Electric Brake Controllers – Elecbrakes, REDARC, Tow-Pro Link & Ford
Confused about the different brake controller options? Read on:
| Elecbrakes EB2 | Elecbrakes VM1 | Redarc Tow-Pro Link | Aftermarket wired brake controller | Ford built-in brake controller | |
| Description | Brake controller attached to a trailer so trailer, wirelessly controlled from towcar. | Brake controller wired into car but controlled wirelessly which allows towcar to tow any trailer with electric brakes. | Brake controller wired into car but controlled wirelessly which allows towcar to tow any trailer with electric brakes. | Aftermarket brake controller wired into car, can control any trailer with electric brakes. Examples are TowPro Elite, Tekonsha. | Controller wired into car from factory, can control any trailer with electric brakes |
| Installation | Car: none. Trailer: Plug in an adaptor between trailer electrical cable and car electrical plug, or hardwire, anyone can install. | Car: wire in controller, professional recommended. Trailer:none. | Car: wire in controller, professional recommended. Trailer:none. | Car: wire in brake controller. Trailer: none. | Car: built in. Trailer: none |
| Control | Wireless by phone app or dedicated remote. Apple Carplay, Android Auto integration. | Wireless by phone app or dedicated remote. Apple Carplay, Android Auto integration. | Wireless by dedicated remote. | Wired, button/dial. | Wired, manual controls. |
| Power source | Trailer plug; requires car lights to be on for power | Integrated to car | Integrated to car | Integrated to car | Integrated to car |
| Available on | Can be added to any trailer by anyone | Can be added to any vehicle by auto electrician | Can be added to any vehicle by auto electrician | Can be added to any vehicle by auto electrician | Next-gen Ranger & Everest, other similar Fords, maybe others |
| Ease of transfer | Unplug and go | Permanently wired in | Permanently wired in | Permanently wired in | Built in to car |
| Sway control | Press manual override button (auto sway control feature coming) | Press manual override button (auto sway control feature coming) | One press – system detects extent of sway and operates to fix | Press manual override button | Press manual override button; however Ford system will not only operate car brakes, but also apply trailer brakes |
| Cost | $699 for controller, $180 for remote,approx $110 for adpator, self-install | $699, + installation | $769 + installation | $425 + installation (Tow Pro Elite) | Included in car (but not all trim levels) |
| Best for | When you have trailers which will be towed by cars without brake controllers, and want to easily swap the controller from trailer to trailer. | When you want a permanent brake controller in your car so you can tow any trailer with electric brakes. | When you want a permanent brake controller in your car so you can tow any trailer with electric brakes. | When you want a permanent brake controller in your car so you can tow any trailer with electric brakes and do not want wireless control. | Default choice if you have this car; no need for any of the others. |
| IMPORTANT NOTES | 1. All systems require the trailer itself to have electric brakes; these systems are only means of operating the electric brakes. | ||||
| 2. Understand what sway is; how to prevent it and deal with it. Refer to videos on the L2SFBC YouTube channel. | |||||
| 3. The towcar must be approriately rated for towing the load; adding electric brakes to a car with a max tow rating of 600kg does not make it legal or safe to tow 1000kg. | |||||
| 4. If you use a wireless system you MUST ensure that the manual override button is easily and instantly accessible so it can be operated in the event of sway. This is why I recommend having the remote option, never only the phone apps. | |||||
| The ‘wireless’ systems do not rely on their wireless connection to operate. The controller units are wired to the trailer or towcar, but their settings are changed wirelessly. If the wireless connection is broken, the system continues to operate at the current settings. Manual sway override cannot be operated, but automated sway control would work. | |||||
