Recommendations for Brake Controller?

[94 Accord EX F250 owner]

Looking for Recommendations for Brake Controller to engage electric brakes on my Coleman pop-top camper. It would be nice to have one that: 1) sends a voltage signal proportional to how hard I step on the brake, and 2) be adjustable in terms of strength for a given foot pressure on the brake.

Suggestions?

Also, I am looking for unique ideas for controller installation. I have a RTX. It would be my preference to use the electric harness to connect to the dashboard when I need it, and disconnect and remove the controller the rest of the time. On the other hand, I don't want it dangling on my leg, either. Anyone out there tried to have their cake and eat it, too?

[Twintym]

I have the Tekonsha Prodigy proportional brake controller and it works really well on my 3500 pound trailer. It comes with a quick disconnect so the controller can be unplugged and removed. The bracket stays in place but can be mounted out of the way. Mine is to the right of the steering wheel next to the center console. Thw connector stays put in the mounting bracket and doesn't get in the way. Tekonsha even makes a Ridgeline specific harness to plug the Prodigy into the Honda receptacle already under the dash. I bought the controller and cable for $109 shipped from www.etrailer.com. Let me know if you have any other questions.

Dan

[Just Ask]

I, too, have the Prodigy...in an effort to reduce redundancy, I will just say TwinTym's post is exactly what I would post - right down to the place where I mounted mine. One other thing...the Prodigy has a Manual apply lever that helps whenever you may get a little bit of the 'tail waggin the dog' when big rigs pass. It allows you to apply the brakes to the travel trailer ONLY. I am 100% happy with mine. One hint on installing the harness...remove the plastic panel directly below the steering wheel first, as it makes access to the plug MUCH easier to see/reach/get to.

[brandont]

I found that I did not want the bracket mounted on the dash because it was too close to my knees and I don't tow THAT often. So I super glued suction cups to the bracket and I stick it to the windsheild. I have the Valley Odyssey, but the Prodigy can be mounted the same way. Both can be off-axis side/side and front/back.

I also bought some 4-way trailer wiring extensions and cut them up to make my own extension cable for the brake controller. The plug on the Honda didn't match the one from the controller. Plus I wired the wife's SUV (just in case) so I needed a 'universal' 4-way plug that could handle the wattage. The 4-way trailer wire was the obvious choice. I put one end on the controller. With the other end and the 'pigtail' you get from Honda I made an 'adapter'. Then I connect the 2 with a standard extension.

This is basically what I am talking about:

[94 Accord EX F250 owner]

Originally Posted by Twintym

I have the Tekonsha Prodigy proportional brake controller and it works really well on my 3500 pound trailer. It comes with a quick disconnect so the controller can be unplugged and removed. The bracket stays in place but can be mounted out of the way. Mine is to the right of the steering wheel next to the center console. Thw connector stays put in the mounting bracket and doesn't get in the way. Tekonsha even makes a Ridgeline specific harness to plug the Prodigy into the Honda receptacle already under the dash. I bought the controller and cable for $109 shipped from www.etrailer.com. Let me know if you have any other questions.

Dan

When I purchased my 2007 RTX it came with an approximately 6 inch pigtail connector.

This suggests it must be close to the underside of the dash; or that Honda figures you will have to mate the pigtail with another extension. Anyone with RTX experience?

Since I have the Honda provided pigtail, there is no reason to buy the Prodigy wiring harness, is there? Or is there a benefit I am missing?

[Twintym]

The only advantage to the Prodigy harness is that you don't have to solder the Honda pigtail to the generic Prodigy pigtail. It is already done for you in one somplete plug to plug cable. I don't solder and I didn't want to risk using crimp on connectors. When in doubt, I play it safe.

[TeamRidgeline]

I prefer the Reese model that has a separate remote hand controller device that looks like a CB mike and allows the actual controller to be hidden under the dash, you can dial in the brake proportioning rate on the hand controller or actuate the trailer brakes by hand without engaging the tow vehicle brakes, it comes in handy under some conditions

http://www.etrailer.com/mm5/merchant...tegory_Code=BC

whatever you do MAKE SURE YOU USE AN ANTI-SWAY DEVICE ON YOUR TRAILER. I can't emphasize this enough, I see so many inexperienced tow-ers just hooking up the trailer and going on down the road without a clue. There's no excuse not to use and one and it will likely save your @ss in an emergency or rough weather conditions

[Skywalker]

Tekonsha Prodigy is what I use in our Exped. Towed our trailer over 16,000 km on a summer cross country trip and it performed flawlessly.

[94 Accord EX F250 owner]

Originally Posted by TeamRidgeline

I prefer the Reese model that has a separate remote hand controller device that looks like a CB mike and allows the actual controller to be hidden under the dash, you can dial in the brake proportioning rate on the hand controller or actuate the trailer brakes by hand without engaging the tow vehicle brakes, it comes in handy under some conditions

http://www.etrailer.com/mm5/merchant...tegory_Code=BC

whatever you do MAKE SURE YOU USE AN ANTI-SWAY DEVICE ON YOUR TRAILER. I can't emphasize this enough, I see so many inexperienced tow-ers just hooking up the trailer and going on down the road without a clue. There's no excuse not to use and one and it will likely save your @ss in an emergency or rough weather conditions

What are the pros and cons of an inertia style controller such as Prodigy vs the time delay model Team Ridgeline proposes?

I looked at the write-up on the Reese controller and the way it is written it would seem to be better than the Prodigy. Here is a copy: " ...electric brakes apply the trailer's brakes electronically as soon as the brake pedal is engaged, unlike pendulum models which react to inertia created after the tow vehicle's brakes have already begun to stop."

It seems that with the time delay the amount of brake force is always the same, dependent on the strength you set it. With the proportional, you get variable output but at the sacrifice of a delay in response. Of course, this is all my conjecture. Experts, please chime in.

[TeamRidgeline]

the operation of the Reese controller is explained in the directions: