Things to Know About Driving an Elite Truck Rental Truck

There are many reasons why you may need to reserve a rental truck from Elite Truck Rental. Maybe you’re planning for a move — the most common reason why people turn to our company for trucks — or maybe you just have a heavy load that needs to be transported from one place to another. Whatever the reason, if you’re planning to drive a box truck, it’s important that you brush up on how to maneuver a larger vehicle. Here are some key things you should know about driving an Elite Truck rental truck:

Turning, Stopping, and Backing Up Will Require a Greater Amount of Care

If you’re used to driving a smaller vehicle, you can probably get away with making tight turns, stopping at the last moment, and backing up after doing a cursory check to make sure that nothing is behind you. The same cannot be said for what it’s like to drive a truck rental. Instead, you’ll need to exercise extra care when:

• Turning. Larger trucks have a wider turning radius, which means that if you try to cut a corner too close, you could end up colliding with another vehicle or object. Slow down and give yourself plenty of room.
• Stopping. Don’t think that you’ll be able to slam on the brakes last minute if you need to stop – larger vehicles require much more distance to slow down due to their size. Start applying pressure to the brakes early on if you have a stop coming up ahead.
• Backing up. Large trucks have large blind spots, and it can be difficult to see what’s behind you and how much distance there is between you and another object. It’s best to have someone outside of the vehicle who can act as a spotter as you’re reversing.

Pay Attention to Added Vehicle Height

Most people aren’t used to driving vehicles that are large enough to have a height clearance requirement of between 10 and 13.6 feet. This means that you may, without even thinking about it, driving under a bridge, building awning, drive through, or parking garage, only to not clear the object ahead of you. This is a very common collision that happens more often than you’d think. It’s important to know what the clearance is of the vehicle you’re driving and to pay attention.

Remember Your Blind Spots

Finally, as stated above, remember that you’ll have large blind spots when driving a truck rental. As such, make sure you double-check before changing lanes or performing other maneuvers that could be dangerous should another vehicle be in your blind spot.

Call Elite Truck Rental Today

If you need a rental truck in Illinois, our team can help. Reach out to Elite Truck Rental today to learn more about our fleet of vehicles and how to make a reservation.