Brake Buddy "Stealth " toad brake

[SunClipper]

I need a brake system for my toad and have a short list of US Gear VIP tow brake,SMI 'Stay-in-Play Duo, and Brake Buddy 'Stealth'.
I'm leaning toward the Brake Buddy system, but would appreciate any comments - good or bad - about any or all of the three systems I am considering.
Thanks for the Brake Buddy testimonials, but I am really interested in the new " Stealth " system. Does anyone have any experience with it or the other permanently installed systems I mentioned ?
Thanks,
John

[carolo]

I have the Stealth system installed on a 2012 Honda CR V and really like it. The installation took about 4 hours which was a bit expensive for the labor but worth it. Got it in 2015 and have had 2 problems....one minor and one major. The major problem was operator error. I had a tow bar that was on the car rather than on the back of the motor home. The cable that connects to the car was put in under the bar rather than over the tow bar and when I hit a pot hole or? the cable worked loose and seperated which told the Stealth that the toad had disconnected which, of course, applied the brakes. The alarm went off but I was unable to pull over because of traffic. Yep, had to replace the rear brakes on the Honda. A very expensive lesson. I also had the connection/plug moved to a better location.
The minor problem was the connection/recepticle on the motor home side is spring loaded and the spring snapped. Thankfully I noticed that and used a bungee cord to hold the cable in place. Brake Buddy immediately sent me a new cap. However, I still use a bungee just to be sure. It gives me a better feeling of security. ??And it is so easy to apply the bungee.
In spite of the problems, I really like the system. Just plug and go.
Much easier to use than the older Brake Buddy box which I used for years before purchasing the Stealth.

[tropical36]

michealwhelan wrote:
We love ours. The install was simple on our 2013 JK Jeep. Just make sure you have good ground of the system. Our first install had a ground problem that locked the breaks and fried the controller. Break Buddy was excellent in the service. They overnighted a replacement and we were back on the road quickly. I love the simplicity and the support.

Even if the install was simple, evidently it's operation is not, otherwise a ground problem wouldn't have occurred that locked up the brakes and fried the controller. Just saying that with a READYBRAKE, there is nothing to ground or any controller to fry.

[michealwhelan]

We love ours. The install was simple on our 2013 JK Jeep. Just make sure you have good ground of the system. Our first install had a ground problem that locked the breaks and fried the controller. Break Buddy was excellent in the service. They overnighted a replacement and we were back on the road quickly. I love the simplicity and the support.

[texasglori]

SunClipper wrote:
I need a brake system for my toad and have a short list of US Gear VIP tow brake,SMI 'Stay-in-Play Duo, and Brake Buddy 'Stealth'.
I'm leaning toward the Brake Buddy system, but would appreciate any comments - good or bad - about any or all of the three systems I am considering.
Thanks for the Brake Buddy testimonials, but I am really interested in the new " Stealth " system. Does anyone have any experience with it or the other permanently installed systems I mentioned ?
Thanks, de
John

BE SURE that you have your mechanic look at the installation instructions and be careful. The cost of putting it in is horribly high with hours of installation and the unit we got was defective and I have been dealing with brake buddy to try to resolve the issue of extra costs and time in the process. The technical department kept insisting that nothing was wrong and there are hours of diagnostic charges because of this. In the end, Brake Buddy Stealth unit was indeed defective and now a month later, we are still trying to resolve the issue of extra costs that I should not have to cover. They initially said that they would cover costs of having to remove it and re-install the new unit, but at this time they are trying to locate the unit we returned and then determine WHAT is actually wrong with it....and THEN decide if or how much they should reimburse us for. There is nothing to figure out...it was defective. Period. Either DO it or NOT.
So far, the new unit seems to work but we are yet to take a long trip to fully test it out. It appears to be a good product with controls and monitoring equipment installed in your RV so that you can see what it is doing while you are driving. We can feel it working as our Hummer begins to brake behind us and the safety features on the front of your vehicle are designed to stop the car should it break free from you and go on it's own.
Before you purchase the unit, check the cost of installing the unit in your particular vehicle and then..good luck.

[sososixmpg]

You can't beat the BREAK BUDDY! Simplicity,Simplicity, I use it on my Nissan Frontier, works so good.low cost and eazy to install. Good luck.

[jgallego]

I have the brake buddy stealth on both my 2016 Chevrolet Colorado 4x4 and 2013 Honda CRV. Have had it for over six months and it has worked great. We just finished a 1,700 mile round trip to Perry, Georgia for the FMCA Rally pulling the CRV and did not have any problems. Basically you just hook it up and go.

Jaime

[ILVMYGT]

This looks like the Brake Buddy 'Stealth' would be a good system. It does have a vacuum pump to keep the power brake booster charged. This unit has the brake module located remotely I think the US Gear is similar using a cable (in a sleeve) to apply the brakes. Some other units like the SMI mount the brake module on the brake pedal. We have friend that had a US Gear unit and the cable got kinked. The brake came on but the pedal spring was not able to overcome the kink and the brakes stayed applied. It was bad news for the brakes. The units that attach to brake pedal are less prone to this problem.

It is nice that you can use the controller on a trailer.

We have an Air Force One on our toad that works well and we like.

[michealwhelan]

We have had ours for just under a year. The first unit acted up and Hopkins replaced it immediately and paid for the re-install no problem. The replacement has worked perfectly. We are towing a jeep wrangler behind our Winnebago. I rate Hopkins a 5 out of 5 for their customer service and the same goes for the Stealth.

[carolo]

So has anyone have the Brake Buddy Stealth system? If so, any comments good or bad?

[michealwhelan]

I am looking at the Brake Buddy Stealth also. I have read the install manuals of most of the manufactures. Ready Brake, Blue Ox, SMI Stay n Play, Invisibrake and so forth. All are pretty straight forward and similar approach. The Stealth di look a bit easier to install and I liked the motorhome mounted controler approach. Best price I have found so far was PPL Motorhomes in Houston at $862. I am still trying to determine if this is proportional or progressive braking.

[tropical36]

Horsedoc wrote:
I just worry about pulleys and cables and screws in the firewall. Screws can pop out on a lot of pressure, cables can kink and the brake pedal not retreat. If I was going with that kind of system, I might use the Air Force One since it does not have to rely on brute pressure on the brake pedal. It keeps vacuum pressure up on the towed. We use the regular ole Brake Buddy (proportional braking) and it has worked fine thus far. It is a PIA when you arrive and have to find a place to set it when you use the towed

Sounds like the way that the Stealth is engineered, but not so with READYBRAKE and not much there to go wrong unless a cub bear with boxing gloves on, installed it and even with Momma and Poppa bear pulling on it. Even then, there couldn't be much to fix and again, there's the initial cost of these high tech systems to consider and not much use in paying more to get less in the long run.

[Horsedoc]

I just worry about pulleys and cables and screws in the firewall. Screws can pop out on a lot of pressure, cables can kink and the brake pedal not retreat. If I was going with that kind of system, I might use the Air Force One since it does not have to rely on brute pressure on the brake pedal. It keeps vacuum pressure up on the towed. We use the regular ole Brake Buddy (proportional braking) and it has worked fine thus far. It is a PIA when you arrive and have to find a place to set it when you use the towed

[tropical36]

elle8 wrote:
i having a blue ox system installed april 1st ,,,,,am i picky the wrong system ,,,,,36 ft winnie vista ,,,towing a jeep wrangler

Can't say it's wrong, just wouldn't be my cup of tea and also like doing my own work, whenever possible. I have less than $1500 in our setup, toad lights and all, brand new and about as simple and effective than one could ever hope for. Keep in mind, that just because something costs more and has more parts, doesn't mean that it's better. In fact more means more, that can go wrong and if you're not well versed and didn't install it in the first place, then that means that you'll be looking for a repair shop along the road somewhere.

[elle8]

i having a blue ox system installed april 1st ,,,,,am i picky the wrong system ,,,,,36 ft winnie vista ,,,towing a jeep wrangler