Brake Controller For Towing A Trailer

GDSQDCR · October 29, 2007

I have searched the archives and still I know nothing about brake controllers.

I am going to be towing a 3400 lb car ~2400 miles round trip behind my Sierra. I do have the tow package on my sierra. Here are the questions.

Do I need a brake controller? If so what brand and what am I looking for when I buy one? Are they all the same?

Best place to look for one?

I can plug it in (thanks to this forum), but what do I do with it then? Do i program it somehow?

Thanks!

Anthony

2017HD · October 29, 2007

I presume that you are going to have the car on a trailer. If so then the trailer should have at least one axle with brakes on it - some states require both axles to have brakes on anything over 2000lbs. To control the brakes, you will need to add an RV type brake controller to your truck. I would recommend a Prodigy - around $150.00 installed at your local RV shop. They could also do any other wiring you might need.

If you are going to rent a trailer, it might have hydraulic surge brakes. These brakes are driven by sensing the pressure at the hitch - as long as the hitch is being pulled the brakes are off, if it senses that the hitch is being pushed - as it slowing down or backing up - it applys the trailer brakes. Lots of larger rental moving trailers use this kind of brakes as it does not require a controller in the vehicle.

az'03Silverado · October 29, 2007

It all depends on the trailer you're towing and the second question depends on the controller itself. If the trailer has electric brakes, then, yes, you need a controller. If it has surge brakes or (heaven forbid) no brakes then you won't need a controller. Some controllers are inertia activated and some are wired to the brake circuit. But, each controller will have instructions on how to adjust it and fine-tune the response time and brake power. I have an el-cheapo Reese controller and it works just fine. It's wired to the brake circuit. The only drawback is that each time I hitch up I have to do some trial and error adjusting to the brake force.

ChrisNJ · October 29, 2007

I presume that you are going to have the car on a trailer. If so then the trailer should have at least one axle with brakes on it - some states require both axles to have brakes on anything over 2000lbs. To control the brakes, you will need to add an RV type brake controller to your truck. I would recommend a Prodigy - around $150.00 installed at your local RV shop. They could also do any other wiring you might need.

If you are going to rent a trailer, it might have hydraulic surge brakes. These brakes are driven by sensing the pressure at the hitch - as long as the hitch is being pulled the brakes are off, if it senses that the hitch is being pushed - as it slowing down or backing up - it applys the trailer brakes. Lots of larger rental moving trailers use this kind of brakes as it does not require a controller in the vehicle.

Ditto what Randy said. The Prodigy is the best. I've towed about 5K with no brakes on a chipper, with my 6.2-6sp, and it was OK, but i also have a pretty aggressive tow-haul mode that has some serious engine braking. Remember to add the trailer weight plus the car. Watch the tongue weight. If the trailer has a pintal hook, it probably has too much for your truck without weight distribution. You might be able to move the car back and forth on the trailer, depending on the trailer, to get less or more tongue weight.

c4cruiser · October 29, 2007

I have searched the archives and still I know nothing about brake controllers.

I am going to be towing a 3400 lb car ~2400 miles round trip behind my Sierra. I do have the tow package on my sierra. Here are the questions.

Do I need a brake controller? If so what brand and what am I looking for when I buy one? Are they all the same?

Best place to look for one?

I can plug it in (thanks to this forum), but what do I do with it then? Do i program it somehow?

Thanks!

Anthony

Tell us about the trailer you are going to use. Lot of good info and suggestions so far. If you are using a rental trailer (like a U-Haul) it will have surge brakes so a trailer brake controller won't be needed. Given the weight of the car, you will need a trailer with two axles. Two-axle trailers are required to have brakes on at least one axle and brakes on both axles are really what you need given the weight and distances involved.

I also have a Tekonsha "Prodigy" and it is a "plug and play" unit. It can be manually programmed for braking effort based on the towed weight and is a simple one-button action. Here's a source: http://rvwholesalers.com/catalog/product.p...at=6&page=1

You should have gotten a trailer brake controller wiring harness with your truck so it will be easy to connect the wires between the harness and the Prodigy harness. You can also get a custom harness so that you don't have to do any wire splicing.

With the distance involved, I would suggest you get a weight distribution hitch setup. This allows for spreading out the tongue weight over the truck wheelbase and increases the tongue weight capacity. Tongue weight is typically 10 to 15% of the total towed weight so that has to be added to the cargo weight you will have in the truck. When you add up everything in the truck, kids, wife and/or girlfriend, tools, luggage, the dog, etc., the maximum weight carrying capacity of thetruck comes up real fast.

Make sure the truck is in good shape; that means good if not new brakes, fresh coolant, do a tranny fluid flush and filter, oil change and filter, make sure the tires have sufficient tread and will handle the load, and you should also install an larger tranny cooler. You will be putting a leavy load on the tranny and the cooler it runs the longer it will last. Send a PM to "C & A's Dad" and ask about tranny coolers!!

GDSQDCR · October 29, 2007

Thanks for all the help so far!

Surge brakes, electric brakes ... wow ... okay this is all new to me.

I don't know about the trailer ... though this is only going to be a 'one-time' event, I may buy one. The only place I can rent one from around here is UHaul, and for a 2 1/2 week trip, they want close to $~800. The last UHaul trailer I rented blew two tire out while I was towing it. They said it was overloaded, but when they checked they realized the inside edge of both tires had wire showing through ... I was not impressed. Besides blowing two tires out on one side, doing 55mph was not fun.

I am looking to borrow/rent from private people, but ...

One thought is to buy one and then sell it upon return. Some of the trailers around here are selling for 800-2K for a flatbed car hauler. I would have it checked out by someone before I bought it.

A trailer weighs in at ??? I know the car loaded weighs in at ~3400lbs.

The truck. She is in tip top shape. In the last 8K, new tires, tranny fluid/filter replacement, new brakes (all), new coolant and fuel filter.

Do I need to replace the factory tranny cooler? Is that big enough to do the job?

If it matters, probably does cause of the mountains, I will be towing from San Francisco to Seattle with a couple of minor detours of HWY 5 along the way.

I will have 2 adults and 1 toddler and 1 infant in the car. Figure weight in the bed of the truck, NMT 500lbs.

I have towed vehicles before, but never for such a long distance.

What is the preference of trailer brakes, electric or surge?

I like the idea of both axles having brakes. The more braking power the better.

Thanks!

Anthony

2017HD · October 30, 2007

Also look at implement trailers -those used by farmers to haul tractors etc from farm to field. My FIL uses one to haul his Model A around with his Tahoe. BTW you will probably not want to go much over 60 anyway. You will probably spend at least 2200 for a good trailer with brakes on both axles - now you might be able to recoup some of that when you sell it - but just remember even if it is used for one trip it is still used. My FIL bought his used for 1k after it sat in the guys yard for almost a year with no bites at 1800 - it had only been used twice - on cross country run and a 600mi in state trip.

GDSQDCR · October 30, 2007

Also look at implement trailers -those used by farmers to haul tractors etc from farm to field. My FIL uses one to haul his Model A around with his Tahoe. BTW you will probably not want to go much over 60 anyway. You will probably spend at least 2200 for a good trailer with brakes on both axles - now you might be able to recoup some of that when you sell it - but just remember even if it is used for one trip it is still used. My FIL bought his used for 1k after it sat in the guys yard for almost a year with no bites at 1800 - it had only been used twice - on cross country run and a 600mi in state trip.

I am a cheap cheap individual. If I end up buying a trailer for this, it iwll definately be used.

I never thought about implement trailers.

Anthony

punmax · October 30, 2007

:O My truck already had the Prodigy installed and I was wondering what it was for, now I know.

superbee · October 30, 2007

Prodigy is absolutley the best. With the important cargo you are carrying, the family, not the car, get a good quality setup and take your lumps if you have to on the resale. As long as you only lose $800, you're still even compared to a rental.