The Final Break Trailer
Mandy Geise
As a guest, you are welcome to poke around and view the majority of the content that we have to offer, but in order to post, search, contact members, and get full use out of the website you will need to Register for an Account. It's free and it's easy, so don't hesitate to join the TheMalibuCrew Family today!
Hey guys, I'm noticing some "clunking" noises when towing the boat and was wondering if the tongue of the trailer needed to be oiled or greased? I have an 06 boatmate trailer with surge brakes and essentially the front section of the tongue telescopes to detect when the tow vehicle is braking or not. Is it possible this is getting a bit dry and needs some oil or grease? If so is there a recommended way of doing so?
Check the brake fluid in the master cylinder, if it is low obviously add more. It should be Dot3 fluid. I have noticed when the pads start wearing past 50% or the fluid is down the surge brake unit develops a bit more play that you can hear or feel when stopping and starting. The perfect solution to removing all the play is new pads and bleed the system to ensure no air bubbles are trapped in the lines.
Most actuators will have a small shock absorber, they wear out/weaken. Given the environment of the brakes, you should change the fluid every two to three years. If you are seeing rust coloration in the fluid, find out where it is coming from. Water in the fluid will allow the master cylinder ot slaves to rust and lock up. Not good especially if it locks in the braking mode. Once trailer brakes start to break down, they suck to maintain.
Did it once on a different brand of trailer, the design is the same. There are a couple of large pins held in place with snap rings. Once these are out you will have access to the acutator with the return spring (shock absorber). IIRC it really is not that hard to change once you get the correct part and gain access. When you start taking things apart be sure you have some blocks around (within reach) to hold up the actuator so it doesn't hang on the line.
Just replaced the shock in my 06 SMP trailer with a UFP actuator. Cost about $30 for shock on line. It solved my trailer clunking problem. The old shock was not blown but it was weaker than the new one. I have to unhook line to replace mine. Can't slide it out far enough otherwise.
Great advice folks, I've never taken this apart before but I know the snap ring and bolt you are talking about so I'm hoping if I remove those the assembly will drop to the point where I can play with it. Since I will likely need parts and I've never bought parts for a trailer before (only vehicles) how the heck do you find parts?
One last question, the term "master cylinder" was used. I've only seen these in a vehicle before. I'm assuming this is the main part that will drop when removing the snap ring and bolt. Is this true? Also does the master cylinder have a separate reservoir to fill fluid in or do you fill the master cylinder itself? If you fill the MC itself, does it have an obvious fill port? IIRC a car's master cylinder has a separate reservoir that you fill and I imagine there is very high pressure inside the MC so I'm afraid to crack it open and fill it.
I would just replace the acuator all together and replace all fluid and bleed the system, rather than chasing a problem, hindsight being 20/20 There can be other reasons for the clunk. Are you sure the brakes are still functioning properly? Try reversing up a slight incline without the electrical hooked up... do the brakes stop you?
I've seen on mine twice and once on a friends that the saftey look out wire will rub on the rubber boot, eventually destroying it, and dirt/mud gets in the master cylinder and wrecks it. Finally got smart and re-routed it.
The tailer website will have parts avaliable. that is where I would go for all parts as trying to match numbers may be difficult at best, though the parts shouldbe readly avaliable. You have a port on the top of your trailer toung that has the fill port under it. Just remove the plastic cap then the rubber stopper and filll, bleading the old fluid is a good idea every couple of years. This will also give you the oppertunity to see if you are getting any water into your system as Nate (ndawg12) alluded to.
Just wondering, has anyone had their car break down while towing a trailer? I've noticed most flat bed tow-trucks don't have a hitch nor could fit a car & trailer on the bed. I wouldnt want to just leave the trailer on the side of the interstate.
When you call for a tow, you simply tell them what rig configuration you have and that you want nothing left behind. They have trucks that can haul one and tow the other.You could also drop your drive shaft and dolly your vehicle with the trailer attached and have a buddy with a truck pull the entire rig in for much less.
There are different tow trucks for different purposes as long as they know ahead of time they will get you towed to where ever you want. I would guess the cost would probably be significantly more compared to just towing a car so I would phone a friend to come and get the trailer if possible.
I've helped pick up a truck and camper that was broke down. My girlfriends dad owns his own repair shop and from time to time he gets calls to come pick up a broke down vehicle. We ran out two trucks one with a car trailer and one to tow the camper. His tow bill ended up being something close 500 dollars but that included towing the camper to a campsite over an hour away. They didn't let a blown engine get in the way of their vacation!! haha.
In all my travels I have seen a ton of trucks/SUV's on a flatbed truck with their camper/boat/utility etc trailer in tow behind the flatbed. As others said, in the case that you do need a tow, just tell them you have a trailer and need it to come with the car. If they can't do it, they likely could tell you a towing company that can.
In many cases, there is an attachment that fits over the wheel lift "T" junction, bolts in place, and is removable for clearance under air dam's and under-car components under normal towing conditions.
Even if they're shortsighted enough to not have this attachment, I'd bet they have another vehicle around that does have a hitch, and would make arrangements to get that trailer off the road. Towing company's are in the business of providing a service to paying customers, no service, no customers, no pay.
Option B is to tow the same way they do a big truck-pull the driveshaft (speaking of PU trucks pulling trailers) and hook up to the front of the vehicle, leaving the rear axle on the ground and trailer attached.
A brake controller mounts in the cab of the vehicle and generally has a few different controls, such as an interface to view braking information and buttons to control the output and manual activation. Trailer brake controllers come in many different styles and capacities.
With your trailer coupled to your vehicle, the first step when towing with a brake controller is to make sure the trailer wiring harness is plugged into your vehicle. A brake controller requires power from the vehicle and a connection to the trailer brakes for proper towing.
Some brake controllers come with personal settings that can be adjusted to your preference, such as the angle of the interface, the brightness of the screen and even the location of the brake controller itself.
Then, in an open area, test the trailer brakes by driving forward at about 25 mph and applying the brakes. If the vehicle stops too slowly, increase the maximum output. If it stops too abruptly or locks up, reduce the output.
If you're asking yourself: Do electric trailer brakes work without a controller? The answer is, no. Electric trailer brakes do not work without a brake controller. If your trailer is equipped with electric brakes, you will need a brake controller to tow.
However, some trailers are equipped with surge brakes. These are a hydraulic braking system that uses the trailer's own weight and momentum to actuate the brakes. Unlike electric trailer brakes, they do not require a brake controller or even an electrical connection to the vehicle.
A trailer brake controller uses electricity from the tow vehicle to apply a specific amount of power to the trailer brakes. It uses electrical circuits and trailer gain settings to regulate the amount of braking power. Some brake controllers have circuits that respond to the vehicle's momentum while towing. Others apply power on a fixed increasing scale and level off at a maximum output, based on parameters set by the driver.
Note: During setup, make sure your vehicle and trailer are parked on a level surface. Also, make sure you are in a safe, open area with plenty of stopping distance and no other traffic around.
The next step is allowing the brake controller to calibrate. With the trailer plugged in, the brake controller may need to be calibrated. Most brake controllers are self-calibrating. Others do not require calibration at all. Next, you should select and adjust personal settings, such as angle of the interface, brightness of the screen, etc. before driving. The next thing you should do is set the maximum output. To do so, press and hold the vehicle brake pedal. Set the output to the starting value specified in the instructions. Then, in an open area, test the trailer brakes by driving forward at about 25 mph and applying the brakes. If the vehicle stops too slowly, increase the maximum output. If it stops too abruptly or locks up, reduce the output.
c80f0f1006