Supplemental Brakes Confession Time

xctraveler wrote:
Not sure I have a dog in this fight since I have had a supplemental tow system installed and in use for the past 13 years. I towed for 3 years without one and was grateful when I finally got around to installing it. Crossing the b order into British Columbia they require a brake system for any towed vehicle in excess of 1500 kg (3300 lbs). Not everyone is headed into BC, but. . .

Correct. My understanding is that applies to all of Canada.

Not sure I have a dog in this fight since I have had a supplemental tow system installed and in use for the past 13 years. I towed for 3 years without one and was grateful when I finally got around to installing it. Crossing the b order into British Columbia they require a brake system for any towed vehicle in excess of 1500 kg (3300 lbs). Not everyone is headed into BC, but. . .

Mr.Mark wrote:

rgatijnet1 wrote:
Don't look for TRAILERS. Look for, or do what I did, ask the State Police, what the requirement is for a "VEHICLE IN TOW".
Then try to remember when you saw any tow truck operator put a supplemental braking system in a car that they were towing. TRAILER requirements are what the people put in the ads to fool people in to buying their braking system. It works, so they keep doing it. msimth1199 is ex-police and he is telling you the truth.
As I mentioned, I contacted most States that I would travel in and never found a single one that required brakes in my toad. I posted the names of the people that I contacted. Here is a typical reply from Florida. NOTE that no weight limit is ever mentioned. Compare this with what BrakeBuddy tries to tell you:
A vehicle towed behind a motor home would be exempt from the braking requirements in Florida statute 316.261 as a drive away, tow away operation. Please contact me if you have any other questions.

Lt. Jeff Frost
Florida Highway Patrol
Public Affairs Officer
Commercial Vehicle Enforcement
2900 Apalachee Parkway, MS 45
850-617-2279
Tallahassee, Florida 32399
www.flhsmv.gov/fhp
Jefffrost@flhsmv.gov

RG, I'm not looking for 'trailers'. It is what came up when I punched in 'towing'. It is hard to navigate TDOT.

I want to see it in writing what TN says about towing a car behind a motorhome and the requirements.

I'll find it. I haven't given up.

MM.

The vast majority of States do not have any laws that specifically address towing a motor vehicle behind another motor vehicle. There are a couple that do. Over the years on here I have gone to the actual vehicle codes of most States and checked whenever somebody has posted that it is required by law. I did not keep track, but I did find a couple that it was. North Carolina is one of those. Somebody posted the statute on here and you can see that it covers the towing of a "vehicle" by another vehicle. But it also only mandates it if the vehicle being towed is over 4,000 pounds. So many toads do come in under that, like a Jeep Wrangler.

Most state laws about trailer brakes specifically say "Trailer." And someplace all those vehicle codes will define a trailer. And none of those definitions will fit the definition of a motor vehicle. So none of those laws that require "trailer" brakes apply to a towed motor vehicle. They would have to specifically include motor vehicle or vehicle to apply, just like the law in North Carolina does. I think Virginia's law also included motor vehicles and there may have been on other I found.

What all the rest of the states have is a braking performance requirement. Those laws will state that a vehicle, or combination of vehicles, must be able to stop within a certain distance from a certain speed. I have a heavy DP and my current toad is a 2017 Jeep Wrangler. I'm not using aux brakes and probably won't. I feel perfectly safe driving it and although I have not gone out and slammed on the brakes in a measured course, I'm confident I can meet the braking requirements in the charts.

So before all the hate starts I have to add the disclaimer here, I'm just telling you what the law is. Brakebuddy and all those others know good and well they are lying on their websites but they do it anyway. I would recommend that if you have a heavy toad or a light motorhome or a combination of the two, that you get aux brakes on your toad. But if you have a heavy DP and a light toad, do what you feel comfortable with.

doc brown wrote:
People are driving a motor home that costs in excess of 100k in many instances, and they are not willing to spend 1k to minimize potential liability or injury to someone else? As said, forget what is required by law, lets use some common sense.

"They werent" and "I wasnt either". Mainly because there are a dozen different makes and models on the market that just flat arent worth a ####. No one has the "cajones" to test them and declare publicly which are no good.

"They" force us to use seat belts and now tire inflation monitors so IF the aux brakes were all that good...why arent they already installed on coaches???

I suggest it is a "NO BRAINIER" but then what would I know. I can tell you from experience that in an emergency stopping situation that a working supplemental braking system will stop a fishtail and keep things lined up when braking.

In the often touted sudden emergency situation (dog or kid runs in front of you, car makes sudden stop in front of you, etc.) keep in mind how far you will travel before your foot even hits the brake pedal.
For instance, are you aware that at 60 MPH, you are traveling at 88 feet per second? What is YOUR reaction time?
Yes, a braking system on a towed vehicle is a good idea.
But, think about it. In a true sudden emergency situation, will it really do any good? Also, given the "Nanny State" mentality of today, isn't it likely that if the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) or Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) considered it a necessity, they would be testing the systems and recommending that every state pass laws requiring them?
Again, yes, such a braking system is a good idea.
However, I have been researching this issue for many years, and the only state I have found that appears to address the issue is North Carolina. Nearly every other state has a Braking Performance Standard that closely (or exactly) mirrors the Standard set by FMVSS. In fact, many states have a legal definition of a "trailer" encoded in law that specifically excludes towed motor vehicles!
I have also found that it is foolish to trust ANY "list of vehicle/towing laws" found on the internet. Just looking at what they say about Montana laws convinces me they can not be trusted at all.

Not wanting to pick a side on this one, but when I first got into towing a toad, I was told the supplemental brake also minimized a lot of wear and tear on the tow bar.

Bumpyroad wrote:

PastorCharlie wrote:
http://drivinglaws.aaa.com/tag/trailer-brakes/

North Carolina

Every semitrailer, trailer, or separate vehicle attached by a drawbar or coupling to a towing vehicle of at least 4,000 lbs., and every house trailer weighing at least 1,000 lbs., shall be equipped with brakes controlled or operated by the driver of the towing vehicle.

North Carolina seems to clarify that whatever you call it, if you are dragging it behind your motorhome, it needs brakes.
and when I towed a toad, I was not concerned about the $500 fine or whatever for not having a braking/breakaway system, I was worried about the $5,000,000 civil suit for negligence awarded by some jury.
bumpy

My worry has always been about possibly saving someone from injury or death as a result of not being able to stop a few feet sooner and regardless of any laws on the books of which I could care less about. This I've stated many times before on like threads and never can figure out why laws, lawsuits and the like, seem to be the only concern with some, when the discussion should be, not if, but maybe what works best, without much in the line of failure.
I've seen some of these threads go on longer than it took me to order and install the whole system, for chrissy sakes and by now, the OP should have had his installed and working, as well.
On the note of safety and not long ago, we saw a small car load of people in front of us and up against the back window was this small child with only a few inches between him and the outside, so again, one foot of stopping distance could mean a lot.

PastorCharlie wrote:
http://drivinglaws.aaa.com/tag/trailer-brakes/

North Carolina

Every semitrailer, trailer, or separate vehicle attached by a drawbar or coupling to a towing vehicle of at least 4,000 lbs., and every house trailer weighing at least 1,000 lbs., shall be equipped with brakes controlled or operated by the driver of the towing vehicle.

North Carolina seems to clarify that whatever you call it, if you are dragging it behind your motorhome, it needs brakes.
and when I towed a toad, I was not concerned about the $500 fine or whatever for not having a braking/breakaway system, I was worried about the $5,000,000 civil suit for negligence awarded by some jury.
bumpy

rgatijnet1 wrote:
Don't look for TRAILERS. Look for, or do what I did, ask the State Police, what the requirement is for a "VEHICLE IN TOW".
Then try to remember when you saw any tow truck operator put a supplemental braking system in a car that they were towing. TRAILER requirements are what the people put in the ads to fool people in to buying their braking system. It works, so they keep doing it. msimth1199 is ex-police and he is telling you the truth.
As I mentioned, I contacted most States that I would travel in and never found a single one that required brakes in my toad. I posted the names of the people that I contacted. Here is a typical reply from Florida. NOTE that no weight limit is ever mentioned. Compare this with what BrakeBuddy tries to tell you:
A vehicle towed behind a motor home would be exempt from the braking requirements in Florida statute 316.261 as a drive away, tow away operation. Please contact me if you have any other questions.

Lt. Jeff Frost
Florida Highway Patrol
Public Affairs Officer
Commercial Vehicle Enforcement
2900 Apalachee Parkway, MS 45
850-617-2279
Tallahassee, Florida 32399
www.flhsmv.gov/fhp
Jefffrost@flhsmv.gov

RG, I'm not looking for 'trailers'. It is what came up when I punched in 'towing'. It is hard to navigate TDOT.

I want to see it in writing what TN says about towing a car behind a motorhome and the requirements.

I'll find it. I haven't given up.

MM.