Best electric brake controllers NZ: top 5 market guide

Photo credit: Blake Wisz (Unsplash)

Buying a caravan? As you may have figured out by now, it’s not as simple as it sounds. Your choice of tow vehicle is almost as important as the van itself. Once you’ve figured out what you’re going to tow your van with, your first consideration should be your electric trailer brakes. While some vehicles come with factory fitted trailer brake controllers, for the most part, you’ll have to figure that out on your own.

Does your van spend too many days sitting idle in the garage? Why not turn it into an asset by hiring it out when you’re not using it. Some owners are boosting their income by $10,000 to $20,000 a year by listing their van onCamplify.

What is an electric brake controller?

Obviously, most caravans are quite heavy, so electric trailer brakes are fitted in order to safely slow down from speed.

To put it simply, an electric brake controller is a unit mounted to your tow vehicle (usually on the dash as the law requires they be accessible from the driver’s seat), which sends a signal to the brakes in your caravan when your brake pedal is pressed, in order to make them operate.

Some models of electric trailer brake controller are proportional (or motion sensing), meaning they have a sensor that detects how quickly the tow vehicle is stopping and apply proportional pressure to the trailer brakes. The other (usually less expensive) models are non-proportional controllers, most of which apply pressure to the trailer brakes on a slight time delay and with gradually increasing pressure.

Considering their lower price it isn’t surprising how many caravanners still use non-proportional brake controllers but, especially if you’re towing a caravan on the larger end of the scale, you can see why proportional controllers are considered safer.

Do I have to use trailer brakes with my caravan?

New Zealand law states that if the weight of your caravan when it’s loaded us under 2,000 kilograms, trailer brakes are not required. However, the tow vehicle and van must be able to stop safely within 7 metres from a speed of 30 kilometres per hour.

If the loaded weight is between 2,000 and 2,500 kilograms, the van must have working brakes on at least one axle, with either override brakes or cab controlled brakes. The required stopping distance regulation is the same as for below 2,000 kilograms.

For between 2,500 and 3,500 kilograms, the van must also have brakes on at least one axle, with in-cab control. A breakaway system must also be fitted. The vehicle and caravan must be able to stop safely within 18 metres from a speed of 30 kilometres per hour. Above 3,500 kilograms, the regulations become even more stringent but for most caravans, this isn’t a consideration.

Regardless of the law, your main concern should obviously be your safety and the safety of other road users. It never hurts to use trailer brakes.

There are a wide array of electric trailer brake controllers available to suit every caravanner’s needs. Here’s a summary of some of the most popular trailer brake controllers on the New Zealand market. If you’re still not sure after reading this, talk to a professional. They can help you make the choice and even fit the controller for you.

The Elecbrakes Wireless Electric Brake Controller

Elecbrakes ELBC2000

Source: Elecbrakes

The latest innovation in the category of electric brake controllers, Elecbrakes is a remote mount electric trailer brake controller. Australian designed and assembled, it is installed on the trailer rather than the car: a simple solution for any trailer that gets towed by more than one vehicle. Launched in 2017, this wireless trailer-mounted electric trailer brake controller allows you to configure and monitor brake response with precision and directly on your smartphone, via the widespread Bluetooth technology. You can create and save up to 5 favourite settings as well as keep an eye on key performance indicators, such as overall braking time, which may help you keep abreast of your trailer’s service needs. The best bit? Because Elecbrakes is installed on the trailer, this device enables you to employ virtually any vehicle to tow your trailer—as long as the vehicle has the appropriate towing capacity.

Here at Camplify, we help thousands of RV owners earn money by hiring out their caravans, motorhomes and camper trailers while they’re not in use. Over the past few years, we’ve seen a strong trend towards more and more people hiring out their caravans to holidaymakers. Naturally, we speak to lots of hirers who are reluctant to go to the effort and expense of permanently fitting a brake controller to their vehicle. Because of this, we miss out on around 20-25% of hire bookings. With thousands of RVs to choose from, Camplify now allows prospective buyers the flexibility to “try before they buy”, so they can decide whether purchasing a caravan is right for them and if so – which one suits them best.

With this in mind, the Elecbrakes product suits our customers perfectly. We also think it is also great for anyone out there who wants the flexibility of allowing their trailer to be towed by anybody with the right car.

Browse Elecbrakes electric brake controllers for sale here.

Tekonsha Prodigy P2 and P3

Image credit: Tekonsha

Tekonsha makes some of the most popular electronic trailer brake controllers on the New Zealand market. Among these are the P2 and P3, both proportional brake controllers with inertia detecting axis accelerometers.

The P2 is an affordable entry-level brake controller which is configured to automatically adjust to the conditions and requirements of the specific towing situation. It’s intended to be, for the most part, plug and play and therefore only features a simple digital display that reads the real-time voltage being sent to the trailer.

If your towing needs are simple (for example, you only ever tow one small trailer) then the P2 will be adequate but there’s a lot to love about the P3. Tekonsha’s P3 controller is one of the most advanced on the market and features a graphical menu which makes both initial setup and ongoing adjustments a breeze. It even allows 5 storable pre-set configurations which can be used when towing different trailers, different loads or it can just be customised to the preferences of several different drivers.

Both the P2 and P3 feature a “Boost” function for emergency braking situations, allowing the driver to manually send full power to the trailer brakes. They also both feature a limited lifetime warranty and can tow caravans with up to four axles.

Al-ko iQ7 Outback

Image credit: Al-ko

Al-ko’s iQ7 range of proportional electric trailer brake controllers differs from competitor’s products in that they use a compressed air pressure chamber to apply instant pressure to the brake system. This delivers a braking response that’s significantly faster than other products which rely on a pump to start up in order to apply pressure. The only unfortunate thing is that this comes at a hefty extra cost.

Their iQ7 Outback model is designed specifically for caravans with hydraulic disc brakes, with added features – like ‘tool-free’ air filter servicing on its compressor and pneumatic breathers - that will help it withstand the kind of dusty off-road conditions many of us put our caravans through.

Dexter Predator DX2

The Dexter Predator DX2 is a proportional controller with a patented accelerometer design, which uses inertia to detect braking and apply proportional force to the trailer brakes. Beyond that, it isn’t rich in features and comes with a basic control unit with a voltage display, visual gain setting and manual override. This simple design puts the Predator DX2 at an affordable price point, but it can only tow caravans with up to two axles.

Redarc Tow-Pro Elite

Image credit: Redarc

The Australian designed and manufactured Redarc Tow-Pro Elite is unique in that it’s the only trail brake controller to offer both automatic (proportional) and user-controlled modes. The automatic mode is particularly interesting because once mounted and switched on, the Active Calibration begins. The Tow-Pro Elite will effectively be in user-controlled mode for about the first 20 brake applications, while it constantly monitors the direction of travel to ‘learn’ its mounting orientation and determine its best calibration. Once confident of its orientation, it will indicate that it has switched to automatic mode. This, of course, can still be switched back to user-controlled mode as necessary, which may be useful for off-road or mountainous conditions.

Another notable feature is that the unit is installed behind the dashboard with only a small control knob protruding through, which is obviously much more attractive (and gets in the way less) than most brake controllers on the market. The Redarc Tow-Pro Elite can tow caravans with up to three axles.

Hayman Reese Guardian

An affordable solid-state, time activated controller, the Guardian is simple to use. It has two sets of buttons to control power output and braking responsiveness, and a manual emergency brake control. Even better, it’s compact design means less chance of constantly knocking it with your legs once it’s mounted under the dash. It can tow trailers with up to four axles but is intended for lighter loads, so best not to use it with large caravans.

Whichever of these models you choose, you’ll be getting peace of mind that your caravan holidays will be as safe as possible. Trailer brake controllers are an essential piece of safety gear, so we hope that this guide helps you choose the one that best suits your needs.

So what is Camplify?

We are a caravan hire and RV sharing community, helping connect thousands of holidaymakers with RV owners.

What does that mean?

Essentially, we provide a unique sharing service where owners of caravans, camper trailers, motorhomes, and campervans list their RV for hire while not in use. As an owner, this enables you to earn over $10,000 each year instead of having your RV just sitting around while you’re not using it.

As a holidaymaker, Camplify helps you find an RV that is perfect for you so you can experience the joys of caravanning - without having to own one yourself.

Interested? Learn more about Camplify here.