Troubleshooting Tekonsha Prodigy P3 Brake Controller Occasionally Locking Up Trailer Brakes

Updated 04/12/2016 | Published 04/09/2016

Question:

I have a Tekonsha P3 brake controller on my 2015 GMC Yukon for towing my 26 ft Travel Trailer. Occasionally when coming to a stop, the trailer brakes will lock up. Since this is random, I never get a chance to look at the display while this is happening. This usually happens just prior to coming to a full stop. If I let off the brakes and reapply, it locks up again. At the next stop, it will not occur, so I never know when its going to happen. It has done this both at gradual stopping and at hard applications, but again, not every time. Because of this, I try to apply the brakes as slowly as possible. Thanks for any suggestions

asked by: Larry

Expert Reply:

When you apply full pedal, ideally you want the trailer brakes to stop just short of locking up. I'd recommend reducing the power just a bit. It might not be a bad idea to revisit page 5 of the instructions which will run you through the procedure of setting the brake controller up. You might have inadvertently adjusted the power output of the controller while reaching for something else. This would be the logical place to begin troubleshooting.

Another possibility, does this occur when the travel trailer is pretty empty of gear, and the water tanks, propane and sewer tanks are empty? This could cause the difference in the way the brakes are behaving.

expert reply by: Mike L