Thread: Towing braked trailers

Hey, I dont know much about towing so any help much appreciated! Could be a complete newb question haha.

Im looking at purchasing a campervan that has electric brakes. It will be towed with a 2022 hilux SR5 4wd. Do I need to buy and install a brake controller unit or does the ute already have one installed?

Cheers

I think from your question that you are meaning a caravan instead of a campervan. In that instance when you hitch the caravan to the tow bar of the Ute and plug in the electrics you will likely only need to flip over the lever on the coupling that allows the hydraulics to operate (assuming that the braking system on the caravan are hydraulic).

Thanks Rushy, yes caravan is correct. Well its a camper trailer (jayco lark model). The website says it has "electric brakes" doesnt say hydraulic...

Cheers

You will probably need to install an electric brake controller, about $1000 (probably) if your ute doesn’t already have one.

As above mentioned by Stug.
Look at getting a Redarc Towpro fitted by an auto sparky. There are other options available, like Elecbrake remote system too. You need to proportion the braking power accordingly while towing and an adjustable unit is required to do it properly.

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Some electric brakes just activate off of the brake light signal, usually run a little battery,set and forget the amount of braking applied.
Maybe ask the question of the seller or Google it.

There are quite a few different types of electric brakes on the market, the older generation were quite basic and required the controller to be fitted onto the towing vehicle which basically meant that the towing vehicle and trailer were a matched pair. Newer generations are quite a bit smarter and all of the required gear lives on the trailer with in some cases a little controller that plugs into the 12v socket and connects to the control module on the trailer via wireless connections. What you normally get with the controllers, is a control to tell the brake system how quickly to apply the brakes, a proportional controller to tell the brake system how much brake to apply, and then a manual control so you can apply the trailer brakes only.

Some systems have more control or less, some work off the brake lights on the towing vehicle and trailer illuminating, others have an inertia sensor to tell how hard you are trying to stop and then matched it with the trailer brakes so it doesn't lock everything up on application...

Pretty much the best idea is to find out about and learn what the settings and controls do on the brake system you are getting and then work out how it operates.

Other things it might have if the caravan is over a certain weight that I can't recall, maybe 2500Kg or 2000Kg (don't have it in front of me at the mo) is a breakaway control so if the trailer separates from the tow vehicle the brakes are automatically applied. The system may require a dedicated battery to power this, and then that requires a charging setup so the trailer brakes don't stop half way through the trip.

Originally Posted by No.3

There are quite a few different types of electric brakes on the market, the older generation were quite basic and required the controller to be fitted onto the towing vehicle which basically meant that the towing vehicle and trailer were a matched pair. Newer generations are quite a bit smarter and all of the required gear lives on the trailer with in some cases a little controller that plugs into the 12v socket and connects to the control module on the trailer via wireless connections. What you normally get with the controllers, is a control to tell the brake system how quickly to apply the brakes, a proportional controller to tell the brake system how much brake to apply, and then a manual control so you can apply the trailer brakes only.

Some systems have more control or less, some work off the brake lights on the towing vehicle and trailer illuminating, others have an inertia sensor to tell how hard you are trying to stop and then matched it with the trailer brakes so it doesn't lock everything up on application...

Pretty much the best idea is to find out about and learn what the settings and controls do on the brake system you are getting and then work out how it operates.

Other things it might have if the caravan is over a certain weight that I can't recall, maybe 2500Kg or 2000Kg (don't have it in front of me at the mo) is a breakaway control so if the trailer separates from the tow vehicle the brakes are automatically applied. The system may require a dedicated battery to power this, and then that requires a charging setup so the trailer brakes don't stop half way through the trip.

This pretty much sums it up.
our camper (Flagstaff) has the controller unit on the drawbar,, it has a dial on it to regulate the sensitivity of the trailer braking system, we just plug the camper to the ute, turn the controller on and away we go.
A Guy i know just had 1 fitted to his Ranger and the controller is fitted on his center console inside the ute.

Originally Posted by HUNTY

This pretty much sums it up.
our camper (Flagstaff) has the controller unit on the drawbar,, it has a dial on it to regulate the sensitivity of the trailer braking system, we just plug the camper to the ute, turn the controller on and away we go.
A Guy i know just had 1 fitted to his Ranger and the controller is fitted on his center console inside the ute.

if you own a flagstaff check the sealant on the rear lights, never seen one done right yet and the rot sets in before its noticeable

Originally Posted by No.3

....others have an inertia sensor to tell how hard you are trying to stop and then matched it with the trailer brakes so it doesn't lock everything up on application...
..

I had a local SxS dealer bring up one of his toys so I could try it out on the block. He was cursing the brake system a guy had put on his brand new flat deck trailer- barely touching the ute's brakes would have the trailer lock up and the controller couldn't be adjusted to stop it. He was beyond pissed off..

I still think for simplicity that the good old hydraulic over rider system is hard to beat.

Easily maintained and you can turn it off if you need to.

Originally Posted by tac a1

I still think for simplicity that the good old hydraulic over rider system is hard to beat.

Easily maintained and you can turn it off if you need to.

I think hydraulic override couplings are only allowed up to 2500kg, I think, could well be wrong.

Originally Posted by Savage1

I think hydraulic override couplings are only allowed up to 2500kg, I think, could well be wrong.

Correct, 2500kg max.
There is a mechanical override drum brake system available rated to 3500kg. Same as on Ifor Willams trailers & the likes. Meets EU regs to 3500kg so applicable here in NZ too.

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ok here goes. the breaks are triggered by the brake lights but draw power from the sidelight circuit. the most common controller i fitted was elecbrakes out of australia. you can get a lead that plugs between car and caravan and its plug and play or get an auto sparky to alter the trailer wiring for you. takes 30 minutes.
the breakaway cable can trigger the electric brakes but yes there is a standalone batter in the van to do this.