Hi Everyone! I just purchased a new (to me) 2019 North Trail 24BHS last week. The previous owner appears to have taken good care of it, but I'm having an issue with the brakes. I'm towing it with a 2019 Chevy Silverado 1500 with the tow package/OEM brake controller. That part seems to be working just fine. However, when I'm coasting and even accelerating, I will sometimes feel the trailer brakes grab unexpectedly. I was able to schedule an appointment for service, but earliest I could get in was June 8th. I was hoping someone might have some ideas to troubleshoot and possibly resolve this prior our scheduled maiden voyage next weekend. Keep in mind, I'm new to this stuff. Thanks for your help!
Electric brakes are grabbing unexpectedly
- Thread starter rystevens
- Start date
Flick
Well-known member
The situation you are describing is very unusual. It could be caused by a malfunction in your wiring harness or a short in the trailer breaking system causing them to activate on their own.
I would suggest as a starting point, if you haven’t, to reduce the gain on the brake controller.
I have had that feeling before. It was caused by the brake pad de-bonding from the brake shoe. This allowed the brake pad to float around in the drum which would cause that particular brake to try to lock/brake randomly. The brakes would operate correctly otherwise. I have had this happen on two different trailers over the years. The first time was caused when a friend used my trailer and overheated the brakes with a bad controller. The second time it appeared to be bad bonding material. No sign of overheating anywhere except on the pad that was floating around.
Hope this helps
