2011 - 2013 Ford F350 Brake Controllers

[F3fifty]

For the 2011 - 2013 Ford F350 Owners that pull heavy 5vers are you satisfied with the braking on your truck? What setting do you use and can you manually lock up the brakes on the 5ver. My 5ver goes into the shop to have wheel bearing re-pack and brakes checked with less than 2,500 tow miles. The controller setting on my 2012 F3560 is at 8 and the braking is unsafe. I don't want brake lock up but I need better braking efficiency. Same 5ver towed by my 1997 F350 with Prodigy and the braking was excellent. Anyone have issues with braking on the newer F350's.

Thanks

[Rainer]

I don't think the brake controller on my 2012 F-250 is any different than that of your F-350. Having guessed that, I have my built-in controller set at 7.5. This seems to work well. I currently have only towed my two month old Monte for 1500 miles. On Monday I'll be heading out on a 7500 mile trip so I may have a different setting when I get back.

[Irlpguy]

I have a 2012 Dodge and I think the brake controllers are similar, make sure it is set to Heavy Electric if it has that setting on it. Mine works great towing a 3402RL, I really like it.

Sorry I am not more familiar with the Ford.

[1retired06]

We have had zero problems, and I like the fact that trailer miles are recorded when hooked up. I have ours set at 8

[steves]

Mine is set on 7 and have not had any problem.

[capn chris]

Mine is set at 7, brakes were adjusted, and they do lock up on tests if I go higher.

[pineranch]

I'm happy with a 7.5 setting. Many miles in hilly and mountains without any problems. Not big on trying to " lock them up". Perhaps you should personally eyeball your brake system when the shop does there thing. It takes very little grease on brakes to render them ineffective.
Mike

[racerjoe]

I too would look at your trailer brake adjustment. 7-8 is what most are using without lockup. The controller is a progressive system as it sends more power the harder you press on the brake. a normal stop should not feel the trailer locking. As previous post has said,greasy or dirty brakes could be a problem

[sailer]

I have mine set at 7.5 and it is great but remember ,its not a car , its a big anchor back there and you have to drive defense. If you ever towed big equipement you learn fast that 4 wheelers are death on the road as the cut in front so leave some room and let it roll. sailer

[F3fifty]

Good input from the Ford F350 owners. The 5ver is going in on Saturday and IM really going to hold the dealer to the fire to check voltage, adjustment, and to assure the brakes are working within specifications. I have experience towing trailers and I DO NOT want brake lock and there is definitely something wrong with either the 5ver brakes or the controller. No issues with my 97 F350 same trailer with plenty of braking only thing different is hooking up to a brand new 2012 F350. The Montana dealer thinks the self adjusters aren't working, or the brakes weren't broken in very well. I share the findings next week.

[JandC]

I may need some adjustment on my 5er because I have my OEM brake controller set on 9 when pulling Monte and it works great and never locks up. I keep it set on 6 and 7 for two lighter construction trailers and they work good also.

[F3fifty]

Update, the Truck checked out okay and there was no damage to the right front Rotor and Caliper from over heating, no codes showing on the Traction Control, ABS System or Trailer Brake Controller. This is good news now I'll await the results from the Montana Dealer as I dropped the 5ver off at the dealer and they well pack the bearings, assess brake linings and drums. While it's in the shop they will repair Black Tank valve that won't close, fix a broken Propane tank strap, and repair a Baggage door base plate that the screws are backing out and will not tighten. Warranty question to be resolved by Keystone. All of the repair items requested from the dealer occurred while I was in Montana / Wyoming from June 1 - 15th. The 5ver warranty expired Sunday June 16 and I contacted the dealer June 17th ( Monday 8 AM). The dealer said they will see if Keystone will honor since I was traveling back to Washington state. Service rep mentioned I should have called Keystone about the issues? More to come....

[1retired06]

Hoping they honor the warranty for you!

[F3fifty]

quote:Originally posted by F3fifty

Update, the Truck checked out okay and there was no damage to the right front Rotor and Caliper from over heating, no codes showing on the Traction Control, ABS System or Trailer Brake Controller. This is good news now I'll await the results from the Montana Dealer as I dropped the 5ver off at the dealer and they well pack the bearings, assess brake linings and drums. While it's in the shop they will repair Black Tank valve that won't close, fix a broken Propane tank strap, and repair a Baggage door base plate that the screws are backing out and will not tighten. Warranty question to be resolved by Keystone. All of the repair items requested from the dealer occurred while I was in Montana / Wyoming from June 1 - 15th. The 5ver warranty expired Sunday June 16 and I contacted the dealer June 17th ( Monday 8 AM). The dealer said they will see if Keystone will honor since I was traveling back to Washington state. Service rep mentioned I should have called Keystone about the issues? More to come....

Another Update: Well the biggest issue regarding the warranty question is about what happened to the Brakes? The dealer pulled the drums and discovered that right front seal failed and trashed that brake. The brakes on the other three wheels have excessive dusting and IM told it looks like self adjuster issue. All brakes must be replaced with less that 5,000 miles which includes the trip from the factory to Portland Oregon. I have used this trailer three times since June 2012 with estimated 3,000 miles of my towing with the most recent trip 1600 miles to Wyoming / Montana. Keystone refused the warranty on the brakes, I called and stated my case of such low miles and they said Brakes and seals are a wear item. The servicing dealer is now trying to work with Alko to at least pick up some of the brake components. IM disgusted to say the least that these brakes have failed. I sold a 2007 Cougar that I put 15,000 miles on and re-packed the bearings twice during 6 years of ownership and the brakes were still in good condition when serviced by a RV dealer. What went wrong with the brakes on a brand new 5ver, was the damage done while in transist from the factory by not seating in properly? IM told by a competing RV dealer to not replace with self adjusting brakes and go manual adjust with the Dexter 7,000 lb axle brakes which should be the next size larger from what I currently have?. The Keystone customer service claim representative wasn't listening to me, or frankly didn't care and repeadtly told me seals and shoes are wear items and not under warranty. As for the servicing dealer they got no where with Keystone as well. On my 2007 21 ft Customweld Jet Boat Trailer (2 axle) a wheel cylinder failed at 16 months and Dexter replaced the cylinder and brake shoes with no questions asked. Guess it's different with Keystone and ALKO.

[racerjoe]

It's too bad you have to go thru this nightmare. I have said before Keystones warranty program has a lot to be desired. It seems to work by the pick of the day. some get it,some don't. Also I have said that you spend as much or more for your trailer as you do on the truck you are pulling it with,and you would never accept the manufacturer giving you the run a round when it came to problems. Keystone make you do all the running around,jumping thru hoops,etc-etc. Some day they will learn that treating customers like this will just put them out of business. If they care...

[paddler67]

I put disc brakes on our 3295 and would never tow with drum brakes again. with the drum brakes I always felt like I didn't enough stopping power. with the drum brakes I always ran the controller on 9 and sometimes 10 on steep grades and now with the disc brakes I run the controller on 5 and have excellent stopping power.
we are full timers and do the snow bird thing.

[paddler67]

I put disc brakes on our 3295 and would never tow with drum brakes again. with the drum brakes I always felt like I didn't enough stopping power. with the drum brakes I always ran the controller on 9 and sometimes 10 on steep grades and now with the disc brakes I run the controller on 5 and have excellent stopping power.
we are full timers and do the snow bird thing.

[laverdur]

I have the brake controller on my 2013 F-350 set to 8.5 and it handles my 2012 3150RL just fine. The trailer weighs about 13,100 when loaded for a cross-country trip. Like most of the newer montys, mine has the forward motion self-adjusting brakes so the trailer brake adjustment is optimized all the time. When I took delivery of my monty in October 2011 I assumed (shame on me) that all was right with the brakes and bearing lube. After a couple of trips where I experienced the trailer pushing the tv to one side while braking, I took it to my local rv service center to have the brakes checked. They reported that grease from the Dexter Ez-lube axles had blown past the seals and was all over the brake linings. After that was cleaned up, the trailer no longer pushed the tv to the side. Regarding being able to lock up the trailer brakes, other than what might happen on loose gravel, that is old school thinking. Optimal brake controller adjustment is just short of lockup during a hard stop on pavement. A locked up wheel does not stop as well as a rolling wheel.

[Denfinger]

Mine is set on 7.5 and works great. (2012 F250 SD 6.7D) On a pull test when I squeeze the button together is stops the whole truck and trailer quickly when I test at 10MPH with no tire skidding.