New 2024 Imagine XLS 17MKE - factory brake adjustment appears to be unbalanced.

[Alabear]

Recently we took delivery of our new trailer and on the tow home we stopped after a log downgrade to check the brake drum temperature on all four wheels. Found that the drivers side rear was quite hot, driver side front was warm and both passenger side hubs were cool to the touch. To me this indicates an obvious imbalance in the factory adjustment. I will be pursuing a resolution under warranty but as these brakes are supposed to be 'self adjusting' I am wondering if there is an easy fix such as multiple brake actuations only, in short firm 'trailer brake only' actuations ? With the one brake appearing to do most of the work I am thinking it needs to be backed off a bit anyway. I have worked on drum brakes in the past on older cars with the little adjuster window in the backing plate. Anyone have a simple method to DIY this?
Also, I just found a video from the Lippert website about 'burnishing' your new brakes to get them properly set and 'worn in' . Did anyone get this advise from their dealer when taking delivery of a new trailer? We did not but I can imagine that some customers would not understand the concept or execution leading to all kinds of issues. I have used a similar method on my replacement disk on the tow vehicle in the past to great success. Improved stopping power and lifespan was quite definite. (Toyota Tundra TRD).

[Country Campers]

Alabear Welcome to the Forum.

I have not heard of any trailer brakes being properly adjusted, either by Grand Design or by a selling dealer. The self adjusting brakes can be adjusted just like regular ones, there is still the little window on the backing plate. Depending on you location from the factory will depend on how the brakes were used, close very little use, far away and they may have lots of use, of course this depends on how they were installed at build time. I would recommend that you adjust the brakes to your liking and take a test drive to see how they perform. I think it takes quite a bit of braking to get them to auto adjust to a proper level. I have also heard of the auto adjusting brakes adjusting way out and ruining the brake shoes, this was an older RV of a different brand.

Brian

[Eleven99]

We have a friend who builds and sells trailers of all kinds. He advised us (and every one of his customers) that you should be checking and adjusting your brakes every 3000 miles. He also suggested that we check the adjustment before our first trip to establish a baseline for the next adjustment/check. No one at the dealership or service (and we have spent a lot of time there in our 1 year of ownership) about routinely checking the brakes. Our family friend said that the brakes (and greasing) should have been discussed during pre-delivery. So many things to learn about RV'ing that you didn't know that you were expected to know.

[Yoda]

Recently we took delivery of our new trailer and on the tow home we stopped after a log downgrade to check the brake drum temperature on all four wheels. Found that the drivers side rear was quite hot, driver side front was warm and both passenger side hubs were cool to the touch. To me this indicates an obvious imbalance in the factory adjustment. I will be pursuing a resolution under warranty but as these brakes are supposed to be 'self adjusting' I am wondering if there is an easy fix such as multiple brake actuations only, in short firm 'trailer brake only' actuations ? With the one brake appearing to do most of the work I am thinking it needs to be backed off a bit anyway. I have worked on drum brakes in the past on older cars with the little adjuster window in the backing plate. Anyone have a simple method to DIY this?
Also, I just found a video from the Lippert website about 'burnishing' your new brakes to get them properly set and 'worn in' . Did anyone get this advise from their dealer when taking delivery of a new trailer? We did not but I can imagine that some customers would not understand the concept or execution leading to all kinds of issues. I have used a similar method on my replacement disk on the tow vehicle in the past to great success. Improved stopping power and lifespan was quite definite. (Toyota Tundra TRD).

Not sure where your from or how far from the GD plant, but do a search on burnishing the brakes and follow it. Both GD and Lippert have instructions, assuming you haave self adjusting brake. There is a tag on the rear of the axles. Take a picture of it and send it to the manufacturer and ask for the build sheet. This sheet will list all the parts that went into the axle assembly, including the brakes.

However there are numerous videos on how to adjust brakes as it is DIY possible. . Possibly back off on the hot one and do the burnishing to bring things into balance. It really takes about a thousand miles to get things balanced.

[ncitro]

Alabear Another thing to check, particularly if one is running warmer is the bearings. Improper tightening of the nut or greasing can cause that wheel to run hot.

[Lonestar]

Alabear Another thing to check, particularly if one is running warmer is the bearings. Improper tightening of the nut or greasing can cause that wheel to run hot.

If I brought a new trailer home today, pulling the wheels would be the first thing I did. As you say, just to make sure the bearings are greased and the nut is adjusted properly, In the case of Alabear he can tell real quick if there has been any damage caused by a poorly adjusted brake, or any other stuff that can be wrong.

[ncitro]

If I brought a new trailer home today, pulling the wheels would be the first thing I did. As you say, just to make sure the bearings are greased and the nut is adjusted properly, In the case of Alabear he can tell real quick if there has been any damage caused by a poorly adjusted brake, or any other stuff that can be wrong.

I agree 100%

[Alabear]

Update: I removed the hubs and found the most brake dust in that driver side rear hub. The 'cool' ones on the other side did not appear to be adjusted well as it took numerous turns (clicks) to get them to start to grab. I am thinking that I should tighten to a grab point, then back off just enough to release plus one more? or two more? I am thinking that I should take it for a tow and burnish all hubs and pads and then check adjustments again? Bit of a pain in the butt I must say. $65,000 2024 somewhat high end trailer and ****ty lowball stock brakes with no self adjusters. ( just needed to get that off my chest. thx)
Speaking of spindle nuts...what is the torque for a spindle nut 50 ft/lbs and back off a little bit ? and my keepers are cotter pins with only one hole position. I guess one should get a different keeper style if the pin won't align?

[howson]

Alabear -- I'll leave the response to your questions to those much more knowledgeable than myself. My reply's purpose is to urge you to read the Welcome Letter to learn some key things so you get the most from you time here (like filling out your signature line, quoting and tagging, etc).

You'll find the Welcome Letter linked off the home page.

I'm sure one of the suspension gurus ( like Cate&Rob ) will be along with a response to your query.

Howard

[Cate&Rob]

Alabear The brake adjusting process that you describe should work and is very close to the manufacturer’s recommendations. See your owners manual for their recommended burnishing procedures. Many owners would prefer properly adjusted brakes to auto adjusters which can over tighten the brakes.

WRT spindle nut torque . . . there should be absolutely no torque on a correctly set spindle nut. The 50 ft lbs is to seat the races and squeeze out any excess grease. Without moving the hub, the nut should be backed off and re-adjusted finger tight. From there, back off to the next slot in the nut for the cotter pin. If there is a very small amount of play in the hub at room temperature, that is fine . . , that play will be gone when everything heats up. Again, this is paraphrasing the info you will find in your owners manual . . . which is what you should follow.

Rob