Supplemental Brakes Confession Time

[GreenSalsa]

Hello.

Long time member and have been driving my American Coach Revolution 42T for over 2 years now and LOVE it.

I just upgraded my 2007 Ford Escape (towed it with a two wheel tow dolly) to a 2017 Ford Edge.

I have lusted over flat towing for the past 24+ months, now that I have a vehicle that I can do it with my question is this:

My rig can tow 15,000 lbs. Do I really need a supplemental brake system for a car that has a curb weight of 4,000 lbs? I seriously doubt I will even know it is back there. I am completely confident the rig will stop the car.

What say the crowd? Do I need it or will I be okay with out it?

[fpresto]

Effy wrote:
Despite all the claims of it on this forum I have NEVER read of any documented case where a person lost a court case because of a lack of a supplemental braking system on a MH towing a car.

I have posted several times on this forum about the court case I attended and the results. You should be able to look it up under my user name. Of course you can choose to assume that I am lying or just made it up. That is your decision. I will state again that civil trials are based on emotions of the jury and a good lawyer knows how to play to emotion. Driving an expensive motorhome = obviously rich, not using supplemental brakes = obviously don't care about the safety of the general public and it could be any of the jury or their children injured, etc.

[Effy]

I don't go in for all the doom and gloom about being sued etc. Despite all the claims of it on this forum I have NEVER read of any documented case where a person lost a court case because of a lack of a supplemental braking system on a MH towing a car. If anyone has a documented case, feel free to share. I also don't pay much attention to the claims of the tow bar companies because they use scare tactics and misleading info about state laws and most are referencing trailer laws or the laws are usually very vague or there simply aren't any about towing a car behind a MH. Check with your state.

What I do believe in is physics. You will stop faster and it's safer. Period. I also believe that if you have enough money to spend on a MH and a toad, you have enough money not to get cheap on safety. If something is worth doing, it's worth doing right.

[GreenSalsa]

Okay, second time--thanks for the feedback--I will get them installed.

[Bumpyroad]

Johno02 wrote:
Check you state laws. In Tennessee, we can tow up to 4000 without brakes. So far, it has worked for us.

and in a civil suit, their lawyer will have you for lunch.
no breakaway either. juries will be sympathetic for the folks you maim/kill. folks will spend $6,000 for FBP to massage their ego but won't spend $1500 for safety.
bumpy

[Jim_Norman]

In a word, 'YES' You do need a supplemental braking system in your toad. Why? Really very simple, IF the connection of car to RV were to fail, you will have created a 4,000 pound unguided missile. Sure your 15,000 pound tow capacity and 40,000 pound RV will stop just fine, but it will actually stop better with a brake. Also if you are braking on a corner there is a chance that the Toad will push the tail end of your rig out. Been there with a very light trailer behind a car. Oh, and generally speaking it is a against the law and your insurance company might also frown upon the practice. Hate to have an accident and have your Ins CO walk.

[Thunder_Mountai]

Hey OP, if you have an attorney ask them your question. No attorney... Ask your insurance agent. You'll probably get the same answer. When your panties get in a wad whether it was your fault or not, you had better to be able to state in a deposition that you had supplemental braking. It has nothing to do about how much you are towing but the weight of what you are towing.

[OLYLEN]

It's not the dead weight you need to stop , it's the weight in motion. So now at 60mph it weight either 6 or 9 times the static weight. Try a bicycle to find out. ride very slow hit the brakes, puts you over the handle bars. Now get to 15 MPH , try stopping, takes a several 10's of feet. you were able tyo stop the MH just short of the stopped school bus alone add the toad and your 10' into the bus. With something like the ready brake/brute system your not much over the tow bar alone. No brainer for me.

LEN

[GreenSalsa]

Okay guys, thanks for the feedback--I will get them installed.

[onecb]

The only thing that occured to me was if there ever came a time where I wish I had a brake on the towed It may very well be too late and something really bad may have happened. So I put one on and have used it everytime we go.

[Mr_Mark1]

Honestly, I'm not sure of the legal towing limit in our State. It didn't matter because I WANTED a braking system for our tow vehicle along with a break-a-way feature. The first toad, we had the M & G installed, on the second one, we had the Air Force One installed.

My feeling is that when it's time to stop 'PRONTO', I wanted all the help I could get. I didn't want the weight of the toad to push me. When every inch counts, you want to stop as fast as possible.

Mainly, I wanted a break-a-way system so if the toad were to ever get away, the car would stop on it's own.

Get a braking system.

Safe travels,
MM.

[et2]

Based on legal ramifications you hitting and injuring someone, why would you even think of not doing it. It's just common sense there's a definate benefit to it. This has been discussed recently on this forum in length. And at 4000 lbs many states require you use one. If you had a 15,000 pound toad would you consider it and why?



Other thread

[SDcampowneroper]

Many times we read questions like 'will my jillion HP 1/2t pull this?' Sure, but will it stop it? No.
Stopping is the most critical issue. You could save a life.

[irishtom29]

Night and day: not a slight difference, a noticeable difference, a meaningful difference--no, night and day. I doubt it.

[Bill_Satellite]

Yes! My Prevost can tow more than your rig but after towing my Jeep Liberty (about 4000#) for a year or so I finally got around to installing an M&G braking setup like I had on my previous very heavy toad. The difference is like night and day especially in those rare moments where some idiot requires you to really get on the brakes.
On the legal side, supplemental braking is likely required in your State. Not doing so and then getting involved in an accident, even if it's not your fault, will likely get you tied up in some unnecessary litigation that could have been avoided for less than $1000.

[tropical36]

GreenSalsa wrote:
Hello.

Long time member and have been driving my American Coach Revolution 42T for over 2 years now and LOVE it.

I just upgraded my 2007 Ford Escape (towed it with a two wheel tow dolly) to a 2017 Ford Edge.

I have lusted over flat towing for the past 24+ months, now that I have a vehicle that I can do it with my question is this:

My rig can tow 15,000 lbs. Do I really need a supplemental brake system for a car that has a curb weight of 4,000 lbs? I seriously doubt I will even know it is back there. I am completely confident the rig will stop the car.

What say the crowd? Do I need it or will I be okay with out it?

This question has came up many times and again I say, if it will stop any quicker and even for the distance of an inch, then install the thing already and be done with it. Pretty simple to do with a NSA READYBRAKE, too. Good bang for the buck, simple and trouble free. You might want to install the READYSTOP break away while you're at it, for some peace of mind if nothing else. I did see some pictures of the whole front end, ripped off of a toad once. Don't ask me how or why, it just was.