INTRODUCTION: To be safe and legal every motorhomer towing a toad should install a toad brake (TB). The cost of a TB is less than $1000. This cost is absolutely justified and necessary to reduce risk of person and property loss. Stopping most motor homes is difficult enough without adding the weight of a toad. This article will help you understand and select the best TB for your application.
IMPORTANT ATTRIBUTES OF A TB: There are many TB designs to choose from so understanding how each unit functions will help you pick the best one for you. The important attributes are to be non-intrusive, have adequate power, activated positively and have an operations monitor to tell you in the motorhome that the brake is working properly. It should be adjustable, easy to maintain, have an effective "Break-Away" function and be easy to connect, disconnect and store. The Break-Away function stops the toad if it should ever become disconnected from the motorhome.
NON-INTRUSIVE: A TB should make the least changes or alterations to the motorhome and the toad. Even though we are protected by the Magnisson-Moss Act, warranty repair of a modified braking system is difficult to arrange, when the service manager points to the modified hydraulic line, vacuum line, master cylinder, or any other component, and says "That’s what cause the problem!" The more modifications required the more failure possibilities there are. The fewer modifications the better it is.
BRAKING POWER: TB’s that push or pull down on the unassisted brake pedal of the toad require 200 lbs. to 400 lbs of pressure to cause the toad to safely stop from highway speed. That pressure can break the brake pedal housing. Un-assisted brakes were used on passenger vehicles prior to the 1950’s. Have you ever had to stop a modern car when the engine was not operating? It is very difficult and takes a lot of strength. Regulations require that a person should be able to stop a vehicle with then engine not running. Braking takes 20 lbs. or less pressure when there is assistance (vacuum) available. TB’s that use the charged vacuum assist design of the car are better than those that don’t. At least two designs use an "air over hydraulic" scheme that inserts an additional air chamber into the hydraulic system. I have found this air of hydraulic system to be very satisfactory. To make the Break Away work there must be enough power to stop a toad if it should ever break loose from the coach from highway speed in a reasonable distance.
POSITIVE ACTIVATION: TB’s should only be activated when aggressive or emergency braking is required. The motor home’s normal braking and compression braking are more than adequate for normal traffic. Exhaust Brakes on Diesel engines motor homes are effective methods of slowing the combination while descending a grade assuming you were in the right gear that the top of the hill. The best design senses when the motorhome service brakes are applied and then applies braking on the toad immediately. Designs that use a time delay to overcome control inadequacies delay needed braking action and thus are less effective. TB’s that use surge sensing to cause hydraulic pressure or mechanical pulling or pushing on the brake pedal do not necessarily activate when the motorhome brakes are engaged. If surge TB’s are not installed and adjusted properly they will prematurely wear out the toad brakes because it applies brake power when it is not needed. This happens when descending a mountain grades, backing up, driving over speed bumps, etc when no brakes should be applied. Momentum change sensing activation, like with a pendulum or gyroscope, can also cause improper application of the toad brakes. I favor activation when the motorhome driver presses on the brake pedal of the motorhome.
ADJUSTMENT AND VERIFICATION OF OPERATION: Ideally a TB would require no adjustment after initial installation. If it does required periodic adjustment, that process should be extremely easy. The operation of the TB should be annunciated in the motorhome with a status light so that the driver can continually verify its operation and not just hope it is working. A TB that allows verification of operation while driving the toad solo has a real advantage.
EASE OF CONNECTION/DISCONNECTION: An ideal TB should be easy to connect and disconnect from the toad through simple quick disconnects on wires or hoses. It should be easily stowed for solo operation. There should be no need to adjust the brake every time it is used. If this is not true then some of us will get laze some times and say "I am only towing a few miles, so I won’t hook it up this time". As we have heard many times the most dangerous mile we travel is the very next mile.
EASE OF MAINTENANCE: Required maintenance should be simple and easy for anyone to perform. The less maintenance the better the design is.
MANUFACTURERS – Here is a partial list of manufactures of supplemental braking systems with their Internet Link. I will add to this list as I find the web sites or phone numbers.
VacBrake ToadStop http://www.rvstuf.com/ This brake is now sold by Blue Ox see link below.
Supplemental Brake M&G Engineering 800-817-7698
Auto Stop Blue Ox http://www.aemfg.com/
Brakemaster Roadmaster http://www.roadmstr.com/
Brake REMCO http://www.RemcoTowing.com/
BrakeSafe Brakesafe http://www.brakesystems.com/
BrakeBuddy Master Concepts http://www.brakebuddy.com/
Tow-V-Aire Tow-V Aire http://www.tow-v-aire.com/
Unified Tow Brake US Gear http://www.usgear.com/
VIP-TOW<>BRAKE Tow Brake Int. http://www.towbrake.com/
Air-Pro Turner 888-915-5858
I have personally tested six different designs. I have studied most of the others. I recommend the VacBrake by ToadStop for gas motor homes because the motorhome engine produces the required vacuum pressure. I like the M&G system for diesels with air brakes because it uses an air-over- hydraulic design. Both are immediately activated when the motorhome service brakes are depressed. Again my opinion is that you need a toad brake during emergency braking maneuvers. Good driving habits like having an adequate following distance, being in the right gear at the top of the descent, defensively signaling your intentions, etc will allow you to only need to use the service brakes sparingly. Driving this way is very easy on the passengers and equipment. To be safe and legal a Toad Brake is necessary.