Electric Brakes

[Stimw]

I have 4 wheel electric brakes and would not be without them!!
Also have a Reese Controller from Walmart that works great and is adjustable, amount of brake pressure and speed they apply.

 

[s219]

Should not even be a decision -- absolutely go with brakes -- they are fantastic. If you look at the tow ratings of most vehicles, they actually require trailer brakes to get the actual rating. Many vehicles are limited to only 1000# or so for unbraked trailers.

 

[Travelover]

Yes to brakes, for all the reasons previously stated. Many SUVs don't come pre-wired, so you'd have to wire in a new harness on each one or go with the Tekonsha wireless. Surge brakes work OK but need periodic maintenance, especially if they sit. Also, an electric controller can stop trailer sway whereas a surge system cannot. I prefer electric brakes and they are very cheap to replace as a whole assembly, if needed.

 

[Fallon]

Brakes are a key safety item. No way I'd tow without them. In most states they are required on anything over 3k for a reason.

As far as drums vs disks... my 2009 Tacoma & 2005 F250 have rear drums along with a lot if recent trucks & all big rigs. Drums have a few advantages over disks, although disks can stop harder most of the time. Disks would be nice, but I dont loose any sleep about them on my trucks or all my roadworthy trailers.

Surge brakes are better than nothing, but being able to activate the trailer brakes separately can save your life. Actuating the trailer brakes if you fishtail will stop the sway. If you actuate your vehicle brakes it will make it worse & could kill you. Not to mention gives you the ability to easily check their status. I check brake function & adjust every time I hitch up or change the load. Surge brakes should be self adjusting. The harder you brake your vehicle, the harder the master cylinder on the hits gets pushed & transfers force to the brakes.

Both surge & electric require some maintnance. In reality probably as much as the wheel bearings you should already be paying attention to every so often. It cost me around $200 & an afternoon for new brakes, drums & bearing on our new to us 10 year old single axle 3,500lbs travel trailer. Well worth the extra expense even if bearings & drums weren't needed. Electric over hydraulic are going to be the worst of both worlds & double the maintnance. They have their benefits, but not on a cheap light trailer.

I'd take either electric or hydraulic over keeping a mechanical linkage adjusted & working freely.

 

[aczlan]

Brake controller swaps between vehicles should only cost you a harness. Vehicles today are plug and play most times for the controller. I.E use your old controller in the new SUV

A harness is cheap ($15-20ish), I would go that route.

if you changes vehicle regularly etrailer sells a prodigy kit where the entire brake controller is on the trailer, all you get inside the vehicle is a wireless controller. that maybe easier for you.

That would be a good option.

My runabout has surge disk breaks and like it also, and have also installed a switch in the cab to block the breaking when needed.

As long as they work properly. I rented a almost new (9 months old?) man lift last month and the surge brakes were stiff coming on, stuck a little bit on and the reverse lockout did not work, so it was almost impossible to back it up a hill.

Aaron Z

 

[4570Man]

Would you drive a car with electric brakes?

Some people drive cars with electric steering.

 

[s219]

Some people drive cars with electric steering.

Electric "power assist" is a better way to describe it. Still a regular mechanical connection between the steering wheel and the road.

 

[Raspy]

Brakes are a key safety item. No way I'd tow without them. In most states they are required on anything over 3k for a reason.

As far as drums vs disks... my 2009 Tacoma & 2005 F250 have rear drums along with a lot if recent trucks & all big rigs. Drums have a few advantages over disks, although disks can stop harder most of the time. Disks would be nice, but I dont loose any sleep about them on my trucks or all my roadworthy trailers.

Surge brakes are better than nothing, but being able to activate the trailer brakes separately can save your life. Actuating the trailer brakes if you fishtail will stop the sway. If you actuate your vehicle brakes it will make it worse & could kill you. Not to mention gives you the ability to easily check their status. I check brake function & adjust every time I hitch up or change the load. Surge brakes should be self adjusting. The harder you brake your vehicle, the harder the master cylinder on the hits gets pushed & transfers force to the brakes.

Both surge & electric require some maintnance. In reality probably as much as the wheel bearings you should already be paying attention to every so often. It cost me around $200 & an afternoon for new brakes, drums & bearing on our new to us 10 year old single axle 3,500lbs travel trailer. Well worth the extra expense even if bearings & drums weren't needed. Electric over hydraulic are going to be the worst of both worlds & double the maintnance. They have their benefits, but not on a cheap light trailer.

I'd take either electric or hydraulic over keeping a mechanical linkage adjusted & working freely.

Excellent post.

The added safety of having brakes makes them mandatory on anything I tow. The ability to apply them independently of the tow vehicle brakes is a huge safety feature, and can save you if your trailer ever begins to sway.

Electric drum brakes are everywhere and very easy to get parts for if needed. They are extremely reliable and work very well. Adjusting them is easy and should not be needed any more often than re-packing the wheel bearings.

Greasing the wheel bearings with a grease gun is likely to eventually push grease past the rear seal, or pop the seal
out. Then you'll get grease on the shoes and have to replace them.

 

[3Ts]

I'm not sure about annual maintenance. I don't do anything to mine as long as they work. If you tow a lot, they may need adjustment but other than adjustment and eventual shoe replacement there isn't really any maintenance. Wheel bearings probably need more attention than brakes.

I check my trailer brakes (shoes, adjustment, etc.) when I check the wheel bearings every other year.

Brakes are a key safety item. No way I'd tow without them. In most states they are required on anything over 3k for a reason.

Some states go as low as 1500# trailer weight.

Also, I've got many many more than 10,000 miles on my 7500# GVW utility trailer, about half & half local and highway driving (it's been from coast to coast several times) and it's still on the original set of brake shoes. Just have to be sure they are adjusted properly.

 

[fried1765]

I have never seen electric brakes before I came to Canada.
In Europe trailers over +/- 1000 pounds have brakes. Surge brakes, either with steel cable, or hydraulic. No controller needed.
There is a third safety cable that pulls the hand brake on the trailer if a trailer comes loose from the towing vehicle. The handbrake can also be used if the trailer is parked.
The harder you brake with the towing vehicle, the harder the trailer brakes. No adjustment needed on a controller.
This system is superior to electric! As an retired electrician I would never trust electric brakes. Would you drive a car with electric brakes?

I have a 14K equipment trailer with electric brakes, and towed by a HD 3/4 ton GMC with 392 V-8.

I would not have considered surge brakes for a 14K trailer, even if they had been available (they were not).
I had a 6K trailer (boat) with surge brakes, and there is no safety comparison.

Electric brakes are infinitely manageable.
You can set them to come on whenever you want,.... what ever braking level you choose.

With surge brakes, you get what you get.
You are along for the ride.
There is no way to adjust surge braking from inside the vehicle.