Emu Plains and the road west
Lapstone, next stop
Emu Plains station is the last on the suburban line, and Lapstone comes next. Out that way the highway curls around the south side of Lapstone Hill and climbs onto the first plateau, with Katoomba 47 km from Emu Plains.
Towing up the range
RACQ says most carmakers treat heavy towing as severe use, and tyres and brakes wear out faster with a load behind. For heavy towing with an automatic, it says an extra or larger transmission cooler is often worth fitting, and sometimes it's part of the maker's towing package.
Trailers and vans need pink slips
In NSW, trailers and caravans of 4.5 tonnes ATM or less count as light vehicles, so once one is more than 5 years old it needs a yearly pink slip, just like the car pulling it.
From the east
The M4 Western Motorway is the way in from further east, and the Great Western Highway brings you over the river from Penrith. A daily M4 commute puts kilometres on quickly, so watch the kilometre figure in the service book as well as the date.
Before a trip over the mountains
Have the mechanic check the cooling system, the brakes and the tyres, and if you're towing, the trailer's wheel bearings and brakes too. RACQ says trailer brakes should be checked every time the trailer is used and their adjustment checked at least once a year.
On the way back down, brake fade is the risk. RAA explains it as the brake fluid boiling, usually from riding the brakes, so brake briefly and firmly and let a lower gear hold the car. If the brakes smell hot or the pedal goes soft, pull over somewhere safe, switch off and let them cool before going on. Brakes covers what the mechanic checks.
If it were our car
Before towing west, we'd have one mechanic in Emu Plains look over the car's cooling and brakes and the trailer's bearings and brakes in the same visit, and we'd tell them what's going on the towbar and how heavy it is, so they know what the car is up against.