Urgent: Problem With Echo Wireless Brake Controller Need Help —SOLVED

[Deleted User]

So the wireless brake controller was the best option when I bought my new tow vehicle. (I have a tow plug under dash and didnt want to cut that off to hard wire the Tekonsha) Brand new model of the vehicle so no available wiring harness from Tekonsha.   I'm on a trip right now and brakes on trailer applied HARD and was pulling tow vehicle bacj and the blue circle that indicates brake force was all the way around blue. Normally when I apply the brakes it only goes around to about 2-3pm position. I dropped the setting down to 2 and the brakes are no longer pulling hard but the blue circle is still going all the way around on the app. I reinstalled the app. Didnt fix it.  If I just raise the power to the next level, 7, I feel it pulling a bit to much.  Before today my setting was 17 and it's been fine for a year and a half.  

Anyone have any ideas why this might he happening? Im nervous now about my trip home. I'm going to see now if the wiring harness for the Tekonsha one is now available for my vehicle. I was never comfortable with this one but it was working fine!

Help please! 

nmdream

Similar hard braking with my ECHO but just found one of my brakes was too tight and was grabbing hard after about 30 mins of towing. Not experiencing the same full dial you speak of though.
I will be watching your answers also. Have you tried setting up a new profile on the same vehicle ?  You may be calling the Mfg. if it follows 

tabiphile

Hopefully a connector harness is now available for the Tekonsha. Until you find out, try the big red switch. Shut it down Unplug it) for a minute or so and then restart it. Sometimes a reboot will get things sorted.

[Deleted User]

Where is the big red switch?  I did reinstall the app, but that didnt work. Yes, the wiring harness is available now. I ordered it today! Hopefully it works because I have a trip the next day after it's supposed to arrive! 

I will try adding a new profile tomorrow. Good idea.  I'm nervous about my trip home tomorrow, but only 60 miles. I will take it slow with LOTS of following distance. 

ChrisFix

@TabbyShack
Don't worry too much about it. Even with no trailer brakes, the T@B isn't such a big trailer that you'll feel out of control in any way. And 60 miles is really nothing in terms of towing. 
Good luck with sorting out the issue, but I'm certain you'll be okay getting home.

[Deleted User]

Thanks Chris. That actually does make me feel better.  

[Deleted User]

I made it home safe! I'm fairly confident Curt Echo has made some drastic updates to the app.  The past year and a half my settings were
Max Power 17 and sensitivity 2 and when I applied the brakes the blue intensity ring (like I said before would go to about the 3pm position)  When I got going this past Saturday I was on my usual 17/2 but now when I applied brakes circle went all the way around, but brakes were not grabbing at all...at first. So after brakes heated up (about 20 miles) and I encountered traffic they beared down WAY too much...so I backed it down to 12, still grabbing, then 2 in order to reach my destination.  So, I get up this morning, hooked up, and now my available settings are only showing in increments of 5! Lowest setting, 5, 10, 15, 20! So, I tested  around the area at 15 and seemed perfect, stopped few miles later, a bit too much so backed down to 10....good for about the next 45 miles (no traffic) THEN, hit another patch of traffic and 10 was WAY to much again! So backed it down to 5 and was fine.  So, I think has to be a major app update since I could no longer even select 2, 12. 17 and onky had options 5, 10, 15. I'm also thinking maybe the blue intensity ring also now just goes all the way around on all settings....I'm calling Curt first thing tomorrow....but new Tekonsha P3 arriving Thursday (they finally got OEM wire harness specific to my vehicle). I was never comfortable with the wireless Echo even though it worked very well for a year and a half.  I will repost what I find out tomorrow from Curt. 

Denny16

Thanks, will be interesting to see what they say.
cheers

[Deleted User]

Problem solved...user error!!! So after a year of using the wireless controller, I decided about 6 trips ago that "hey, I can tape the brake controller to the 7pin plug on the camper and save a step when I'm hooking up"  I also thought that would be a great way to help it not fall off while driving down the road. Apparently, that was preventing the brake controller from calibrating before each trip.  Curt said I was lucky It didn't give me problems sooner.  So, I put in the brake controller by itself, let it sync for a few seconds, then hooked to camper and now its working properly.  I'm am 100% confident though that a recent app update is what triggered it not to work all of a sudden since now my power increments are 5,10, 15 and it wasn't like that before this happened.  Ironically, I had already been planning to see if the wiring harneness might now be available for my tow vehicle, so I will still be installing the new Tekonsha P3 when it arrives on Thursday, but I'm happy to have the wireless one as a back up or if I ever need to tow the camper with someone else's vehicle who doesn't have a brake controller. Thanks for the support guys! 

mntrails

I had a very similar condition happen on my 3rd trip with my T@B 4 weeks ago.  Your description matches my experience exactly - no matter where I set the power, the blue circle whipped around to 100% at the slightest touch of the brake.  

I was able to get hold of a different Echo and it works correctly.  

What I've noticed though is that after I've done the initial setup, the green LED on the Echo does not come on at all unless the trailer is plugged in.  I'm confused by the comment above about plugging the Echo in and letting it sync for a few seconds.  In my case, there's no lights and no activity at all either with the LED or the app on an iphone no matter how long I wait - until I plug in the trailer.  

I'm curious what others have experienced.  While I like the Echo when it works, I'm finding it a bit erratic in how it behaves. 

Denny16

Check the that your 7-pin has 12VDC available and comes on.  When the Echo gets12VDC, the light should come on and when the Echo app is active on your phone, link to it.
cheers

mntrails

@Denny16, I checked my 7 pin plug when the problem first started.  Pin 4 is the Aux 12V and my Toyota is supplying that.  The center pin is supposed to be backup lights according to the diagrams I've seen.  I've checked the ground as well.  Interestingly, neither Curt Echo that I have lights up the green LED in any mode - after its been configured and used - and one works properly and the other doesn't.  Its certainly confusing... I'm wondering if others see this same behaviour or if there's something unique to my setup.  

When I first ran into the 100% brake application problem, I wanted to reset everything, erase the app, and start over.  I could do that with the App but the Echo itself seemed to be behaving differently (no LED on) and of course, there doesn't seem to be a 'reset to factory-new settings' option.  

Denny16

OK, sounds like a bad Echo unit, contact Kurt for a replacement.
cheers

[Deleted User]

The guy I spoke to at Curt knew immediately what was wrong when I described the blue circle going all the way around.  He didnt yet know that I had the controller taped to my campers 7pin. He said when you plug in the echo you should be seeing a blue light blinking right away. He said that indicates the echo is syncing with the tow vehicle. Then I told him I had it taped to the camper. He said oh that's not allowing it to sync first. I switched to the Tekonsha P3 which I preferred anyway, but now the Echo is working fine so I will have it fir other vehicles. 

In your case, no lights is definitely not right. 

nmdream

That stops a future problem for me ! Thanks T !
Whoda Thunk it... 

Denny16

The Echo instructions clearly state to first plug in the Echo into the TV, with TV power on to sync the unit, check for the green light, and then connect the trailer.  

cheers

[Deleted User]

Yes they do but who goes back and reads the instructions a year and half later. 

mntrails

I spent some time with the Curt Echo Support person this morning.  He was aware of cases where the blue circle in the app shoots around too fast and indicated it is usually a problem with the supply voltage or during the calibration phase.  My symptons were that I had a solid 13.9 volts on the 12V pin (#4) but no blue LED on. When I plugged in the T@B, I would get a green blinking LED followed by a solid green LED.  The brakes would work but be 'grabby'. I'll skip all the debug steps but the source of the problem was that the Echo was not making good contact with the 12V pin #4 of the 7 pin Tow Vehicle socket.

Below is a picture of the Echo (left) and the T@B female connector (right).  Note that the Echo only has a solid blade on the outside of the slot and no spring tension.  That means that all the contact tension has to come from the Tow Vehicle side.  The Toyota connector is a J with the short leg to the outside.  I had to go in  and carefully flex the short side of the J outward to make solid contact with the copper blade of the Echo. 

The T@B connector on the other hand is a forked slot where it supplies tension as well to the connection.  I won't say that the Echo connector is 'bad' but the T@B certainly seems to be a 'better' connector.


While talking to the Rep, he reiterated the following as 'good practice to follow' with each use:
1) Start the TV and plug in the Echo without the trailer - you should see the blue blinking LED, then the Blue solid LED once it syncs with the phone app.
2) Set the Power and Sensitivity to 85% and 6.  He recommended these settings regardless.  I haven't towed with them yet but he implied that if the Echo has been properly initialized in step 1),  it will be a good solution and still leave lots of extra braking capability for a panic stop. 
3) Plug in the T@B, the LED should fast blink yellow (calibration phase), then end up at solid green - ready to tow.

So - if you seem to have erratic T@B brake behaviour, perhaps this can help. I spent a lot of time exploring the whole path from the TV battery and fuses back to the T@B and it wasn't until the rep confirmed that I absolutely had to see the Blue LED come on without the trailer connected, that I followed the path of the 12V aux Voltage and the lack of connector contact since that's what powers the Echo.  How it was working without it, I can't tell you but I suspect it was getting some voltage from the battery of the T@B but insufficient for proper function.  I know that I'll be using his method of connection outlined above as that provides good visual feedback that the Echo gets initialized correctly. 

nmdream

Thank You !

mntrails

I towed with the Echo calibrated and set at 85 and 6 per the Support person's reccomendation.  It worked fine.  With the Echo set up right, during a normal gradual stop from 30 mph, the blue circle usually only went to 2 o'clock or 3 o'clock on the app dial. I tried a hard stop from 45 mph (simulating something unexpected but not a panic) and the circle went to 6 o'clock. Starts and stops were relatively smooth.  I could feel the engagement of the brakes ( especially at low speeds (10- 15 mph).  I adjusted the sensitivity down to 4 and will try that for awhile. I also experimented with the power at 70 and 80.  Honestly, I didn't notice that much of a difference. The key though is that when operating properly, the whole braking system is pretty smooth.

Denny16

The 85/6 setting  is a starting place, and actual values you end up with will depend on the size of and braking on the TV.
cheers

mntrails

Just a quick update:  I've settled on settings of 55/3 and have towed more than 1000 miles with those and are happy with the results.

I also 'by accident' one time I didn't follow the sequence on plugging in things that are stated above.  I just plugged in the controller to the TV, plugged in the trailer, then synced the app with bluetooth.  Before even moving, I stepped on the brake and the blue circle went around to the 5 o'clock position (normally it would be 1 o'clock). 

I stopped right there, unplugged everything, reattached it using the correct order and all was good.

Dbremmer

Thank you for this thread.  We previously had a 2007 Thor Dutchman T@B with a mechanical piston braking system.  Our TV is a 2012 Toyota Highlander.  We have a tow package and 7-pin previously installed by Toyota.  We are searching for a T@B 320 CS-S because we want the outdoor kitchen and bathroom.  Getting ready to tow a new trailer home, I now have a Curt Echo and have loaded the app.  I assumed that the aux 12V supply enabled operation but I could not confirm by testing with no trailer.  I do get the blinking blue led and then solid blue with bluetooth sync.  You have helped me understand the proper sequence and settings so that I now feel confident to hook up and tow when that time comes.  Hopefully very soon!

mntrails

That's great that the information is helpful for you.  I hope you find your T@B soon - good luck!

tphaggerty

I have the Curt wireless and had it lock up the brakes several times. For the most part, it has worked great, but having to follow a specific procedure to ensure that it works correctly is an issue in my book. When it first happened to us, I contacted Curt and they said they had never heard of this happening - this was close to 2 years ago and the unit was new on the market. They sent us a new unit and we returned the old one for “analysis “. Apparently, they have not resolved the issue. The new unit has the same lockup issue.

Last time this happened, my wife did the hookup by herself and got the lockup. I’m replacing it with a hard wired system now, just feels too iffy even though we have over 10,000+ miles using it.

i haven’t decided if I’ll keep it for possible use on other vehicles or sell it (at a great price if any one is interested). Possibly with the updated app and more attention to detail, it will work out fine for someone else.  I use 65 and 5 as the settings on my Ridgeline - Tab 400 setup, works great when it works!

Denny16

Connect the Echo to the TV, then connect the trailer up.  I have not had any issues with ours.
cheers

mntrails

@tphaggerty, I understand your viewpoint. While it does work well once its connected and self-calibrated correctly, that once-in-a-long-while time when I haven't followed the connection and sync sequence religiously is disconcerting.  Perhaps some Echos are more inclined to this than others as well since Curt reps seem to be familiar with the problem now but aren't reacting like its an issue everyone sees.

I too am considering going to a hardwired controller.  In my case, I have one more reason - the location of the Toyota 4Runner 7 pin tow vehicle plug is far to the left and at a 45 degree angle down - that doesn't lend itself well to the extended length of the Echo either.  Best of luck with your next controller.

nmdream

It is an expensive add on, I got a little frustrated at first, but I looked at my End Of Day process as I made a lot of miles and stops and a whole lot of self education.
16 Days of start and stop travel.

I think most of my odd problems were induced by my own daily shutdowns.

I noticed a few hard stops at the beginning of our day.
Looking back and considering the comments on the echo, I noticed that I had battery trailer power or TV trailer power usually on the Curt overnight. I assumed any issues I had were due to inconsistent power removal. I think I may have confused it more than anything.
out of confusion, I got in the habit of selecting my profile in a 2 step sequence after being down for the night. One I don't use and then I set the one that I prefer to use. Kind of a 2 tap reset . It did not take more than 30 seconds on average and seemed to go without incident.

Either way the daily start and go sequence seemed to work for me after that. I think I just needed to completely disconnect for the night. 

In all honestly, I love it. If I had a wish  - I would find a way to attach it a little more securely and a lot more discreetly.

If it helps anyone to know my experience, I am glad, if not I at least shared my trip issues.
 All be safe and try to wear the tread off