Q&A: coping with snaking

• Wednesday, 11 June 2008
• Jon Phillips, Managing Director of the Organisation of Horsebox and Trailer Owners
• 0 Comments

Q: I have a new towing vehicle and when I towed with it for the first time at one point it felt like my horse trailer was going to start snaking. I was driving at about 48mph on a dual carriageway at the time. If the trailer does start snaking how should I deal with it? I was once told that you should accelerate out of the swing. Is this correct?

A: As long as the trailer is evenly loaded,
nose weight is correct and the whole outfit sits level on the road you are
unlikely to experience a problem with snaking, except for high sided trailers
where side winds or passing HGVs can unsettle the trailer.

If you do find the trailer starts to snake
do not try to correct it with the steering wheel, you will only make it worse.
Hold the steering wheel straight. Change down a gear and take both feet off the
pedals to slow down gently — do not brake hard — and the
trailer will eventually come back under control.

Some people will tell you to try and
accelerate through it but generally this is a very poor idea. First it may get
worse before it gets better, and second you are never going to be able to
accelerate faster than you can slow down.