How many tow 4 down that has brakes?

[tmsjao]

Absolutely!! Air Force one auxilliary brake on my Jeep Grand Cherokee.

[ulric]

I have both an aux braking system for the Jeep Liberty and a breakaway system for it. That's behind a 44,700 lb Monaco Dynasty. If you add the 5600 lbs of the Jeep to the 44,700 for the Dynasty, that's a LARGE braking demand. Besides, it is a legal requirement in many US states and Canadian Provinces to have a braking system in any tow over 3,000 lbs, and in most states to have a breakaway system. I don't feel like run-ins with law in the places I might be visiting. I also took the trouble to get a class B license with an airbrake endorsement to meet those requirements since my home state of Maryland requires it.

[ImagineIF]

BTW, you can get ticketed for not having the brakes on your tow operational. I have personal experience with being ticketed for having a flat trailer that had a capacity for over 3,000 lbs and not having the brakes connected. This was an empty trailer weighing well under 3,000 lbs. The police officer said it's not what it weighs that matters its what it's designed to weigh. As someone else already pointed out, VA is clear that a 3,000 trailer and 3,000 towed vehicle are treated the same. My Grand Cherokee has supplemental and break away brakes--as it should.

[kjburns]

We tow a Jeep Grand Cherokee with auxiliary brakes. Our previous toad, a Jeep Cherokee also had auxiliary braking installed.

[Finhawk]

I have the US Gear system. Wouldn't leave home without it. Can't even imagne trying to make a panic stop with the "fat" Jeep.

[Luckiest Dreamer]

I drove 18 wheelers for a living. Driving 300,000 miles or over a million as I did may give you a past history of safety but it does not mean that for the next mile you drive that you can take it easy because it has never happened to you! Taking every precaution that you need requires that you do everything in your power to make that next mile just as safe as the last one. It may mean that you install and use an auxiliary brake system! I never leave home without it! I hope when I meet you on the road that you have one as well. Having that brake system will help you to be a defensive driver, not having one makes you offensive!

[Triker56]

I have BrakeMaster air system with break away on the Toad.
In my closet Freightliner or Fleetwood put a NOTICE that if I pulled anything over 1,000 LB. have supplemental braking on it.
And even with supplemental braking never pull more then the GCWR of the chassis

[Vegasdan]

I always err on the side of safety. Roadmaster brake in the Jeep.

[BarkAvenue]

Originally Posted by buckeyeduffer

We installed the MG Engineering air brake system and breakaway kit on our jeep toad and it was probably the best investment ever made. The difference is stopping distance is dramatic. I wish we had installed it sooner.

We had this system installed just after we purchased our coach in February. Had air brake system on our two prior DP's and loved them.
This system is great and like you feel was best investment ever.

[isa]

Some of the writers here need to go back and do their homework on the actual legality of whether an auxiliary braking device is required or not.

777 wrote absolute drivel with no factual information stated at all.

ulric states that you need an auxiliary braking device in most states and provinces of Canada - again hogwash.

Towing Regulations

The fact is that there are very few states and or provinces that require auxiliary brakes on a TOWED VEHICLE provided that the combination of vehicles can pass a stated perfomance test with respect to speed and braking distance and/or a given weight limit. The speed stated is usually 20mph. and the distance varies from 25 ft. to 50 ft. The weight limits stated run from 1500 lb.(NV) to 5000 lb. (AK). Only AK, FL, NC, NV & WI show a weight limit. HI, ND & DC statutes are not available on line.

Check the DMV statutes where you live. Do not get caught up with the argument that a TOWED VEHICLE is a TRAILER, it is not a TRAILER but you have to look at the wording used in the STATUTES with respect to what is being TOWED.

If your state does not specifically outline the rules for a TOWED VEHICLE then there is no applicable statute.

The best reference that I have found with respect to the 50 states is:

home.roadrunner.com/~morodat/toad-brakes-by-state.html
and for Canada http://www.rvda.ca/ProvBrakeReqts.asp

I live in the Province of British Columbia, Canada where the rules for auxiliary braking requirements when towing are quite simple and very easy to understand:

MOTOR VEHICLE ACT REGULATIONS Continued
B.C. Reg. 26/58
Division 5 Brakes

Section 5.02. (7) Brakes and coordinated brake control are not required on a towed motor vehicle that has a laden gross vehicle weight less than 2000 kg and that is less than 40% of the gross vehicle weight rating of a motor home towing it via a tow bar.

[am. B.C. Regs. 69/59, s. (j); 46/67, s. 10; 226/67, s. 4; 205/72, s. 6; 343/77; 459/77, s. 2; 256/84, s. 6; 257/96, s. 1; 109/97,

FYI: 2000 kg. is 4409.2 lb.
The 40% rule will apply to vehicles that weigh less than 5000 kg. or 11023.1 lb.

P.S.1 As far as I know, none of the auxiliary braking systems available today meet any kind of FEDERAL / STATE or PROVINCIAL standard.

P.S.2 In British Columbia, the same people that make the DMV rules i.e. the Government of B.C., are also the same people who insure us - ICBC, the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia.
Additional information:
http://www.airsafehitches.com/Towing_Laws.pdf
http://www.readybrake.com/state_laws.html
http://www.towingworld.com/articles/TowingLaws.htm

Title 49--Transportation
CHAPTER III--FEDERAL MOTOR CARRIER SAFETY ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
PART 393--PARTS AND ACCESSORIES NECESSARY FOR SAFE OPERATION


§ 393.52 Brake performance.

(a) Upon application of its service brakes, a motor vehicle or combination of motor vehicles must under any condition of loading in which it is found on a public highway, be capable of

(1) Developing a braking force at least equal to the percentage of its gross weight specified in the table in paragraph (d) of this section;

(2) Decelerating to a stop from 20 miles per hour at not less than the rate specified in the table in paragraph (d) of this section; and

(3) Stopping from 20 miles per hour in a distance, measured from the point at which movement of the service brake pedal or control begins, that is not greater than the distance specified in the table in paragraph (d) of this section; or, for motor vehicles or motor vehicle combinations that have a GVWR or GVW greater than 4,536 kg (10,000 pounds),

(4) Developing only the braking force specified in paragraph (a)(1) of this section and the stopping distance specified in paragraph (a)(3) of this section, if braking force is measured by a performance- based brake tester which meets the requirements of functional specifications for performance-based brake testers for commercial motor vehicles, where braking force is the sum of the braking force at each wheel of the vehicle or vehicle combination as a percentage of gross vehicle or combination weight.

(b) Upon application of its emergency brake system and with no other brake system applied, a motor vehicle or combination of motor vehicles must, under any condition of loading in which it is found on a public highway, be capable of stopping from 20 miles per hour in a distance, measured from the point at which movement of the emergency brake control begins, that is not greater than the distance specified in the table in paragraph (d) of this section.

(c) Conformity to the stopping-distance requirements of paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section shall be determined under the following conditions:

(1) Any test must be made with the vehicle on a hard surface that is substantially level, dry, smooth, and free of loose material.

(2) The vehicle must be in the center of a 12-foot-wide lane when the test begins and must not deviate from that lane during the test.

(d) Vehicle brake performance table:

I have taken the following information from that tables Section A. (3) viz.:

For motorhomes over 10,000 lb or 4536 kg. the required stopping distances from 20 mph., are,

35 ft. when applying the vehicles normal braking system, and

85 ft. when applying the vehicles emergency braking system.








The state of Virginia was mentioned by one writer and he was correct in what he stated. However be careful, Virginia is one of the states where you have to be very careful in what statute you are reading: see the following. The rule you must follow when towing another vehicle comes at the end in §46.2-1070

Code of Virginia
Title 46.2 - MOTOR VEHICLES
Chapter 1 §46.2-100. Definitions
"Trailer" means every vehicle without motive power designed for carrying property or passengers wholly on its own structure and for being drawn by a motor vehicle, including manufactured homes.

Chapter 10 § 46.2-1066. Brakes.
Every motor vehicle when driven on a highway shall be equipped with brakes adequate to control the movements of and to stop and hold such vehicle. The brakes shall be maintained in good working order and shall conform to the provisions of this article.
Every bicycle, electric power-assisted bicycle, and moped, when operated on a highway, shall be equipped with a brake that will enable the operator to make the braked wheels skid on dry, level, clean pavement. Every electric personal assistive mobility device, when operated on a highway, shall be equipped with a system that, when activated or engaged, will enable the operator to bring the device to a controlled stop.
(Code 1950, § 46-283; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-277; 1974, c. 347; 1981, c. 585; 1989, c. 727; 2001, c. 834; 2002, c. 254.)

Chapter 10 § 46.2-1067. Within what distances brakes should stop vehicle.
On a dry, hard, approximately level stretch of highway free from loose material, the service braking system shall be capable of stopping a motor vehicle or combination of vehicles at all times and under all conditions of loading at a speed of twenty miles per hour within the following distances:
1. Passenger motor vehicles, except buses and antique vehicles, twenty-five feet.
2. Buses, trucks, and tractor trucks, forty feet.
3. Motor vehicles registered or qualified to be registered as antique vehicles, when equipped with two-wheel brakes, forty-five feet; four-wheel brakes, twenty-five feet.
4. All combinations of vehicles, forty feet.
5. Motorcycles, thirty feet.
(Code 1950, § 46-284; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-278; 1968, c. 164; 1970, c. 28; 1972, c. 3; 1989, c. 727.)

Chapter 10 § 46.2-1070. Brakes on trailers.
Every semitrailer, trailer, or separate vehicle attached by a drawbar, chain, or coupling to a towing vehicle other than a farm tractor or a vehicle not required to obtain a registration certificate and having an actua l gross weight of 3,000 pounds or more, shall be equipped with brakes controlled or operated by the driver of the towing vehicle, which shall conform to the specifications set forth in § 46.2-1067 and shall be of a type approved by the Superintendent. Farm trailers used exclusively for hauling raw agricultural produce from farm to farm or farm to packing shed or processing plant within the normal growing area of the packing shed or processing plant and trailers or semitrailers drawn by a properly licensed motor vehicle but exempt from registration, shall be exempt from the requirements of this section.
"Gross weight" for the purpose of this section includes weight of the vehicle and the load upon such semitrailer, trailer, or separate vehicle.
This section shall not apply to any vehicle being towed for repairs, repossession, in an emergency, or being moved by a tow truck when two wheels of the towed vehicle are off the ground.
(Code 1950, § 46-286; 1958, c. 541, § 46.1-280; 1959, Ex. Sess., cc. 21, 90; 1962, c. 313; 1966, c. 654; 1968, c. 164; 1970, c. 169; 1989, c. 727; 2006, cc. 874, 891.)

[azloafer]

Originally Posted by ImagineIF

Mr D I believe you are only looking at one braking requirement and that's for the RV. You are likely correct that most states don't mandate additional brakes for the tow. I do believe, and I'll research it, that most states require brake away systems on tows over X pounds.

Back in the day...I was in law enforcement and the only thing we ever checked for were two safety chains. That was for 25 years. None of the posts, at least the ones that I have read, ever mention safety chains...why?

[Chuck 1935]

Originally Posted by Perry White

It's the liability. If your not afraid of loosing everything you have over an accident if your toad breaks away,have at it. What would you think if a toad broke away,crossed over and hit your Grandkids head on? .

Also, what's the difference from towing a trailer and a toad? You would have brakes on a 3000# trailer but you wouldn't on a 4500# toad?

NOTE: You are required to have safety chains or cables on any towed vehicle to prevent such things from happening !!

[Triker56]

Some of the writers here need to go back and do their homework on the actual legality of whether an auxiliary braking device is required or not.

Some of the writers here are getting carried away with the laws about towing with brakes.
When the OP did not ask about any laws about having brakes or not.
In fact the OP didn't ask any question. Just stated that in 25 years he has talked to NO one that have had brakes on their tow.

Those that I have talked to tow with no brakes in their tow vehicle; although this forum says otherwise.
Ive traveled over 25 years; in a motorhome towing; put on more than 300,000 miles, have yet to meet someone that has brakes in his toad.

IMO any responsible RVer will have brakes on their towed, law required or not and those that do not, should carry enough Insurance to cover whatever personal injury and property damage they do.

And I hope those without brakes on their tow, never need to use a run away ramp. Or ever need to do a emergency stop.

[az bound]

Always have, always will.