Troubleshooting Weak Trailer Brakes When Using Foot Pedal But Great Breaking with Manual Override

Published 09/12/2018

Question:

the setting is as high as it will go if something is wrong with the pendulum in the controller could this cause this problem one time while moving the reading on the controller went to 12 for a brief second than fell back to 5-6 with steady hard pressure on the pedal is there any way to check the controller for this

asked by: Charlie D

Expert Reply:

It sounds like you have a proportional brake controller, like the Prodigy P3 # 90195, that activates the brakes on your trailer at the same time and with the same intensity as the brake pedal in your tow vehicle.

What I think is going on is that you aren't adjusting the power output of the brake controller before heading down the road. The manual override will always provide the 12V of power but if you have the power output setting low on your brake controller (like a 5 or 6) then it will only send up to that amount of power out to your brakes.

There should be an adjustment lever, knob, or wheel that will allow you to increase the max output when applying the brakes via your foot pedal. You may want to refer to your owner's manual to adjust the output. If you don't have your manual let me know what controller you have. If we have it on our site I can link the instructions for you.

expert reply by: Jon G

Charlie D.

9/12/2018

Jon G.

9/12/2018

If your brake controller is getting adequate power and you have the power set to as high as it will go but the controller isn't sending max power then something is wrong internally (possibly the pendulum) and your controller will need to be replaced as they don't make spare internal parts for brake controllers. Check to see if your current controller is still under warranty. If it isn't then I do recommend replacing it with the Prodigy P3 # 90195 that I referenced earlier as this features an LCD screen that lets you know what is going on without having to read codes. It has the ability to save settings for various towing setups and is very easy to use. I have attached a review video for you to check out for this controller.