Brake Buddy Vantage Select Failure
I bought the Brake Buddy Vantage Select 3 years ago in Feb., and of course, it failed last week while towing my Wrangler in the mountains of Colorado -- it had a 3 year warranty and I was over by 5 months! A light came on my remote and said "check brakebuddy unit". I was not able to pull off until 30 minutes later, because I was in difficult traffic on I-70 just west of the Eisenhower tunnel. When I pulled off and checked the unit, it was running, and the plug-in was so hot I could not hold it, and the unit was very warm. I tried to restart it several times, but it would not shut off after building pressure, so, I threw it in the trunk.
When I got home, I tore into it and here is what I found. They use 1/4” colored air tubing that connects with push in quick-connects, similar to tubing connectors used in some irrigation systems. When I pulled the tubing from the connectors, I noticed the tubing was crushed at the connector end, which allowed air to escape, and not fill the air tank and shut off the unit. The tubing they used was not able to sustain the connector pressure over the years, and failed. You can actually crush the tubing between your fingers. I just happened to have some 1/4" plastic tubing that I compared to the bad tubing, and it was considerably stronger. So, I replaced two of the 4 pieces of tubing (that fed the pump and tank). The unit now works, and I tried it twice.
Although supplemental braking may not be required in many states, the company sells them as safety items, so they should work without such a simple item failing. They must have had many returns for warranty or repair if any were built similar to mine, or, people simply just threw them away. The unit cost over $1000, and it should work without hoses failing. Very unhappy.
When I got home, I tore into it and here is what I found. They use 1/4” colored air tubing that connects with push in quick-connects, similar to tubing connectors used in some irrigation systems. When I pulled the tubing from the connectors, I noticed the tubing was crushed at the connector end, which allowed air to escape, and not fill the air tank and shut off the unit. The tubing they used was not able to sustain the connector pressure over the years, and failed. You can actually crush the tubing between your fingers. I just happened to have some 1/4" plastic tubing that I compared to the bad tubing, and it was considerably stronger. So, I replaced two of the 4 pieces of tubing (that fed the pump and tank). The unit now works, and I tried it twice.
Although supplemental braking may not be required in many states, the company sells them as safety items, so they should work without such a simple item failing. They must have had many returns for warranty or repair if any were built similar to mine, or, people simply just threw them away. The unit cost over $1000, and it should work without hoses failing. Very unhappy.
