The Victoria Napolitano Bookstore THE DRIVING COMPANY WORKBOOK | Page 28

SIDE
TILT
Most of us have a built-in alarm that tells us when
the vehicle is tilting too far to the side. If it feels
like it is getting too far over on the tilt angle, it is.
Change your angle by taking another track or back-
ing off. Type III fire rigs will have a tilt table side tilt
number. You should never get near this number,
because this test was done in static conditions on a
table. The field will not be so static and other gear
may have been added to the rig that could change
its tilt tolerance. The Driving Company avoids tilt-
ing stock vehicles more than 22 degrees and avoids
tilting Type III rigs more than 20 degrees. These
vehicles can tilt more than that in optimal condi-
tions but we like to have a margin of error for the
driver estimating how much tilt is happening and to
account for any weight transfer happening. Water
tenders should not tilt more than 10 degrees.
If the vehicle starts to roll, quickly turn downhill, re-
lease the brake and press the accelerator to transfer
weight and get more level. You may end up stuck,
but at least the wheels will be on the ground. Before
attempting a side tilt, check out what is downhill. If
it is a cliff, find another route. If there is evidence
other vehicles have rolled here, find another route.
If you can find a route that makes driving with a
side tilt unnecessary, take that route. Listen to your
internal alarm—it will keep you out of trouble.
There is one scenario where you can easily roll over
while side tilting. If you are going downhill and
turning in the direction of the tilt, it can roll over
before your internal alarm goes off and with as lit-
tle as a 10 degree tilt. Exercise extreme caution on
turning downhill from a side tilt!
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