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Brake Controller

uchi

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twavor Enthusiast

twavor

Posted
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I put one of those in one of my customers '82 Chevy a few years back....pretty plain and simple, and seems to work for his stock trailer. There are better ones for sure, but if you're just pulling a small enclose trailer it should be plenty.

The only thing I didn't like about it was that if you wire it up exactly like the instructions tell you to, the LED is lit up at all times, whether you have anything hooked up or not, and whether the key is on or not.

 

Travis

c4cruiser Enthusiast

c4cruiser

Posted
Posted

I would go with a Tekonsha Prodigy; either the P2 that mounts under the dash or the RF which is a wireless unit. They are among the best on the market and if you are towing a trailer with brakes, why not go with the best?

http://www.tekonsha.com/product/accessory....l%20Controllers

 

Depending on the carrying capacity and length, some dual axle trailers may only have brakes on one axle. If you go with a dual axle trailer, see if the manufacturer offers brakes on both axles. Better stopping capacity and dual axles come with a a breakaway box. If the trailer ever becomes disconnected, the breakaway system will engage the trailer brakes and stop it.

 

You don't show your location, but Princess is a Canadian company so I assume you live in Canada, eh? Tekonsha products should also be available in Canada at just about any RV or trailer sales place.

uchi Enthusiast

uchi

Posted
  • Author
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thanks for the help. i likely wont ever tow anything real big but it would be nice to have some control over the trailers brakes if i do ever buy a trailer equiped with them. that website doesnt seem to list prices, maybe its just me, but i can add them to the shopping cart but dont see a checkout button anywhere.

 

what are some name brand controllers i can buy for the same price? i know nothing about these things so im relying on you guys to steer me in the right direction :thumbs:

revrnd Senior Enthusiast

revrnd

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Hopkins/Hoppy have been around for years, but on the 2 RV forums I belong, I've never seen their controllers mentioned. Last year I picked up a Tekonsha P3 @ Camping World in the US for 170. Tekonsha also has lower priced models.

 

Tekonsha has a "GM" harness, so the install in a GMT800 (your truck) is basically plug & play. A bit of underhood work is req'd. I think there's a fuse to be installed & a wire connected. I had a buddy w/ a similiar truck help me w/ the install, so he did the underhood work. I'm sure others can chime in w/ the details.

beck@becksystems.com Enthusiast

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Posted
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I would highly recommend dealing with ETrailer.com Their prices are very competitive and they have excellent technical service - if you run into any problems at all they can usually solve them for you quickly.

 

You may have to pay a little more for quality and service - - but you are unlikely to be anything but happy after the purchase.

I too recommend the Tekonsha Prodigy...

 

This one is $119.00 and it includes the wire harness.

 

http://www.etrailer.com/Brake-Controller/Tekonsha/90185.html

 

I tow mostly an inclosed car carrier - but I wanted to be able to tow anything {family / friends always come up with odd stuff}

So I bought the Prodigy P3 - it is really worth the extra money. You can unplug it and take it out of the truck when not in use {or hide it under the seat - to deter theift}. $139.95

 

It's just me, but I believe it's better to have more than you think you need - because usually you'll wind up needing it. Might as well buy one and be done with it.

 

http://www.etrailer.com/Brake-Controller/Tekonsha/90885.html

 

FWIW,

Carl B.

uchi Enthusiast

uchi

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thats a good point. thanks. and thanks for the links. gonna look into them right now. something plug and play would be even nicer. i was hoping to find one to fit into onf of the little storage compartments under the radio and to shove it in there. ill have to do some measureing and see what im able to find. thanks again

c4cruiser Enthusiast

c4cruiser

Posted
Posted

It may not be a good idea to hide the controller or put it where you can't easily reach it with your hand. Most controllers allow you to manually engage the trailer brakes with a sliding lever. Also you need to be able to change or set the gain on the trailer brakes. This is done by a button or a slide switch.

 

Tekonsha makes a true "plug and play" harness for a wide variety of trucks. For the GMT800 series, once you mount the controller, then simply connect the harness plug to the controller and the other plug to the box that is up under the dash. Your owner's manual will have a pic showing where the box is and where to plug in the harness.

 

Even if you don't get a specific harness for the Tekonsha, GM has a wiring harness available with the plug for the under dash box on one end and bare wires on the other. All you have to do is to match the wire colors on the brake controller and the harness. These GM harnesses used to be provided with trucks that had the towing package and even came with a 60A fuse for powering up the 12v lead in the 7-pin trailer connector.

uchi Enthusiast

uchi

Posted
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good to know thanks guys. i wasnt actually planning on hiding it in one of the compartments just sticking it in there depending on where the buttons were located.

 

maybe i missed it above, but what makes the more expensive controllers better than the cheapo ones? do they offer a wider range of controlability? are they more reliable than a cheapy?

Doug_Scott Senior Enthusiast

Doug_Scott

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You can get the Tekonsha products off of ebay real cheap. Seems to me I paid about a hundred for the p3 this past summer. With the dollar where it is, can't beat the price for what you get.

nickvrebel Senior Enthusiast

nickvrebel

Posted
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maybe i missed it above, but what makes the more expensive controllers better than the cheapo ones? do they offer a wider range of controlability? are they more reliable than a cheapy?

I have a P3, real nice unit, but it's the first and only one I've ever had.

 

when I was looking at them I saw some of the cheaper one's seemed to be just "off or on", the mid range one's are proportional to the rate the tow vehicle slows down. I don't know how much better the P3 is, but I mounted it, adjusted the color of the display screen, hooked up and made a few adjustments and it towed my travel trailer/ deer camp without a problem. I like it. it looks good and worked smoothly. A friend had a cheaper controller in his F250 that was very jerky.

c4cruiser Enthusiast

c4cruiser

Posted
Posted
maybe i missed it above, but what makes the more expensive controllers better than the cheapo ones? do they offer a wider range of controlability? are they more reliable than a cheapy?

 

A proportional controller allows you to adjust the gain based on the weight of the trailer being towed. So if you tow a trailer load that is heavy, you want to set a braking level (gain) that will closely match the truck's braking ability based on the weight. Empty that trailer and don't change the gain, the trailer brakes will lock up with even a very mild braking effort. Lower the gain setting and the trailer brakes won't work as hard. Changing a gain setting in most proportional controller is as simple as pushing a button or turning a wheel while watching a numerical value change.

 

From your description of what you may be towing, I would recommend the Tekonsha Prodigy P2. Simple setup, can be removed when not being used, and can be mounted in any position.

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