Factory Brake Controller not working
 

I have a 2008 F-250 Power stroke with tow package. The truck is equiped with the factory electric brake controller. The braking on my goose neck trailer is weak at best. When I use the hand knob for the trailer brakes alone they work fine. We have checked the connection at the master cylinder and it does not appear to be getting the full voltage/amperage. Is there a fix for that?

Check all your connections for corrosion....esp. the one at the rear of the truck. Open up the connector and look inside!

How are you checking output at the master cylinder? You will not get output that is comparable there to manual activation unless you are really hammering the brakes.

For example, you know the trailer brakes are good with full manual activation. You do not get that kind of output with normal truck braking as the trailer braking is proportion to pedal pressure and rate of deacceleration. We get a lot of comments about the factory controller not working, when at times it is due to misunderstanding.

Can you say a little more about how you know it is not working? For example, did it work in the past and not now? Did something change? Are you having a hard time stopping? How big is your trailer and what does it weigh? That information will help trigger more comments. :)

Steve

I have the trailer on jacks and I spun the tire by hand and stepped on the brakes and nothing happened. I then spun the wheel again and used the trailer brake controller only and the tire stopped. Then I put a test light at the plug on the truck and repeated the process. The light was dim when I stepped on the peddle. I then went to the master cylinder, unplugged the rear plug from the bottom and put the test light on it, it was also dim. I did not have a volt meter, so this was the best I could do. It appears though that it is not getting the proper voltage from the source.

Does your brake controller illuminated color turn red instead of green when this happens?

If so, I would bet the connector needs a thorough cleaning and/or checking for proper contact.

If you go to the tech tips at the top of the forum, I did a volt/amperage test a good while back showing how small the controller output to the trailer is by just stepping on the pedal while stopped.

How does your controller do when you are driving and have to hammer the brakes?

Steve

I haven't tried it yet in a driving situation. I have just installed new brakes on the trailer thinking this was the problem and then checked checked the truck. However, from past the brakes never seemed to work that good in driving conditions.
No, the controller never turns colors, it always stays green.

I could be wrong but I was under the impression your truck needs to be moving for the TBC to fully work when applying brakes?

Again, maybe someone will correct me on both comments but I believe in 2006 it was changed so the controller works at any speed. Before it would only work after the 5 mph circuit activated when the door locks auto locked.

Also, if the controller shows green on the console, it is receiving a signal from the brakes, I believe, by way of resistance in the line, eliminating the truck connection at rear bumper.

I agree. 2006 would work stopped.

Yes, it works on manual, but you do not get close to full power using just the pedal, as the amperage is guided by pedal pressure and an accelerometer. You can not test the TBC doing what the OP is doing.

The output amperage on the TBC in my 2010 when set at 10 puts out about 1 amp using pedal pressure alone. I just put my test box on to verify what I posted a good while back. At the same time, it puts out 12 amps using the manual slide. One amp is not going to do anything when it comes to trailer brakes. :)

This comes up so often in this forum because I think the TBC is not well understood. The operation is not as transparent as with older controllers and its action is not always obvious. I never feel mine working when it engages.

Steve

One other feature of the TCB in the Ford is that it mimics the anti-lock feature of the truck!

Well, i took it to the dealer yesterday and they said they found nothing wrong. I then went back and hooked it my trailer and it does not stop. I had the vehicle in gear and stopped, i then held the brake controller over and let my foot off the brake. The truck started rolling forward. I am going to test the trailer this morning with a friends truck (dodge). I will then know for sure which is not working.

Thanks for all the tips and advice, I will keep everyone posted.

How fast were you going when you tried it? Did you get on the highway.....

Are all of your hubs "humming" when the brakes are applied? If not, the magnetic actuators aren't working. I'd go back and check the wiring from the hubs up to the connector again.
It doesn't sound like a short or you'd be blowing fuses.
It sounds like an "open" or a place where there's no current flowing through that point. Amazing the controller doesn't identify that their not working.

You really don't need to do that and it will not help much diagnostically. If you pull the break-away pin and the brakes on the trailer take hold so you can not pull it with your truck, the trailer brakes are working. There is no need to go further with that and it means the problem is with your truck.

Ninety percent of truck problems are with the seven pin connector on the back of the truck, although it seems the most common component held accountable is the TBC. The TBCs are very reliable. I don't think as reliable as the aftermarket controllers given their added complexity, but you also gain a few feature with them, so it kind of balances out. :)

Steve

Well the other truck worked a little better but not much. It appears it may be the trailer now. Pulled the drums again and had them resurfaced, replaced the ground on the trailer, NO better.

I then took the trailer for a drive to get it up to speed to see if the TBC would work better, It didnt.

Not sure what my next step is other than I am leaving tomorrow as is.

My guess, given the same performance with both trucks is the seven pin cord on your trailer, but an amp draw while braking would tell you that instantly.

Steve

Did you ever pull the emergency break-away pin to see if it locks the brakes?

That should certainly be the first step any time deciding whether the problem is truck or trailer.

Steve

Yes, tried that. The battery was dead. Just got back from my trip, I had to go. Now I am back and will start working on it again. However, The brakes are working better when I use the controller manually. I can now skid the tires if I wanted to. I do not feel the trailer brakes grab when I use the foot peddle though.

ALso, want to thank everyone for the advice.

You are not supposed to feel the brakes working. I can't feel mine either. The TBC is designed to match the deacceleration rate of the truck. Not only can I not feel my TBC working, I also can not feel the high-end aftermarket controller in my other truck working either. When you activate manually you are not matching the rate at which the truck is slowing so it is not diagnostically helpful to make that comparison. Make sense? :)

Steve

As has been said, people just do not understand how the TCB is supposed to work..... that is including "MOST" Ford technicians! Not to mention the sales people how usually end up showing their clients how to use there Ford truck!

Yes, it makes sense and possibly there is nothing wrong with my brake controller. However, it just feels as if the trailer is pushing was I come to a stop using the peddle. So, if it is working, it doesn't seem to be matching the brake pressure. Other than turning the gain to 10, which it is, is there any other way to increase the stoping power?
The good news it the tow/haul works great and I really didn't have to use the brakes a lot anyhow.

I do believe this to be true also. I have been to the dealer and none of the techs have given me this info.

I am glad you are trying to think this through. Ford techs are not RVers, so I would be surprised if the majority understand the controller.

Now here is where I am with your controller. You took your truck to the dealer and they tested your controller. That was a good move on your part as there are only a couple of ways to really test it and few folks have the equipment to do it properly. They said it is working. I bet they are right.

That leaves you with a trailer that is pushing even though you have your controller dialed up. Having been down this road many a time, along with others on this forum, my thought here is there are two possibilities. Remember the Ford dealer said the controller is working. That says nothing about the connection or the trailer brakes.

As suggested previous, with the truck unplugged from the trailer, pull the break-away pin. The trailer wheels should now be locked and trying to move it will either drag the wheels and dig into the dirt or leave marks on the pavement. If that doesn't happen the trailer brakes are not adjusted correctly and need attention. You have to do this with the truck pulling. You can not feel this properly by simply jacking up a wheel and trying to turn it. If you have a clamp meter that reads DC amps, you should see about 12 amps on the blue brake lead, if all the magnets are on board and amped up.

If the wheels are locked tight, that leaves only the connection between truck and trailer and your attention then would be devoted to the seven pin cord and how it mates to the truck. A poor connection will result in weak trailer brakes.

I know all of this is crazy, but the manufacturers spent a fortune developing a brake controller that is so seamless with the truck braking action it can not be felt when it is operating and the most common complaint from owners is the controller is not working because it can not be felt. It comes up all the time in this forum so you are not alone. :)

Steve

I will work on this this week now that I am home and report back.
Thanks

An issue surfacing on others like my new 5er is that the chinese grease seals are failing and letting the axle grease contaminant the brake pads...

could that be it ?

It sure could be the problem.....and the only answer may be replacement of the pads and the drums/disks!

No it is not the seals, just put new ones in with the new brakes. However, you are correct the old brakes/seals appeared to be leaking.

Just today I installed a new battery for the emergency brake system ( the old one was dead) and pulled the pin. Well the brakes locked up, so I guess the brakes work.

My friend had a trailer plug testing tool, that plugs into the trailer harness. The tool has switches for brake lights, lights, brakes… and it shows the amps for each. It goes from 0 to 20. When he did the brake switch the amps went about 1/2 way (its just little lights) so i am guessing 10 to 12 amps. Is this enough? SHould it not have went all the way?

Thanks in advance.

No, it should have gone to about 10-12 amps as that would be comparable to the draw of the brake magnets.

Steve

Ok then, it looks like my trailer is working properly.

So, what I did this morning was hook up the trailer but did not plug it in. I then drove down the road up to about 35mph and hit the brakes hard. I repeated this 2 more times. Then I plugged the trailer in and did the samething. I found no noticable stopping differance. Back to my original thought that the brake controller does not work using the foot peddle.

You really need to have someone who has the correct test box with the 20-foot cord on it plug it in, sit in the cab with you and read the amp output when you hit the brakes. If you have a working controller and good trailer brakes, but lack a good connection between the truck and trailer, you still will not have good trailer brakes. If you were we could resolve this the controller issue quite rapidly. Are you anywhere near Northeast Tennessee?

When I have gone through this in the past with others, it almost always turned out it was something other than the controller causing the problem, which is why I take such a conservative position regarding the controller. Maybe your controller has some weird issue, but so far we really don't have the information we need because no one really has the equipment to do the correct diagnostic. That is not your fault. Ford checks the truck, RV techs check the tow, but no one really tries to put it all together. Leaves owners in limbo, which I think is pretty lame! :(


If you have a meter that reads volts, put one probe on the pin for the brakes and the other on the ground pin and have someone press on the brake pedal on the rear of your truck and tell me what you get.

Steve

I dont think I could be much further away from you, I am on the CA coast near SF. Thank you though.

I will check the out put with a meter and let you know. I agree with you though, I dont necessarily thinks its the controller because it works manually. Somewhere between the brake peddle and the plug.

Well, I tested my truck using the Tow Doctor tool. I plugged it into the recieved and with the long cord I had the test lights in the cab. It shows, running lights, turn signal, brake lights, Electric trailer brakes... Parked the light for the trailer brake did not come on. I then drove down the road and hit the brakes and the light came on. I then adjusted the brake controller to 0, drove down the road and hit brakes, no light. I contiuned driving while hitting the brakes and adjusting the controller up and the light can on. The harder I hit the peddle the brighter the light.

In the end, the controller appears to be working. I did not put a volt meter on it though to see out put.

I dont no where to go at this point.

Mario

So, at each wheel on the trailer was there a buzz?

The buzzing at each wheel would indicate power going to each trailer brake.

Got to test the amps.

As Scott suggests, the most finely tuned test verifies amp draw, but your procedure was valid and increasing light intensity would indicate increased amperage to the seven pin at the rear so I am inclined to be of the opinion your controller is working.

I am not saying all is well with your complete system given you sense there is a problem, I am just saying my hunch is still it is not the controller. All it takes is a poor connection between a good controller and a good braking system to cause problems.

Sorry you are having so much trouble with this. :(

Steve

Share this site with others it kinda explains the ford integrated brake controller better than I have found to date http://www.cvsa.org/programs/documen...2001-04-05.pdf

Yes, what you posted is accurate for the 05 controller. On the controllers since then you will see over 10 amps when you activate the controller on manual, if you have it dialed all the way up, and you will feel a good deal more than a gentle jerk. I posted the actual read-out comparing pedal and manual activation using my 2010 TBC some months ago in this forum.

Steve

Good to know. It is amazing to me the lack of information out there concerning proper operation and results with these integrated units, everyone is used to the aftermarkets and knowing if you activate it manually it will lock them if the gain is on max. And idling forward