Can I tow without a battery?- answered

lino
lino Posts: 246
edited April 2019 in Camping & Travel
I need to move my T@B and store it off site for a few weeks and I removed the battery for the winter 

Can I tow it without a battery and still use the trailer breaks and lights? Will the 7 pin provide current I would need?

Comments

  • ScottG
    ScottG Posts: 5,688
    In short, yes. Trailer brakes and lights are powered by the tow vehicle through the 7-pin connector. 
    However, if you experience a total separation of the trailer from the tow vehicle a functioning connected T@B battery is required in order to activate the trailer's emergency breakaway brake system.
    2015 T@B Max S (320)
    2015 Nissan Frontier SV V6 4x4
  • lino
    lino Posts: 246
    Thanks ScottG, sounds like I should put it back in to be safe
  • ChrisK
    ChrisK Posts: 280
    Only if you have a newer T@B with electric brakes. My 2014 has surge brakes. No electrical needed.
    2014 T@b S Max AKA T@dpole
  • Sharon_is_SAM
    Sharon_is_SAM Posts: 10,035
    Good point @ChrisK.  The TaB owner’s club here has generations and now different models to consider!  I always forget about those surge brakes.  @lino, what year TaB and brakes do you have?  Can you update your signature line?
    Sharon / 2017 T@B CSS / 2015 Toyota Sienna Minivan / Westlake, Ohio
  • lino
    lino Posts: 246
    Mine is 2016 model
    Not sure what types of breaks I have
  • ScottG
    ScottG Posts: 5,688
    Definitely electric brakes on a 2016. Dutchman era T@Bs had surge brakes as did (I think) some of the earliest PV/nuCamp models while they were using up remaining inventory.

    2015 T@B Max S (320)
    2015 Nissan Frontier SV V6 4x4
  • Marceline
    Marceline Posts: 1,767
    ScottG said:
    Definitely electric brakes on a 2016. Dutchman era T@Bs had surge brakes as did (I think) some of the earliest PV/nuCamp models while they were using up remaining inventory.

    I don't think it was "remaining inventory." I have a 2013 with surge brakes and the frame looks very different from the Dutchman T@Bs.

    San Francisco Bay Area | 2013 CS-S us@gi | 2015 Toyota Tacoma PreRunner Double Cab

  • ScottG
    ScottG Posts: 5,688
    Could be they just changed suppliers early on. I thought I'd heard the "remaining inventory" thing somewhere, but I tend to remember a lot of things that didn't actually happen...  :-)
    2015 T@B Max S (320)
    2015 Nissan Frontier SV V6 4x4
  • Photomom
    Photomom Posts: 2,217
    We store our T@B in a friend’s barn 20 miles out in the country in the winter. We figure the chances of the trailer coming off the hitch and breaking both safety chains on our way there or back are pretty slim. If we were towing in a populated area we’d probably make a different choice. 
    John and Henrietta, Late 2016 T@B S Max in Western New York
  • lino
    lino Posts: 246
    I’m going to put the battery in for sure
    Just going to need help lifting it in because I can’t until my hand heals

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