Troubleshooting Curt Echo and 2018 Ford Expedition Where Brakes Are Always Applied

Updated 09/11/2020 | Published 09/08/2020

Question:

My Echo is always showing brakes activated opaque circle and blue line moves as I drive even with no brakes applied. 2018 Expedition with factory wiring and tried out several trailers. I never receive the solid orange circle. It applies the brakes fully when I hold the button and applies them when I hit the brakes. They are slightly on to approx. 1/3rd on all the time. What should I do?

asked by: Bob J

Expert Reply:

We've actually seen this happen before on other Ford trucks and large SUVs before and what the issue here usually is with the tow monitoring system in those vehicles and the age of your Curt Echo # C51180. The older models of the Curt Echo don't have resisters in them that help combat this on the Fords equipped with the tow monitor system, so basically it's not resisting the charge that your monitor sends on the brake controller wire. This is why you're getting a charge on the system and your brakes are engaging when your brake isn't applied.

You'll want to check the sticker on your Echo and there should be a model number on the bottom of the sticker; it should have two letters before a number- if your unit has the letters HH in front of the number, you've got the old unit that won't work with a Ford truck or SUV.

If you've got different letters in front of the model number at the bottom of the sticker, there's something else going on here, so just let me know. If you've got the older unit with the HH, you will need to get a newer Curt Echo unit like the # C51180 available on our site that is compatible and has the internal resistors to be used with your 2018 Ford Expedition.

expert reply by: Erik B