Forum Discussion

et2's avatar
et2
Explorer
Sep 15, 2014

Classic Brake Buddy issue

Our brake buddy just turned a year old in July. Today when hooking up it I was putting it through the 5 times pressing of the test button to get the green light that it's set to tow. Well after the 5 it shut off no display and the seventh sensitivity light was flashing red. Disconnected the 12v plug from the socket and got the same thing twice. The plug at the connection was red indicating it had power.

Looking at the manual it said it was because of a seriously low battery that it shuts it down. Well there was nothing wrong with the car battery as it starts the car and runs accessories fine. The car is fairly new, 8 months old and never ran down as there is a safety feature that shuts the electronics down. We drove the car for two hours the day before.

So I check the checked the car battery and everything is tight. So I go back in the car, plug it back it and go through the procedure again ... And it worked.

Has anyone had this issue with the Brake Buddy Classic? I know legally I'm not suppose to tow without a braking system for the toad. But I sure thought I was going to be in a pickle. No way the wife would drive the toad 4 hours home. So it was take it easy going home or be stranded until it was fixed.

Please keep this a Brake Buddy discussion. I'm not interested in other systems at this time.

Thanks!
Class A
  • et2's avatar
    et2
    Explorer
    Sep 17, 2014
    Thanks for all the advice. I'll order the direct wire kit.
  • s_N_s's avatar
    s_N_s
    Explorer
    Sep 16, 2014
    uncle t wrote:
    had the same issue. called brake buddy and they sent me a direct wire kit. easy to install. car battery to 12v female inlet. problem solved


    This is what you need. Give them a call and have them send you a direct wire kit. You didn't mention what make of toad you had but the GM product line was the biggest culprit to this problem. Doing a search you should find some articles on this problem with GM vehicles. As a matter of fact the guy I purchased ours from had a Chevrolet pickup and he had the same problem. Solved it with the direct wire kit. Good luck and hope you get it resolved.
  • uncle_t's avatar
    uncle_t
    Explorer
    Sep 16, 2014
    had the same issue. called brake buddy and they sent me a direct wire kit. easy to install. car battery to 12v female inlet. problem solved
  • aztortuga's avatar
    aztortuga
    Explorer
    Sep 16, 2014
    ET, you don't have to hit the test button six times. If you will simple depress the car brake pedal six times before installing the brake buddy, it will do the same thing and less wear on your brake buddy. The pushing of the brake pedal bleeds off the vacuum that exits when the car is being used normally and the engine is running. I agree on probable cause of the low voltage is the brake buddy plug itself or the connective wire into the plug.
  • Archie_Kravitz's avatar
    Archie_Kravitz
    Explorer
    Sep 15, 2014
    I had one doing that and eventually burnt out the compressor. Car was a month old 3 years ago when it went and I still get a whiff of the burnt wire smell. Ruined a good trip and a new Ford Explorer.
  • Roadpilot's avatar
    Roadpilot
    Explorer
    Sep 15, 2014
    I also had a bad plug one time that had similar symptoms. Older cars had cigarette lighters that had 12 volt plugs that had a higher current rating then some of todays plugs that are just there to power an iphone. They use cheaper plugs and smaller wires.
  • SCVJeff's avatar
    SCVJeff
    Explorer
    Sep 15, 2014
    et2 wrote:
    SCVJeff wrote:
    Is that a home run outlet? Those compressors draw allot of current. Checking the voltage at the battery is often quite different than measured at the 12v outlet the BB is plugged into


    I don't know what you mean. It came with the car as a standard option.
    that answers the question. If it were home run to the battery, you would have installed it. If you have a DVM with sharp leads, puncture the insulation of the BB under load and see what it is. Those things draw around 10A, and that's not an insignificant load for an under rated outlet.
  • rockhillmanor's avatar
    rockhillmanor
    Explorer
    Sep 15, 2014
    Mine had a bad plug. The end you plug into the cig lighter. It was the type that had 2 metal long clips on either side of it. Had the same problems you were having intermittently. Brake Buddy was replacing these bad plugs for free but you had to send it on or drop it off.

    I went to a garage and had them wack it off and put a different one on. Never had any more problems after I replaced the plug with one that did not have those cheap metal contact clips on it.
  • et2's avatar
    et2
    Explorer
    Sep 15, 2014
    SCVJeff wrote:
    Is that a home run outlet? Those compressors draw allot of current. Checking the voltage at the battery is often quite different than measured at the 12v outlet the BB is plugged into


    I don't know what you mean. It came with the car as a standard option.

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