Brakes behaving normal?

[Schilly]

We just finished our first trip with our new x17z.

I noticed when pulling the camper and i ever so lightly step on my brakes that there's an instant jerking motion that does not happen when I drive my car without the camper. Is that normal?

[drk98]

If you have a brake controller... Check the gain.. It might be set too high.

[mike837go]

Nope.


Your brake controller's gain is set to high.


Dial it back. The trailer's brakes should start coming in after you apply the tow's brakes.


If you lightly hold the tow's brakes, you should feel the trailer's brakes increase over a few seconds.


Unfortunately, all the brakes disengage at the same time when you release the pedal.


Move the gain control a bit-at-a-time, until the trailer's brakes are clearly slaved off the tow's brakes.

[charles_cincy]

Read your brake controller manual...

With for instance the P3 I have, the recommend procedure to set the gain is to drive at 25mph and apply the trailer brakes manually on full to stop trailer & truck. You want to adjust the gain so that it's as high as possible without locking the trailer brakes.

Additionally with the P3, it has "boost mode" you can set; 1,2,3 depending on the comparative size of your TT and TV.

[RoyBraddy]

I seem to get a jerking feeling with my trailer when I first start down the road and using my brake pedal. I suppose the brakes are somewhat still damp or wet from sitting...

When we first start out for the trip I will always use the manual slider thumb switch to bring both the truck and the trailer to a complete stop before we leave our immediate area. Just a check to make sure all is working OK....

My settings ended up around a 5-6 number...

When I first got my new 2010 Ford truck that has the built-in OEM brake controller I really thought I had a problem with my brakes. Just sitting still using the truck brake pedal did nothing for the trailer brakes. I just knew I had a brake controlled problem.

Then after talking with the Ford folks at the dealership I found out the FORDs after 2009 really integrated their TRAILER BRAKE System with the trucks computer systems. It turns out the trailer brakes do not operate when pushing the brake pedal when the speedometer is less than 10MPH on my truck.

I was always glad to have the trailer brakes locked up when sitting at stop signs especially when on a small incline.

Now to have this feature I have to reach down and hold the trailer wheels locked by using the manual slider thumb switch. The manual control overrides the computers I guess...

I kinda liked the brake pedal method better...

Roy Ken

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by charles_cincy

Read your brake controller manual...

Additionally with the P3, it has "boost mode" you can set; 1,2,3 depending on the comparative size of your TT and TV.

This. If you have a boost mode, it will activate the brakes at first with a much higher gain. If yours has the "boost" mode, try lowering it, and you may need to adjust the gain accordingly as well.

My Tekonsha Primus IQ used to do this. It's especially bad at low (think parking lot) speeds; I could breathe on the brake pedal and we would jerk forward, but it was nice to have out on the road at highway speeds.

[charles_cincy]

Originally Posted by Camper_bob

This. If you have a boost mode, it will activate the brakes at first with a much higher gain. If yours has the "boost" mode, try lowering it, and you may need to adjust the gain accordingly as well.

My Tekonsha Primus IQ used to do this. It's especially bad at low (think parking lot) speeds; I could breathe on the brake pedal and we would jerk forward, but it was nice to have out on the road at highway speeds.

Yeah, my P3 does the same.

Wish the boost would only kick in past a certain minimum force. Stop & Go traffic is more like STOP & go

[Camper_bob]

Originally Posted by charles_cincy

Yeah, my P3 does the same.

Wish the boost would only kick in past a certain minimum force. Stop & Go traffic is more like STOP & go

Boy you got that right! That would have been a GREAT feature! There were times I was eating the steering wheel if I forgot to turn it off! But hey, at least I knew the trailer brakes were working!

Now I have integrated trailer brakes, so I set it to my trailer and forget it; I've missed the "boost" feature once or twice though...

[Iraqvet05]

I gave up on the booster mode settings on my P3. It seems to act like a malfunctioning ABS system in town so I just kept it off.

[Schilly]

so, i dialed back the brake controller and that took care of the jerking. However, i noticed that before when i stepped on my car brakes the brake controller light would go from green to orange. Now it pretty much stays green. What does that mean? Also, when i step on my brakes i hear a slight sound coming from what i believe are the camper brakes....is that normal too? to kinda hear them kicking in a bit?

[bucko]

What brand controller do you have? It's owners manual should describe the light functions/meanings. If you don't have it, we can google it if we know what the brand/model the controller is.