Long distance towing question..

[Jon G]

I was thinking about savine some money this summer, getting a rental in the Keys next winter cuase I've got some vacation to use. The truck is not a problem We just dorve it from the Cape to Phoenix AZ this winter. The problem is the trailer brake laws. Here in mass you don't need any breaks of your under 10k Gross on the trailer. this trailer is registered at 4K si I am way under. I looked at the towing laws up and down the east coast and was horrified at what I found. My trailer, No breaks, the only state that I am leagal in with my set up is Mass! I thought with all the rules and regs in this state that I had it made but for once Mass is the most leanient on trailer brakes on the whole east coast, go figure. At least one of hte states requires brakes on all axels too! What have you guys that have towed long distances have for break set ups? At this point I would probably need to buy a new Nextrail(not really in the budget) rather that retrofit my current trailer, which I just put two new axels and four new springs on($400) two weeks ago I love my dual axel, straight as an arrow with NO sway at all. any body have any stories about towing 95 south? DOT? State Police?

[ocuyler]

The odds of getting your trailer looked at by DOT or Police is slim to none, however, Murphy's law always applies. The one given on I-95 is the traffic backing up and you having to jump on the brakes to avoid a rearender.

I, for one, want to have brakes on the trailer that will fully manage the trailer's weight and keep myself, family, boat and others safe. I would suggest that you seriously consider adding at least one axle of surge brakes.

I understand that it is not in the budget, but you have to consider your insurance company may not pay out in the event of an accident. Further, you would probably be found negligent in the event of a serious accident, especially since you just posted your knowledge of the various laws on the internet. You'd be screwed. Paranoid yet? Sorry, man.

[JWB]

Oops..........had no idea about the laws. Just towed a 23' from Vero to ATL and then to Southern Va. No brakes on trailer at all. Really drove fine.......(the trailer NOT the CAR!!!!!!!!) Braking distance was ok as long as you took it easy and gave plenty of room. Live and learn.

[Jon G]

Always paraniod [img]/forum/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img] Otto thats what keeps me out of trouble, Its the fender bender that turns into a law suit that worries me. Worry about the DOT? try passing a scale house with a plate that says COMMERCIAL in letters that are only half an inch high on the bottom, count to twenty and your pulled over, then ten minutes of expalining your not on business while they look EVRYTHING over. My plates are a neccesity for bussiness use but they mean something else to every other state. A new trailer isn't in the budget but If I make the trip I definatly want brakes on this one at least. I've had bad experiances on 95 in Jersey with my Mass commercial plates, in an otherwise plain truck, getting kicked off the garden state parkway just for the plates on the truck. So if its gonna happen its gonna happen to me. The truck(F350) donsn't even feel the boat back there it stops and goes like its not even there,its rated to tow 12500lbs so it doesnt even feel the 3500 thats back there. I'm gonna go search and see if I can find a disk brake kit that is for retro fits so far I can't see mto find one there all replacemnt parts. We'll see, a few weeks in sunny Florida in the dead of winter using my boat would be great I just gotta get it there

[Trayder]

Question:

In regards to vehicle requirements do you have to adhere to the laws of the state you are in or the laws of the state your vehicle is registered?

If you have to adhere to the laws your are in than FL registered vehicles have a problem in most states as they have no emissions std or general inspection (last I checked). I had tinted front windows in Mass and was fine but they are illegal in RI but I was able to have my MA registered car in RI.

I do not know the answer or how it relates to trailer brakes just asking?

I have towed my 20 from RI to the Keys 3 times the trailer has never had brakes nor will it ever have brakes.

[rockdoc]

That's been my impression; that the laws in the state the trailer is licensed in dictates the requirements for brakes. I asked this same question a few weeks ago when I was calling around shopping for a trailer for the 20' and 19' SeaCrafts, and I forget exactly which big trailer dealer told me this.

Now, if I were trailering a 23' SeaCraft, I'd want brakes.

rockdoc

[Tarpun]

FL requires trailers over 3000#'s to have brakes. That being said I would guess that only about 1/2 of the trailers in the 3-6k weight range that I see have no brakes. Myself included. Have never been stopped and cannot recall anyone I know being stopped. I will in the future put brakes on the trailer for added safety and legal protection. My 1 ton E-350 stops well with my 20 hooked up.

[Jon G]

This gets worse the more I look in to it. I posted the same thing over at diesel stop in the trailer/hauling section and they came to the same conclusion that they rearly ever see brakes on boat trailers(because they dont last) but they were split on wether you had to obey the laws of the state you were passing through or all you need to do was meet the rules of the state you were licenced in, then you were ok. They had a good link to a boat us link here it is http://www.boatus.com/trailerclub/laws.asp seems if I was leagal in Mass and my plate was good then I'm good to go, If I reregistered in a differant state then I would need to meet there standards. Heres on to think about , Mass has NO emmisions testing on diesels under 10000lb. GVW, If RI tests all of them do I go and get a RI emmisions test if I drive through the state?? No because I'm regeistered in Mass and meet there rules. I'm hoping that this applies to the trailer rules otherwise its a nightmare to meet any or all of the states rules????

[Wobbet60]

I think you'll be ok for 2 reasons: 1. I have a 21 Mako on a dual axle trailer w/no brakes. I have been stopped before and nobody mentioned the brakes, to be honest I don't think 90% of the trailers I've seen down here have brakes. 2. You must obey the laws of the state where your vehicle and trailer are registered. If you had to comply with the rules of every state you planned to drive thru there would be no interstate commerce in thius country b/c every state is different. If you have commercial tags, then you can probably just stop at the weigh stations to be on the safe side and you'll probably get the green light all the way thru. If you drive safely, you shouldn't have any problems even w/o brakes. Just my $.02.

[Jon G]

I forgot about the "intra state commerce" that changes everyting, I have the Comm plates and I bet if I stopped at the scales it would be a quick stop if its my name on the truck, boat reg and trailer its not a paying job I should be all set. I know lots of guys that go to NC in the winter to and nobody that I knows has breaks. I meet Mass. law so I should be all set.