How should you back up a tractor-trailer?
- First keep your steering wheel straight. After the trailer has started to back up, turn the steering wheel opposite to the direction you want to go.
- First keep your steering wheel straight. After the trailer has started to back up, turn the steering wheel in the direction you want to go.
- First turn your steering wheel in the direction that you want to go. Turn your steering wheel the other way after the trailer has started to turn.
- First turn your steering wheel in the direction that is opposite to where you want to go. Turn your steering wheel the other way after the trailer has started to turn. ✓
Answer: D. First turn your steering wheel in the direction that is opposite to where you want to go. Turn your steering wheel the other way after the trailer has started to turn.
Start by turning your steering wheel opposite to the direction you want the trailer to go, then turn the wheel the other way once the trailer begins to turn.
Why this is the answer
The handbook explains that a tractor with a semi-trailer pivots at an articulation point, which makes backing up more complex. It says to turn the steering wheel opposite to where you want the trailer to go when you begin backing. Then, as soon as the trailer starts to turn, turn the wheel the other way; at that point you are steering in the same direction the trailer is traveling. The passage warns that if the tractor does not follow the trailer’s path, you risk jackknifing.
Why the other answers are wrong
- A. First keep your steering wheel straight. After the trailer has started to back up, turn the steering wheel opposite to the direction you want to go. — Keeping the wheel straight first is not what the handbook describes, and the first steering move should begin opposite to where you want the trailer to go.
- B. First keep your steering wheel straight. After the trailer has started to back up, turn the steering wheel in the direction you want to go. — Keeping the wheel straight first is wrong here, and turning the wheel in the direction you want to go at the start is the reverse of the handbook’s sequence.
- C. First turn your steering wheel in the direction that you want to go. Turn your steering wheel the other way after the trailer has started to turn. — Starting with the wheel in the direction you want to go is wrong because the handbook says to begin with the wheel opposite to where you want the trailer to go.
Remember it
Aim the trailer with opposite steer first, then reverse the wheel as the trailer starts to turn.