Any advise on Brake Controllers?

[pwb01]

I have a new Tow Vehicle this year which is wired for a controller but one has to be installed. I have the 4000# T-1950 and a new Ford F150 5.4 V8, 4wd with 4 disk brakes. Any advice on a brand of controller for a two axle camper? Any brands to stay away from?

I see Prodigy seems to have good ratings.

I plan on installing a controller in the early spring and the Ford is totally set up for towing otherwise.

I appreciate any advice.

[PTHutch]

Hi Paul,

I recommend going with a Proportional Brake Control, such as the Tekonsha Prodigy or Voyager. I have the Prodigy and like it a lot. Very smooth and reliable braking.

I would stay away from brake controllers that are a time based controller. The proportional brake controllers are a lot smoother than the time based one.

Hutch

[DF5.4]

I was using the Voyager for the last 11 years. It worked great. I upgraded to the Prodigy last summer and it's even better.

[Bobo]

I upgraded to the Prodigy when we purchased the Sunline. I love the product and it was easy to install. Watch the Camping World website for when it goes on sale. Sometimes for under a hundred.

Bobo

[chuck & lori]

I love my Prodigy. Had a Voyager before it, wasn't nearly as smooth or easy to use.

[Mooney]

When we upgraded, I went from the bargain bin controller we had to a Primus. Primus is similar to the Prodigy, but you set your own braking level (trailer brakes come on harder or softer as you desire). I am used to the big rigs (trailer brakes come on a little slower) so I set mine up that way. I love the Primus- much, MUCH better than the POS I had before. Quick and easy to set up too.

I got mine from these folks (etrailer.com) and they were quick and nice to deal with.

Funny though, they must have the Prodigy on sale- I got my Primus for ~$80 when I bought. Keep an eye on them- prices may vary.

http://www.etrailer.com/p-90185.htm PRODIGY

http://www.etrailer.com/p-20188.htm PRIMUS

[Sunline Fan]

Does anyone have experience with the harness direct from Tekonsha? I went ahead and ordered that to make it quicker for me to install the new Prodigy.

Jon

[JohnB]

I second Hutches reply. And I’ll add a some more

From my experience for a TT, you want a proportional brake controller. Meaning it gives proportional braking power to the TT brakes directly in relation (proportional) to how hard the TV is stopping. Little stopping = little power, hard stopping = harder power. It is self compensating.

Time based controllers, works like what they have been nick named. They do not know about how much power to apply in relation to how hard or soft you want to stop as towing conditions change. Most get a signal from your brake light switch to start working to a preset time based output. Meaning, you hit the brakes, the brake controller starts ramping up power to the TT brakes based upon a setting you tell it to. Eventually it reaches the high setting. This could be as many seconds as you want and as much power as you set it for. Since the heavier trailer needs enough power to stop you rolling 55 mph down the highway, you have to set it to ramp up and how much power to go to, rather fast or else the TV does most of the stopping and the TT pushes you. Which is not good.

So now you have the time base set for the more aggressive faster stopping. This works Ok at high speeds. However when you are inching around at the camp site or in traffic, it has way too much aggressiveness and you get the other extreme. The herky jerkies… Some time based ones have some added features to help reduce the effects, but they are still there and they do not self compensate for trailer weight changes or hard stop / soft stop. They are, however less expensive.

I had one of these time based controllers on our PU. Drove me nuts in the campground. On the highway I could tolerate it as I had a ½ ton truck pulling a small PU and the truck did a lot on it’s own. The 2nd day after the TT came, so did my proportional controller. And it was only $20 more…. Wish I would of known.

I have the Jordan Ultima 2020 brake controller in my prior Suburban. This proportional controller works different then the popular Prodigy which uses inertia of the TV to sense how hard or not to stop. The Jordan uses a small cable off the brake pedal to a potentiometer inside the controller. More stomp on the pedal = more breaking power and less stop = less power. Your foot knows how hard “you” want the rig to stop because “you” are the one controlling it. Once the unit is set, you never adjust it again unless you change towing a smaller or larger TT. Then it is the turn of a knob. After my research the Jordan had some features the Prodigy did not.

Jordan however about over a year again sold his business to Camco. And now Camco finally has this listed on there web site. Jordan by Camco

Here is one dealer who use to sell a lot of these Best Brake controller.com But according to that site they are not yet in stock from Camco.

If you can find a Jordan, they are very good. The Prodigy is as well and very available. Both cost about the same money and both are only about $20 to $30 over a time based controller.

If you really want the cream of the crop, does your new F150 have the option to add the Ford integrated brake controller? I have this in my 2005 Super duty and it is close to sliced bread. It works off the master cylinder pressure and even ties into the ABS brake system of the TV to sense when ABS is occurring to change the TT brake response. I do not know if this is a Super Duty only thing or it has come down into the ½ ton trucks as well. But it is nice.

After I typed all this I found this one web site. See here for more technical scoop on brake controllers. I have read it and it does all sound well put. The Jordan link does not work. Someone must of bought is web name when he sold the company http://members.cox.net/bruce.wittmei...rsSummary.html

Good luck and let us know if you need more.

Happy towing

John

[pwb01]

Thanks everyone. The Prodigy product does have good reviews. That's a good question John. I'm not sure if my Ford is set up for that control. I have a plug under the dash with a bracket and a harness in the glove box. I'll find out. Other than that, I'll watch for a sale on Prodigy and have it set up early in the season.

Thanks again all.

[Sunline Fan]

The TowCommand system only came/comes on the Super Duty's (no F-150), 2005 and up. No other vehicles can be easily modified to take this system. I wouldn't be surprised to see this system become an option on the F-150's in the near future. After all, I'm now starting to see TT mirrors as an option too on those.

Jon

[partimcmpr]

I am not sure I can add much that has not already been said, but I'll try.

I switched from a time based controller to a prodigy. The prodigy is SO MUCH BETTER.

I considered one of the jordon contollers, but could not find one in stock anywhere. Not sure the model, but it was different in that it actually connected to the brake pedal directly. Though not as many people seem to use it, those that do seem to really like them. I went with the prodigy because it appeared to be easier to install. My truck had the socket so all I had to do was use the wiring harness for my truck.

I purchased the controller and wiring harness form rvwholesalers.com. They had the best price of all the 'reputable sources' I could find at the time

[Sunline Fan]

Here's some pics of mine installed. The Ford harness is about three feet long. The previous owner had installed his controller so far down that when I put my old one in the same holes, it was hard to drive and adjust it at the same time. I didn't want to put new holes in the dash, so I came up with this solution. I used no screws (I used velcro instead) and it fits perfect. I did use one of the old holes for a clip to hold the wires. I'd like to find a better solution for the wires, but I don't think that's possible. I tried bringing them in through the dash, but there wasn't enough room.

It doesn't stick out as far as it appears and the velcro really isn't visible unless you are down looking at it straight on like the camera was.

Harness:


Plug in:


Extra wire tied up (red wire is for new right mirror):


All installed:


Now, I don't have to reach down at all to play with it, even though I hope to not do too much of that!

Jon

[davidsfj40]

I agree with the prodigy being a good choice. Sunline fan, the pictures are good and I mounted mine just like you did but I used a drill bit and made a hole behind the controller and the wires are not visible and it was easy.

[JohnB]

Jon, that looks good. Pic’s help a lot.

And also to those following, I’ll pass along something that caught me off guard and something to think thru when mounting the brake controller. I’ll digress for just a quick moment on how this came about.

Most every summer we hear or see the unfortunate accident of towing a TT. No one wants to see this and we feel bad for those involved. Seeing these things does send a message, what would I do in a situation like this, is my rig setup right, should I of changed something out a long time ago? All good questions going around in your mind. Last summer I found a problem with my towing setup, at the brake controller, that I never knew was there after seeing a roll over and re checking my own rig.

The questions come to: Have you ever went thru in your mind the mad rush of pressing the brake controller manual lever? Have you practiced it? Is it instinct? The manual lever on the brake controller, that one little lever that can smooth out a sway event if used early enough or turn into a night mare if never used. Where is yours located?

I know we all like the insides of our TV to look real nice. And sometimes brake controllers get mounted so they look good, but many may not work in this mad rush event to find the manual lever, press it gently and quickly, keep one hand on the wheel and still look ahead all while the TT behind you is doing things you do not want.

What Sunline Fan described where his prior owner had the brake controller may have been a challenge to get to at that mad rush moment.

And here was my issue. When I first mounted my brake controller I went thru all the motions in my mind and said, yes that is the place I want to put it. I can get to it quick and I can see it instantly.

So this is where I had mounted min as my dash did not really a lot of options. I could see it and reach for it quick. But there was a problem not yet realized.




We Towed for 11,000 miles this way, and no issues. Also never had to do one of those mad rush moments either, but I still went over in my head at least what to do when the day came so it was as close to instinct as I could. At least I thought.

Then this summer I saw one of those rollovers where the driver never used his brake controller to help stop the sway event or if he did if the 7 wire came unpluged and would not of mattered. So I went to my truck and said, OK let’s try this. This time instead of doing it in my head of going thru the motions, I did them. And to my shock, the angle I mounted the brake controller and the natural angle I would of pressed the manual button, caused the button to lock solid and never depress. Oh my goodness…. It took about 5 minutes the first time with both hands fiddling with it to unlock. So I tried it again. 4 out of 5 times it jammed. OK this has to be changed.

So I totally remounted the controller so my natural motion of the mad rush of pressing the button did not cause any ill effects.

This was the new mounting.






Point in all this: Go thru the physical mad rush moments. One handed, still looking ahead and fast and gently all at the same time. If you cannot get to that manual lever in an instant without fiddling, remount the unit. Your new location my look ugly, but it needs to work first.

Happy Towing

John

PS. Also make sure the shift lever is in drive when you are doing your test. This sometimes covers up the controller line of site pending your chosen location. And that no drink in a cup holder cover it up either.

[Sunline Fan]

You've got a good point John. One of the reasons I mounted it where I did was because of the lever. I don't think I'll have to with the Prodigy, but with the Activator II, I used to use the slider lever when I was moving around, like backing into a site, etc., because I didn't have to adjust the brakes and it was just enough to stop without using the TV brakes.

Now that I have it installed, I suppose it's time to go read up on how to use it!

Jon

[Steve Collins]

Originally Posted by pwb01

I have a new Tow Vehicle this year which is wired for a controller but one has to be installed.

Paul, I am in the same boat. Our new (to us) Dodge came with everything except the brake controller. It even has a full set of mounting rails in the bed for a fifth wheel or gooseneck hitch.

I've already crawled up under the dashboard and located the plug for the brake controller. The truck has the full factory tow package, so like you, all I've got to do is purchase and install a new brake controller.

Like a lot of contributors here have already recommended, I am leaning toward the Prodigy, too. I have looked over the brand new Tekonsha P3, and except for a LCD display, it doesn't seem to offer any more capability or functionality to me. One feature of the P3 is that it will handle electric/hydraulic braking systems, so it will be of great interest to the folks who tow the big agricultural tailers. Prodigy can't do that.

The Prodigy seems to be a much better mix of price and features, and as the new P3 gets seated in the market, I suspect that the Prodigy price is going to continue to drop. Also, the Prodigy has been on the market for several years, and seems to be a mature product. I suspect they've found all the bugs there are to be found by now. Current version of the unit is 2.6 BTW. Earlier versions are probably to be avoided.

Right now, my local RV dealer (Ballantyne in Victor, NY) wants about $158 for the Prodigy with the Dodge harness, plus tax. That's a little pricey in my book.

etrailer.com has the same package (Prodigy and Dodge harness) for $122, probably with no tax, and add at least $8 for UPS ground shipping. For a few bucks more, they'll ship by faster means.

rvwholesalers.com has the same stuff for $107, but won't tell their shipping costs unless you register on their site, which I am reluctant to do when just price shopping.

There is an RV dealership in Lockport, NY who sells via eBay Stores and they are offering this same package for $130 which includes shipping but not NYS sales tax. Their eBay rating is 100% with over 1,400 sales there.

There are also some good deals to be found in eBay auctions as well, but I am sometimes leary of buying one there because of warranty concerns down the line. If I buy from a reputable dealer, at least I can expect to find the warranty card in the box. I don't always know that to be the case with some of these eBay auctions, even though there are some very reputable sellers there. That's a personal decision, and depends on the individual eBay auction and the seller.

One point about the Prodigy's installation. It has to be level, left to right, but front to back can be anywhere from level to 70 degrees high. Also, it can't be skewed left or right, but has to be parallel to the vehicle's front to rear center line. In other words, it can't be mounted like JohnB was able to do with his Jordan which is a very nice solution to the issue he presented. For more info on that, you can view/download the owner's manual, installation instructions, etc. on tekonsha.com.

This minor mounting limitation may or may be an issue for some applications. I don't expect it to be a problem for me as I am going mount it in the ash tray opening using the supplied pocket mounting system and possibly some custom mounting brackets to make sure it is not hidden behind the gear shift lever.

So, I've got a couple of months to watch the prices and see if I can find a good deal when there's enough money in the checking account....

[partimcmpr]

When I purchased my Prodigy from rvwholesalers shipping was 9$.

David

[Sunline Fan]

Originally Posted by partimcmpr

When I purchased my Prodigy from rvwholesalers shipping was 9$.

David

I got my shipping from Camping World for $4.95 because they had a half price special on shipping. I only paid for the standard ground, and it got here in two days (they said 5-7). It came from Kentucky.

Jon

[Steve Collins]

Originally Posted by Sunline Fan

I got my shipping from Camping World for $4.95 because they had a half price special on shipping. I only paid for the standard ground, and it got here in two days (they said 5-7). It came from Kentucky.

Right now Camping World has the Prodigy for $109 on an internet special for CW members (which I'm not.) But they still want $14.99 for the harness (member's price) plus shipping.

etrailers.com is still a better deal at the moment for a non-CW member.

I am going to wait until late winter to buy mine, and watch for the best deal. Like I said in my previous post, I expect the Prodigy price to fall even further as the P3 settles in as the premier brake controller at many dealerships and RV shops.

[Sunline Fan]

Originally Posted by Steve Collins

Right now Camping World has the Prodigy for $109 on an internet special for CW members (which I'm not.)

Steve,

Sorry about not clarifying it.

Jon