trailer.
• Some states or provinces have specific regulations and speed limits for vehicles
that are towing trailers. Obey the local
speed limits.
• Check your hitch, trailer wiring harness connections, and trailer wheel lug nuts af-
ter 50 miles (80 km) of travel and at every
break.
• When launching a boat, don't allow the water level to go over the exhaust tail pipe
or rear bumper.
• Make sure you disconnect the trailer lights before backing the trailer into the water or
the trailer lights may burn out. When towing a trailer, differential gear oil,
transfer fluid and transmission oil/fluid
should be changed more frequently. For ad-
ditional information, see the “Maintenance
and schedules” section of this manual.
FLAT TOWING FOR ALL–WHEEL
DRIVE VEHICLE (if so equipped)
Towing your vehicle with all four wheels on
the ground is sometimes called flat towing.
This method is sometimes used when towing
a vehicle behind a recreational vehicle, such
as a motor home.
CAUTION
• Failure to follow these guidelines can re-
sult in severe transmission damage.
• Never flat tow your All-wheel drive
(AWD) vehicle.
• DO NOT tow your All-wheel drive
(AWD) vehicle with any wheels on the
ground. Doing so may cause serious and
expensive damage to the powertrain.
• For emergency towing procedures, see
“Towing recommended by INFINITI”
(P. 6-16).
10-30Technical and consumer information
Page 615 of 636

FLAT TOWING FOR FRONT
WHEEL DRIVE VEHICLE (if so
equipped)
Towing your vehicle with all four wheels on
the ground is sometimes called flat towing.
This method is sometimes used when towing
a vehicle behind a recreational vehicle, such
as a motor home.
CAUTION
• Failure to follow these guidelines can re-
sult in severe transmission damage.
• Whenever flat towing your vehicle, al-
ways tow forward, never backward.
• Never tow your front wheel drive vehicle
with the front tires on the ground. Doing
so may cause serious and expensive dam-
age to the powertrain.
• DO NOT tow your front wheel drive au-
tomatic transmission vehicle with all
four wheels on the ground (flat towing).
Doing so WILL DAMAGE internal trans-
mission parts due to lack of transmission
lubrication.
• For emergency towing procedures, see
“Towing recommended by INFINITI”
(P. 6-16).
Automatic transmission
To tow a vehicle equipped with an automatic
transmission, an appropriate vehicle dolly
MUST be placed under the towed vehicle's
drive wheels. Alwaysfollow the dolly manu-
facturer's recommendations when using their
product.
NOTE:
If the battery is completely drained the
transmission will not manually shift to other
positions. DOT (Department of Transportation) Quality
Grades: All passenger car tires must conform
to federal safety requirements in addition to
these grades.
Quality grades can be found where applicable
on the tire sidewall between tread shoulder
and maximum section width. For example:
Treadwear 200 Traction AA Temperature A
Treadwear
The treadwear grade is a comparative rating
based on the wear rate of the tire when tested
under controlled conditions on a specified gov-
ernment test course. For example, a tire graded
150 would wear one and one-half (1 1/2)
times as well on the government course as a
tire graded 100. The relative performance of
tires depends upon the actual conditions of
their use, however, and may depart signifi-
cantly from the norm due to variations in driv-
ing habits, service practices and differences in
road characteristics and climate.
Traction AA, A, B and C
The traction grades, from highest to lowest,
are AA, A, B, and C. Those grades represent
the tire's ability to stop on wet pavement as
measured under controlled conditions on
specified government test surfaces of as-
phalt and concrete. A tire marked C may have
poor traction performance.
UNIFORM TIRE QUALITY GRADING
Technical and consumer information10-31