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Is this right for you? Product Expert Mike S says:
Get intense, emergency braking or steady, smooth braking in a single portable system. Easily switch between proportional or full braking. One-touch Auto Start makes setup fast and easy. Remote lets you change settings from your RV.
Features:
Specs:
Note: Removing your vehicle's floor mat before installation is recommended.
The Brake Buddy Select 3 is a proportional braking system that applies your towed car's brakes with an intensity that matches your RV's braking action. The built-in inertia sensor detects when and how your rig slows down, and it then engages the actuator arm to press your car's brake pedal with an intensity that matches that slowing action.
The main unit of the Brake Buddy Select 3 is designed to activate only when deceleration is actually taking place. It is built with advanced terrain-sensing technology that keeps the unit from activating when you go over bumps in the road. As a result, your towed car's brakes won't engage unless you intend for them to engage.
You can also select the full-braking mode. When in this mode, the Brake Buddy will activate your towed car's brakes at the maximum preset intensity, regardless of how intensely your RV is decelerating. The full-braking setting is ideal for when you're towing a heavy truck or SUV, or if you're towing your car down a steep incline. By setting the power to a higher level, you can ensure that the momentum of your towed car won't cause it to push against your RV.
The braking power settings determine how intensely the Brake Buddy Select 3 applies your towed car's brakes. When you're first setting up the Brake Buddy, choose a braking power based on your vehicle type. Begin with a pressure that falls into the recommended range for your towed car, as seen on the chart below.
| Vehicle Type | Recommended Braking Power |
|---|---|
| Hybrids | 10 - 20 psi |
| Cars and Compact SUVs | 25 - 45 psi |
| Small Crossovers | 25 - 45 psi |
| Crossovers and Small SUVs | 35 - 65 psi |
| Mid-Size Pickups | 35 - 65 psi |
| Large SUVs and Pickups | 45 - 75 psi |
After selecting an initial setting, press the plus or minus buttons on the actuator unit's control panel to fine-tune the power setting. The setting should be enough to cause your towed car to give a slight tug at your RV during a braking event. Braking power doesn't normally need to be reset unless you're changing to a different towed car.
Once the overall braking power is set, you can customize the sensitivity on the Brake Buddy. The sensitivity setting determines how aggressively you need to brake in the RV for the Brake Buddy to activate your towed car's brakes. If you set the sensitivity high, then your car's brakes will activate with just a light tap of your RV's brakes. Setting the sensitivity low ensures that your car's brakes will only activate when you hit the brakes in your RV with a fair amount of intensity.
The included remote control allows you to monitor or change settings for the Brake Buddy Select 3 from the comfort of your RV's cab. You can easily switch from proportional braking to full braking and vice versa with the push of a button. You can also change the Brake Buddy's sensitivity settings, which makes it easy to fine-tune the braking as you drive so that you can adjust based on feel. Finally, the remote will illuminate to alert you of any errors with the Brake Buddy system, including a breakaway event.
Instead of connecting to a 12V accessory outlet, the Brake Buddy Select 3 draws power directly from your towed car's battery. To do this, the included wiring harness connects to your car's battery. Install the harness by routing the wire end through your car's firewall and into your engine compartment. Connect the harness to your battery with the included battery wire and ring terminal.
Mount the connector that's on the opposite end of the harness in a convenient, out-of-the-way location beneath your car's dash.
To connect the actuator unit to this connector, use the included Easy-Pull harness. This harness plugs into the connector below your dash, then into the braking system. When connected, the harness carries both power and breakaway functions in a single cord. And the large grip ring and wide handle make it easy to hold while connecting and disconnecting the actuator, all without ripping connectors or pulling on wires.
If you're concerned about your car's battery going dead as you tow, don't worry. The Brake Buddy Select 3 includes a 15-amp charger that pulls power from your RV to keep your car's battery charged while the Brake Buddy is connected.
Not every car is built the same. Some have brake pedals with unusual shapes. Some have uneven floorboards or mats. These differences can make it difficult to set up a portable braking system in your towed car. But the Brake Buddy Select 3 is able to fit in almost any car on the market.
The Brake Buddy's actuator arm comes with an adjustable Quick-Lock clevis, which securely wraps around your towed car's brake pedal, regardless of the pedal's size or shape.
The clevis also comes with a quick-locking lever. Once you adjust the jaws of the clevis to fit your brake pedal, turn the lever to tighten the clevis in place. And when you're done towing, disconnecting the clevis is a snap. Just turn the lever to release the clevis jaws, and remove the clevis from your brake pedal. It's that simple.
Uneven floorboards can cause a portable braking system to sit at an angle in your towed car. This affects the leverage of the actuating arm, which can result in ineffective braking. Each of the TruFit risers on the Brake Buddy Select 3 actuator unit can be individually adjusted, raising or lowering each corner of the actuator unit, so that the system sits level in your car. As a result, the actuator arm is able to press straight against the brake pedal to ensure that your brakes are properly depressed every time.
To adjust the height of the risers, twist them counterclockwise, either by hand or with the included riser wrench. Pull each riser out to match the height you need, then twist the riser clockwise to secure it at that height.
The Brake Buddy Select 3 will automatically check your brakes every time you start it up to confirm that your vehicle is ready to tow. After setting up the unit in your towed car, press the Auto Start button on the unit's control panel. The arm of the unit will push and release the brake pedal several times, removing vacuum pressure from the brakes to prevent overbraking. The unit will also check for any connection errors.
California residents: click here
Average Customer Rating: 4.6 out of 5 stars (102 Customer Reviews)
Get intense, emergency braking or steady, smooth braking in a single portable system. Easily switch between proportional or full braking. One-touch Auto Start makes setup fast and easy. Remote lets you change settings from your RV.I looked at several supplemental braking units and wanted one that was portable with nice features like wireless monitoring and parameter changes while flat towing my Jeep Wrangler. I reviewed the videos on the etrailer site for features and installation instructions, they’re well done and really helped with my buy decision and installation guidance. I decided on the Select 3 mainly because of the option for full or proportional braking, as I live in CA and take my RV through mountain passes often. The installation was straight forward with the help of the etrailer videos, very well done. The initial testing of the unit was a bit tricky, but it worked, after leveling the unit out. The first trip with the unit was from Southern CA to Paso Robles through the “Grapevine” pass and some other large hills, the unit worked well and gave me the extra braking I needed while flat towing my jeep behind my RV. During this trip, the unit was inconsistent in bleeding the brakes upon startup. I shared this information with etrailer in detail, and they sent me a replacement unit after trouble shooting. I want to thank etrailer for excellent support of a product which I entrust the safety of my family to while in use. The new unit has been wonderful on two other trips so far. I’m very happy with the performance and ease of use for the Select 3. It just takes a few minutes to position in the jeep, activate and get going down the road after the initial install was complete, which only took a few hours to run simple wiring. The unit is not very large or heavy, and easily fits in a normal storage compartment of the RV when we arrive at our destination. I look forward to many more trips with my family in our RV and the Select 3 giving us the supplement braking we need in our jeep on any road type.
Considering the fact that the most-towed vehicle is the Jeep Wrangler, this product barely fits and the leg adjusters are nearly useless on our 2016 Jeep Wrangler. I had to remove the pedal extender that my wife uses because she is not even 5’ tall but did not have to that when we used our old classic Brake Buddy. Other than that, the unit works as advertised and no other major complaints so far after 2 days and over 1,000 miles.
Joseph - 01/18/2022The cord end that goes in the dash mount does not make good connection. The Brake Buddy loses power on occasion. I replaced an old Brake Buddy Vantage Select. This unit is very smooth. I would give it 5 stars if it wasn't for the loose connection of the cord where it goes into the dash mounted receptacle
Sierra K - 10/25/2021ordered my brake buddy select 3 , came in the mail with all needed parts with no damage. Noah is the representative I talked with for ordering he was very helpful and knew everything I needed for my F-150. I have not had a chance to install yet will get back to let Y'all know how it went.
The product arrived in good condition with all the components. The installation guide and order of installation was accurate and easy to understand. The install video on etrailer site was also very helpful. The installation went smoothly and test drive proved that the unit worked as advertised.
I’ve towed close to eight thousand miles in the past year. I had an incident when someone thought it amusing to pull my hitch pin while I pumped gas. The hitch dropped off about a half mile later and my break buddy saved me from any serious damage. Just got home today from a 3600 mile trip and no problem.
This unit says it would fit our Jeep Libery but it is a pain to get it just right to work properly. I wish the legs were a bit longer so it sat right on the floor instead of having to compensate for the front legs being to short and rear legs not adjustable to be shorter. System works fine when I get it set right.
Thomas M - 11/30/2021Works very good had problem first trip compressor burned out after 7 hours but brake buddy replaced after talking to supervisor working great ever since
The Brake Buddy works very well with my Kia Soul toad. When the unit arrived it had the wrong (generic) pedal adapter for the car. A call to get the correct adapter was made and the proper one arrived very quickly. I am impressed with the service of both the manufacturer and etrailer. Highly recommend!
This unit could not be made to function in the Kia Soul standard transmission. Even with assistance and alternate parts from Brake Buddy, it had to be returned.. The problem was fitting the actuating arm to the very narrow brake pedal. The return and credit was well done.
Hi Miranda, here are the pictures of the bracket and Brake Buddy installed in my Jeep. Works very well. I tried to move the seat forward a bit but when the Brake Buddy activated it pushed the seat adjuster and moved the seat all the way back. Thank you for the bracket.
It works very well. The only thing I don't like is having to take it out and put it back in. Sort of wish I bought a permanently mounted system. But it does work well.
Sierra K - 01/04/2022
Helpful Linkinitial unit worked great for a month or two and then died, customer service got a new one out fast and paid to ship broken one back, since then not a problem and it's been almost a year of full time RVing and towing the toad. install and removable is simple and quick once you get used to it. (used with a Wrangler 2 door behind a class C coach)
Directions for installation and use were complete and easy to understand. Very user-friendly!
BrakeBuddy is a great product. I had verified this newer style included a 12 volt plug. It does, but there is no where to plug it in according to their manufacturer, Hopkins. I will need to rewire two tow vehicles before I can verify that this item works. The box was delivered and dropped off on my driveway without a signature for a $1300 item!!! Also, the box was not even taped shut. I have verified that all the parts are present.
Thomas M - 01/24/2022Have been using my brake buddy for over a year. Simple connections. Works well. The remote works great. Mounted with a magnet on my dash so I can pick it up and move around if needed. I’m very satisfied.
I received the order quickly. The instructions and videos on the etrailer site allowed me to have some of the pre-wiring finished before the brake buddy arrived. Wiring and initial setup was straightforward and easy. I have used the brake buddy three times. Once as a test run then to and from a short camping trip. The third time setting up the unit was super easy and fast. With the blue ox system and the brake buddy I can hook up in just under five minutes. I tow a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox and had no problems with the battery draining because the system includes a battery charger.
Even though my part was delayed due to stocking issues, I appreciated how etrailer sent emails to me frequently to update the situation. Today, good customer service is hard to find, but to me it makes all the difference in the world. Thank you etrailer!
I use the brake buddy when flat towing my Jeep. I just wish the proportional mode could brake lightly when my trucks brakes lightly and brake hard when my truck brakes hard. I found the settings difficult to dial in and took me many test runs braking down empty roads to find a compromise. For me, this system works better as an emergency brake so I set it up so my truck does all the braking unless I brake harder then my Jeep brakes hard also. There are a lot of settings to experiment with. If you set it wrong you could toast the brakes on your towed vehicle. It's nice i can change some settings from inside my truck so if I'm on the highway I can make it more sensitive than when in the city.
We use this in our Jeep JKUR (4-door wrangler) on every trip. The quick connect plug is much better than the previous power (cigarette lighter style) plug. The remote works flawless even though it is about 50' from the unit. This is our 2nd unit and still plenty of smiles per mile for us!
We have a 2003 keep liberty other than a little fiddling around to make it fit ( tight fit) it works get
Disappointed. I bought this to replace my 8-yr old Brake Buddy Vantage on which the compressor died. Shipping was prompt. My plan was just to replace the main unit. Imagine my surprise to find out they have changed all the connections, so now I have to rewire my vehicle!!! The previous version plugged into a normal 12-volt outlet, and the emergency break away has its own connection. Now they have an all in one plug, so now need connections. Sure would have been handy to have a convertor for the old connections. Come on man!!! Also, the adjustable clevis for the brake is missing a lock nut, so the bottom just spins and you have to set it every time. I can't even add one, as the threaded shaft is welded to the top. Guess I will have to call them and get some parts. Hard to do since we are on the road and need to have the system.
Lightweight and easy to use. Instructions were straightforward but installing the wiring into the towed vehicle is not a trivial task. Failed once but was quickly replaced by etrailer. This happened close to home but could be a real nuisance on a long trip.
It didn’t even make it a year. The second day of a 6 week trip it stopped working. We had to buy a new system. We went with RVI. I shipped the BB back to be repaired but would rather have gotten my money back.
Easy to order, delivery on time and a good price. Thanks
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