Frequently Asked Questions

Does ToadStop meet the legal braking requirements of the US and Canada?
YES! ToadStop exceeds all state and provincial requirements.

How is ToadStop different than the other systems?
We activate the power assist to work in harmony with the towed·s original brake engineering, and properly apply the brakes on your towed vehicle, with only 15 lbs of pedal pressure. The other brake systems apply the towed brakes with no power assist, so they must push extremely hard on the brake pedal. Without the power assist working, there is only 30% of your engineered brake performance available to stop the car.

Why is extreme pressure bad?
This high pressure (170-350 lbs) puts extreme abusive pressure on the brake components. Your firewall flexes and will eventually crack and break. Air & mechanical systems can only give a fraction of your original performance without power assist. To check this out, drive your car (40 mph) and turn the engine off and try to stop the car. The inferior braking you experience is what other systems work with all the time. That is why they must push so hard to provide only a fraction of what the brakes should be.

How does ToadStop work?
ToadStop applies the Towed vehicle·s brakes with full power assist braking on, in harmony with the original engineering of the vehicle. This assures the Full performance that was engineered into the braking system, with only slight pressure needed to the brake pedal.

Why use vacuum to pull the brake pedal?
Vacuum pulls down the brake pedal gradually, with easy pressure, the same way you apply your brakes when driving. We use finesse pressure on the brake pedal because we activate the power assist. Our system pulls the pedal with only enough strength to halt the vehicle, just like you do when you drive. We never lock brakes, no other braking system does this.

How effective is the ToadStop?
ToadStop is the only brake system to provide anti-lock braking while towing, even if your towed does not have anti-lock braking. The towed vehicle will stop quickly, with full control and no wheel lockup, even on gravel roads. ToadStop performs better than a skilled driver at stopping your towed.

Can the ToadStop be adjusted for performance?
Yes, throttle valves adjust the speed of the pedal movement, ·in and out·. A moveable bracket on the brake pedal of the Towed levers the force of the pull, for the resulting brake strength.

Is the ToadStop method proportional?
ToadStop has revolutionized the industry with its radical new methods. The term proportional is a very misused catch phrase in the industry. What is needed is balanced braking between the RV and towed, so that the vehicles stop each other without affecting each other. By balancing the braking of the towed so that it will only stop itself, it will not become an anchor to the RV. It is important to understand that if the towed braking is balanced, it will not tug and stop the RV faster than it originally did before towing a vehicle behind it.

How does ToadStop balance the brake force?
Your towed vehicle has a brake pedal, attached from the firewall with the brake arm, from under your dash area. This assembly is nothing more than a simple lever. You push the lever with your foot every time you stop your vehicle. ToadStop uses the simple leverage principal to move our bracket up or down the brake pedal lever to change the resulting brake force.

What about a panic stop?
A panic stop is explained by simply looking at the elements involved in the problem of stopping both vehicles. An RV weighs at over 15000 lbs or more, and a toad vehicle at up to 5000 lbs. When you make a comparison of the two vehicles, you have in reality an elephant (RV) and a mouse (towed). Put both of these vehicles in a stopping contest, and you will see that by the dynamics of size, one of the vehicles is more agile. The towed vehicle, with balanced braking will always be able to meet the demands of the RV, without ever pushing or pulling the RV.

How do you get vacuum to the towed vehicle when the engine is not running?
We simply provide vacuum from the RV engine across the tow bar to the components on the towed that need it, including our ToadStop, which pulls the towed brake pedal with vacuum. An electric pump option is available for diesel engine RV·s. Is a dedicated brake system is desires, instead of using the gasoline RV engine vacuum, the vacuum pump option is available.

Why do I need a vacuum pump on a diesel RV?
Unless you have a vacuum pump already supplying vacuum sufficient to run the system on the RV & Towed vehicle, you must provide an auxiliary pump for vacuum. DIESEL ENGINES DO NOT MAKE VACUUM LIKE GAS ENGINES.

What is the push button control feature in the RV?
This allows push button operation of the ToadStop while going downhill, to help maintain proper speed. On the RV it allows independent towed braking without having to apply the RV brake pedal, as is usually done to apply the towed brakes. Without this feature you may cause a jack knife of the towed vehicle, trailer controllers have worked brakes the same way for many years.

What is the remote kill switch?
This feature allows on and off control of the normal RV brake pedal activation of the ToadStop. YOU ALWAYS HAVE THE REMOTE PUSH BUTTON TO OPERATE THE TOWED VEHICLE·S BRAKES.

What are the monitoring features?
Verifies pedal movement on the towed vehicle, to indicate braking of the towed, with a dash light in the RV. Warns you of a breakaway, by lighting the dash light when the breakaway pin pulls and activates the ToadStop on the towed. This gives you immediate indication of a tow hitch failure and helps keep both vehicles apart as you get safely stopped, when your safety cables capture the towed.

What is the push button control in the towed vehicle?
On the towed vehicle, it allows push button braking while driving around town, TO CHECK PERFORMANCE ONLY.

What is the anti-theft kit?
This feature prevents unauthorized driving of the towed vehicle, by locking the brakes on when the vehicle is started. Qualifies you for a 10% anti-theft insurance discount.

Does ToadStop have a breakaway?
ToadStop has tow protections for break away. The most common failure is a failure of the tow components between the vehicles. During this type of failure, ToadStop is the only system that will apply braking, when the towed falls back on the tow cables. This will activate the RV dash light to alert you to the problem and then keep the vehicles apart, while you safely stop.

What happens in a severe breakaway?
ToadStop stores enough vacuum within the towed vehicle to safely bring it to a full controlled stop. Even on wet surfaces or gravel, no wheel lockup assures complete controlled anti-lock performance.