To see if this custom-fit item will work for you please tell us what vehicle you'll use it with.
Some brake controllers stick out under the dash and get in the way, but this one mounts flush so it barely takes up space. The main box is only 1" thick and installs neatly with the included bracket and hardware. You can mount it at any angle, and the automatic leveling keeps it working right wherever it sits. The slim setup looks tidy and keeps everything within easy reach.
You don’t get that jerky push-pull feeling with this controller. Its internal 3-axis accelerometer senses how your vehicle is slowing down and sends matching power to your trailer brakes. You can fine-tune braking with two rocker switches—gain adjusts power from 0.5 to 9.9 in 0.5 increments, and load sets how aggressively the brakes apply from levels 1 through 9. It works with up to 4 axles (8 brake assemblies) for even, steady braking every time.
The large LED display shows your braking power, sensitivity, and any error codes clearly so you can check settings without taking your eyes off the road long. You can dim the brightness or use night mode to cut glare on evening drives. If something’s off, full-text diagnostics help you spot and fix it fast.
You don’t have to worry about battery drain or wiring faults. Continuous diagnostics monitor the system while you tow, sleep mode kicks in after 5 minutes of inactivity to save power, and built-in short circuit and polarity protection keep your vehicle, trailer, and controller safe from damage. It also reduces power during long stops so trailer brakes don’t overheat.
Wiring doesn’t have to be a headache. The included custom-fit adapter plugs right into your vehicle’s brake control port under the dash—no cutting or splicing at all. Once connected, just secure the controller with the bracket and you’re ready to go. The TriFlex NEXT pairs a clean look with dependable proportional braking for smooth towing on any trip.
Alternate Instructions
Videos are provided as a guide only. Refer to manufacturer installation instructions and specs for complete information.
Hi there, I'm Michael with etrailer.com. Today we're gonna take a quick look at this Curt Triflex Next Trailer Brake Controller. So if you have electric brakes or electric over hydraulic brakes, you're probably already aware that without a brake controller your trailer's brakes won't activate. So they're really not doing you any good. So you are gonna need to have a brake controller. Basically what a brake controller does is when you apply the brakes in your tow vehicle it's gonna send a signal through your brake switch to your brake controller.
The brake controller is then going to send an electrical signal out to your trailer's brakes so that they apply and help to slow down your trailer. There are several different kinds of brake controllers. There's different basic technologies and that sort of thing. Really your two main categories are you have a time delayed set up or you have a proportional setup. So with your time delay, essentially you set how much power you want applied to your brakes and then no matter if you're just tapping your brakes or really slamming on them in an emergency sort of situation, it's going to apply that same preset power each time.
So there are some downsides to that. It doesn't give you as much control. It can be a little aggressive sometimes when you don't need it to be. But then with your proportional setup it is going to apply your trailer's brakes with the same intensity as your tow vehicle's brakes. So if you're just lightly tapping on the brakes it's just going to lightly apply your trailer's brakes.
So proportional systems like this one are definitely my preference. I think they're a little bit more, give a little bit more finesse to your performance. There are some downsides to these. Typically, they are gonna be a little bit more expensive then your time delayed systems just because they do have more components to them. They've got an accelerometer in there that's going to sense the inertia of your movement so that it can apply the brakes proportionally for you.
And then another downside is typically because it does have that inertia sensor in there, or an accelerometer, it's going to have to be mounted in certain configurations to follow your direction of travel. And that's one benefit to this particular model is that it doesn't have to be mounted in any particular configuration. So you can basically mount it wherever you want. So definitely a benefit to this one over even other proportional systems. So for this model specifically, it does have the LED display that's going to show the amount of power output. You can adjust that with your rocker switches here. So very easy to access those. That's going to allow you to adjust between 10 different gain settings. So you can adjust the amount of braking power to suit your performance, the road conditions, the type of trailer you're towing, and the weight of your load. If you select a higher setting for a harder braking and a lower setting for more gradual braking, you do wanna make sure when you're getting that set up a good rule of thumb is to go just shy of where your trailer's brakes lock up. So test it out a few times. As you're going down the road you don't want your trailer's brakes to lock up. So get to that point and then come down just a little bit to get that fine tune where you need it to be. And then typically your gain is only gonna have to be readjusted when you're experiencing changing road conditions or if the weight of your trailer changes. So if you drop off your trailer load and you're needing to you probably need to adjust that gain there. It also gives you nine different load settings so that you can adjust how quickly the brakes will reach their maximum braking level. So if your vehicle takes too long to come to a stop, good idea to increase your setting by pressing the upper rocker switch. And then if it's stopping too abruptly you can decrease the settings as well. So you kind of fine tune it to your preference. We also have the pinch trigger manual override here. So that's within very easy reach, very simple to operate. What that's gonna do is allow you to apply your trailer's brakes without having to apply the brakes in your tow vehicle. So say for instance, if your trailer starts swaying you don't really need to slow down your whole setup you just need to apply the brakes in your trailer to kind of bring that back in line. So you can just push in on that trigger switch there and that will apply your brakes in your trailer without having to apply the brakes in your tow vehicle. This does have several different integrated safeguards to help protect your vehicle, the trailer, and the controller itself. It's going to run continuous diagnostic checks to alert you to any potential problems. It will help to minimize drain on your car battery by entering sleep mode. After about five minutes of inactivity it's gonna help keep your trailer's brakes from overheating by reducing power output when you're sitting for prolonged periods or prolonged stops. So if you're in traffic or something like that it's gonna help decrease the power so your brakes don't overheat. It's also going to defend the brake controller and trailer brake away system against any shorts and prevent positive and negative power reversal with its built-in polarity protection. This is gonna be very quick and easy to get installed. Again because you're not having to worry about the orientation, you can basically just get it mounted wherever it's gonna be most convenient for you to reach and access those controls. They've got this mounting bracket here. As you can see we'll just use the included hardware to get this mounted in place. And then basically our controller just slides onto that so it can be mounted flush with your dash. So very convenient to get that mounted. When you're considering where you can mount this, give you a few measurements here. You can see it is right about three we'll call it three and one eighth of an inch wide. Our length, we're right about four inches long. And our height approximately one inch overall. So keep that in mind and when you're deciding where you can get this mounted. Now as far as wiring goes, that's gonna completely depend on your setup. So there are some vehicles that already have a plug pre-installed from the factory that will allow you to just plug this right in there. If you don't have that on your vehicle, there are some kits available that will allow you to make that installation process pretty simple. But they are very vehicle specific. So I'd encourage you to use our vehicle fit guide here at etrailer.com. You'll select your year, make, and model of your vehicle. We'll let you know which products are confirmed to fit with your vehicle. So that's another route to go. If your vehicle isn't already pre-wired with a plug then I would recommend that. Otherwise, it is gonna take a little bit of doing to get this installed. If you don't already have a seven way plug at the back of your vehicle, I would highly recommend using our ETBC seven plug that's gonna provide wiring and everything to get you set up so that you've got that connection so that your trailer can connect to your vehicle. But overall, a really great option here. Like I said, I really like the proportional system. The way this is going to allow your trailer's brakes to be applied at the same intensity as your tow vehicle. I like that this model gives you that option to have more versatility and where you get it mounted. And so overall, I think this is gonna be a great way to go if you are needing a brake controller for your trailer's brakes. And that completes our look for today. Again, I'm Michael with etrailer.com. Thanks for watching.
Customer Satisfaction Score:
98% were satisfied with this product
2% of customers were not satisfied
Ratings & Reviews
Install was easy, wiring plugged right no issue, and controller works as it should.
All the information I needed was on your site. Got the correct adapter cable and was able to just plug in the controller.
I’ve use the electric brake system several times over the last year. I was impressed at how easy it was to use, and how much safer it was when braking. It was easy to install and worked great
Great controller! Easy to adjust even on the fly. I had the controller adjusted a little aggressive and as I was trying to get out of Buffalo to go south for the winter we ran into some snow accumulation and was able to quickly dial back the controller to avoid locking up on thick snow covered roads. Literally a potential disaster! Very happy with the controller
The product came very fast and it was super easy to install. It's working better than I thought, I'm very happy with www.etrailer.com and there products. Definitely worth every penny and everything top quality. Thanks!!!!
Easy to install, had no glitches. Replace an older brake controller.
This unit took less than 10 minutes to install and works flawlessly with my Grand Cherokee while pulling a Travel Trailer. Plus its low profile design made it easy to install by the hood release so I don't have a big box and display on top of my dashboard. Great product at the right price. Highly recommend this brake controller and etrailer.
It performs well when hooked up but often needs unplugged from truck to reset otherwise it won’t power back on. It’s a hassle when stopping for gas and towing at times. Happy while driving though with performance.
Arrived as planed and was much smaller then my old clunky one. The custom cable harness was easy to install. Finding a flat spot to mount the controller took the longest to find the perfect spot. I gave a five stars because every was as it said. (Plug and play)
Works well. The connector I got from e trailer which fits other older model Audi’s wasn’t listed to fit the 2024 Audi but fit perfectly. The Curt Triflex is an easy to use brake controller. Highly recommend!
easy to install and working great
Great brake controller for the price. Easy to install with the video. Customer service was very prompt and kind.
Simple install, plug and play
Ease of installation (plug n play) and works incredibly well. A great value.
Great product ,easy installation less then 10 minutes
Took a while to figure it out. Have a 2003 Dodge van. Had to tow in package but didn’t have any wiring factory installed other than for the seven way. Paul it was great identifying what I need and sending it to me. Thank you very much.
Shipping was super fast installed easy and works excellent
Great product great fit easy installati on.
Plug-and-play. Easy to install. Took longer to mount it where I wanted it than to hook everything up. Easy to understand operating instructions. Shipping was right on time.
This is a new model of the Curt TriFlex brake controller. As a replacement for the previous unit, it was nice to be able to install it without rewiring. The new model has a more modern style digital display that is easier to read and less annoying. The button controls are a bit less obvious than the previous model, so it takes a little effort to figure out how to adjust the system. Overall, I think it's a better unit that the previous models.
Exactly what we needed! Quick shipping and great customer service!
Very helpful. Quick shipping!
The controller I received is the correct part number 51146, the part number I received for the harness is 51457 on the page for the controller the correct part number for the harness is 51458 this is what is listed on your page for a 2015 Ram 1500. When this issue is corrected I will update my review.
Thank you Harold
So far this has been a great brake controller. It was an easy plug and play with my Ram 1500. The custom harness fit well and the controller was up and running in no time. Installation was simple with two screws and the provided sticky tape. The display is bright but can be adjusted in brightness. Overall a good purchase.
Was easy to install on my 2019 ram 1500 did not use it yet going to use it this weekend
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