Brake Buddy and Saturn toad (12v Adapter)

[Shellback1]

I have a Brake Buddy and a Saturn Ion going on 3 years and now have an intermittent problem. The last time towing the brakes would not apply. I tested the system when I got home and when you charge the Brake Buddy it activates 5 times like it should. When I pull the emergency pin it also works, but when I shake it the inertia system only works about 1 out of 10 times.

I sent it back to Hopkins and they found no problem with the Break Buddy. Talking to the second technician he finally ask what car was the system in and I said an 06 Saturn Ion. He asked if they ever sent me an adapter for the 12 volts and I said no. Seems like Saturn's cigarette lighters are wired with a smaller gauge wire and causes the unit to not always work. The Brake Buddy draws between 12-15 amps and I would assume the cigarette wires are less than 12 gauge. Anyway he is sending me this adapter that connects to the battery.

[Stevegd007]

Interesting. I have been using the Brake Buddy and had no idea this could be an issue. We are towing a Honda. I did have to replace the cigarette adapter for the Brake Buddy as the original one had failed.

[Jim Stewart]

When I purchased my Brake Buddy recently, the manual stated the Amps required at 12 Volts. My Ford Flex had the proper specs. Most cars today do not really have a cigarette lighter, but insteade a 12 volt accessory plug. My Flex has 3. Cigarette plugs are usually lower amps.

[Stevegd007]

I just looked at the BrakeBuddy web site. Their Classic is reported to need 8 amps. The Vantage is reported to need 10 amps. I have the Classic. I will look into my power source on my Honda for the amps it supplies. My original installer said it would work fine for me, but I will check anyway.

[GG1]

I have an 06 Vue and use a Brake Buddy. It would not power up after the car was 6 months old. Brake buddy sent me the 12 volt recepticle for free I wired it directly to the battery and all worked fine.