Do Self Adjusting Trailer Brake Assemblies Need to be Initially Adjusted

Updated 09/12/2025 | Published 05/24/2025

Question:

I just bought auto adjusting brake assembly and drums from you. Do I have to still manually adjust brakes or should they do it just by driving and if so how long should that take?

asked by: Marc

Expert Reply:

Hey Marc, if you have the ability to apply the brakes with the manual override lever lots of times while moving slowly before needing to go on a trip then yes you can just install the brakes and not worry about an initial adjustment. It may take some time but you'll start feeling them grab harder and harder. How long it will take depends on how far out of adjustment they are once installed which is hard to say.

expert reply by: Jameson C

Jameson C.

9/12/2025

Hey Marc, did you notice the brakes starting to grab harder after using the manual override lever a few times? I'm curious to know how it worked out for you, as it could help others with similar brake setups.