quick question here... how hard is it on our brakes to tow a trailer that doesn't have its own brakes? i have a brake controller and all that, but the trailer i will be pulling doesnt have brakes. gross wt. of trailer and load will be about 7k on the generous side, i will have a several thousand feet elevation gain (and loss on the return trip), including driving through Raton Pass, with a one way mileage of a little over 600. i know it shouldn't be a problem (i've had to tow a fully loaded 16ft enclosed uhaul trailer weighing close to that when i had my 94 4runner with no ill affects on the same route). any useful input? thanks

While not a good idea, I don't think you'll have a problem.

The only time I'd towed heavy like that without brakes was my parents boat...9k inlcuding the trailer. My fathers Power, hack, Choke blew a turbo oil line and I had to go pick up the boat. This was going from Oneida Lake in NY over to Lake Champlain.

The trailer had brakes, but I didn't have a controller in the truck.

Granted, I took it very easy and allowed a lot of room to stop, but I would have much rather had the brakes.

Now, I tow 4K quite a bit without brakes and don't even notice the trailer back there, but it's not goign through the terrain that you are talking about.

i don't forsee any real problems, i just thought i'd ask. and like i said, 7k is probably a pretty high estimate. all i am towing is my jeep on a 16ft tandem axle utility trailer. might actually be closer to 5k. kinda rediculous that it doesnt have brakes, considering its from a trailer rental place that is also a pretty big trailer manufacturing place. they build most of their trailers with brakes, except apparently, the ones they use as rentals[:@] i can't wait to not have to live in an apartment anymore so i can have my own trailer again[:@]!

ORIGINAL: mytowrig

.....i can't wait to not have to live in an apartment anymore so i can have my own trailer again[:@]!


So you're movin' back to the trailer park, huh????

:D

haha you got it! nah, i just want a nice flat bed big enough to haul a jeep or two:) but living in an apartment means nowhere to keep the trailer[:@] so i have to rent or borrow and no one has one available this week so i need to rent:( not too bad though, 25 bucks a day, plus a free day since i'll have it a full week

Could it be that the trailer has compression brakes on the tongue rather than electric brakes? I think most of the rental places use the compression\hydrolic brakes for their rental trailers because you can't always guarantee the tow vehicle has a controller.

Mike

nope, no brakes whatsover. just some wood and metal sitting on a couple of axles...

wow, up here in Connecticut any trailer with a gross weight of 2000 lbs + is required by law to have some form of braking system.

no law like that down here that i know of...

You are required in CO and NM to have trailer brakes on a trailer weighing more than 3000lbs. See the link for more info, CSP are real dicks about trailers.

http://www.glen-l.com/designs/trailer/trailer-laws.html

the trailer itself i'm sure weighs less than 3k... its just a 16ft utility trailer with a wood floor

Read this to mean the rating of your trailer, the total amount it is designed to carry. In your case the jeep clearly weighs more than 3000lbs and if you tack on the weight of the trailer you are looking at a hefty fine if something goes wrong. Not to be discouraging, but that is a lot of weight to be stopping with just the trucks brakes. Can it be done yes but your brakes are gonna take a beating.

i am almost positive all states, when giving the weight limits for requiring brakes go by gross (fully loaded) weight rating of the trailer

ORIGINAL: agargano98

wow, up here in Connecticut any trailer with a gross weight of 2000 lbs + is required by law to have some form of braking system.
what part of ct u live in? i live close to hartford area