Brakes Not Working on Brand New Identical Travel Trailers with 2 Different Tow Vehicles

Question:

My brother and I have both purchased Heartland Trail Runner 32rlds 2015 trailers.On both trailers the trailer brakes do not engage by applying the pedal or the manual override on the brake controller. These are brand new trailers and I have a curt triflex brake controller, he has one that was installed by Toyota on his brand new Toyata truck. Mine was working on my 2014 Hideout which was traded in for the trail runner and his was working in May when we picked up our trailers from the dealer. As both are not working , is there a fuse on the trailers and where would we find it. It seems unlikely that the problem is with the trucks as both have non applying trailer brakes. Also on my curt triflex I have a digital letter L on the screen. I an move the slide on the side, with no difference, and I can turn the tension wheel all the way up . Nothing applies the brakes or changes the L to any other letter. What do you suggest ,and if it is a fuse , what size would it be and how do I located ignored?

asked by: Bill W

Expert Reply:

Since the common denominator here is the type of trailer I would say that it is likely there is some issue with that particular model that is causing the problem. It is possible that the brakes need to be broken in. Dexter and Lippert brakes for example require a 200 mile break-in period to seat into the armature and shoe surfaces and must be readjusted afterward. There isn't a fuse or anything on trailers for the brakes. The power gets sent from the vehicle brake controller through the connectors and to the brake magnets.

Make sure that the trailer connectors on the trailers are pinned out correctly to accept the in-coming power from the brake controller. On a trailer side 7-Way connector, if you are looking at the face of the connector the trailer brake circuit will be in the 7 o'clock position. If the wire associated with that pin does not go to the trailer brake magnets it will need to.

Also make sure that the wiring to the magnets is intact and that the ground wires are attached to a bare metal surface near the magnets. If the trailers use a junction box then something might not be connected inside the junction box.

If you continue to have problems I recommend going back to the trailer dealer and having them correct the problem because it is a safety issue at this point.

expert reply by: Michael H