Thread: Electric brake controller install

Ignition live in the pointed cavity of the interior fusebox(female spade fits to it) and brake light command the green/purple wire in the brake pedal switch's plug

Originally Posted by sierrafery

Ignition live in the pointed cavity of the interior fusebox(female spade fits to it) and brake light command the green/purple wire in the brake pedal switch's plug

Ta heaps for that Sierrafery. The header that you've pointed out in the inside fuse box - is it fused and do you have any idea what its current carrying capacity is?

That only leaves the question of how to get the cables from the controller on top of the dash to under the dash. Running the cable to the back of the car is only a pain and being a D2 owner I can deal with that...:-)

There's no need to remove the dash to get cables there. If you take the internal 'A' pillar trim off it's easy to get cables from below the dash into that corner. I've got my UHF wiring plus boost gauge pipe & wiring all through there.

I fitted a RedArc TowPro to my D2, the main control box behind the understeering wheel flap and the control knob in the top left corner of the instrument binnacle.

That ignition live is fused via F30 (20A) and only the mirrors adjustment is connected to it.

I ran the wire to the rear from the trailer plug along the top of the chassis in split tube and drilled a hole next to the drivers seat , pulled the wire through , under the kick plate ( sill whatever) to the right hand kick panel , up the kick panel and under the dash.
I took my power from the internal fuse box as described above.

I have a Tekonsha Primus IQ mounted on the dash hinged portion to the LH of the steering wheel. They do not have to be horizontal and they have a plug on the back so that you can remove them while not towing.
I have never hit mine with my knee and I am 188CM.
They are cheap and effective and compact enough not to get in the way.

Regards Philip A

Just another option, have you considered one of these Hayman Reese: 6000 Compact IQ, 12V Proportional Brake Controller, Remote Mount | Caravan Brake Controllers | CaravansPlus (the link is to the actual supplier I used and appears to be one of the cheapest).
It ticks all the boxes of the other controllers I considered and has a good name behind it.

Fitting was pretty straight forward and the only external elements are the LED and control knob - I prefer that than the full external controller. Not tried in true anger yet - a long story - but we did have the camper on the back and it was definitely working.

You should note on any of these controllers should have a 20Amp supply that they feed through to the brakes on the trailer, not sure about the tekonsha, but it does mean a good sized cable needs feeding into the dash and then back out to the rear.

This unit didn't have an ignition live to it all either - I do wonder about that, but doesn't seem an issue.

Pulling the brake wire feed from the switch on the back (either one I guess) is straight forward and is only used for sensing, not current use.

Reading through a few of the other posts, I believe a 'correct' install is that the power for the controller is via a self-resetting fuse direct to battery. Ignition and brake power are 'dodgy' coming via a fuse. I'm guessing the reason for this is that if you manage to blow the fuse (say something else trips it, the cable is undersize and long duration braking or some other random quirk) then it will reset soon afterwards and give you braking back. If it's via a standard fuse you need to stop (and remember, you just lost your brakes.. ) and replace (you do have replacements right?).

I did the same install as kelvo and it was easy! Puts the control knob right in front of your left hand (10 o'clock) and you can reach it with an extended finger without taking your hands off the wheel. Control knob connects to the main unit under the steering column with a Cat5 cable (supplied).

Dash real estate is at a premium and the tow pro install took no dash space. I like that !

I just installed a tekonsha p3 last week on my d2. I used it for the 1st time this weekend with our camper.

I removed the A pillar trim (5 second job without tools) and ran the 4 wires through the hole down behind the fuse box under the steering wheel. I mounted the controller with the standard steel mount supplied and not the other plastic bracket that it comes with. It does fit exactly - almost like they manufactured that space with a controller in mind!

Why tekonsha? I like the digital display. It has other options like battery voltage and you can set the amount of braking according to individual trailers. For example, a car trailer loaded will need more brake than ur other unloaded brakes trailer.

I can get some photos if u like. The only modification that I had to do was cut a small amount out of the A pillar trim to fit the black cable trunking (sorry can't think of the right term now) through. But you may not need to do that. I've got about 12 wires running through that hole!