www.iFourWinns.com

Hello all new to the forum and have learned quite a bit but I am in need of some advise.

Quick background: I am extremely new to boating and just purchased a 2005 Horizon 180 LE. While I am mechanically inclined I know nothing about boats or the trailers so here it goes.

The trailer is a 2005 D018190 with disk surge brakes. Just picked up the boat yesterday came out this morning and found brake fluid on the driveway.
Took off the cap exposing master cylinder and found fluid around the threads shown in pic 1 I wiped it clean but the fluid returned around the threads. I have not as of yet tried to tighten the plug. (waiting to get the proper tool for this)



I inspected the bottom of the swing arm and found fluid dripping from the bottom of the cylinder in pic 2



Ok so here is the kicker I was backing the boat into my drive yesterday and it didn't feel as though the brakes were engaging. I live on a hill so if the brakes were working wouldn't they engage especially since I didnt have the wiring connected to the truck.

So many questions so little typing experience:
1. Is this something I could repair myself or am I looking at a complete overhaul?
2. Would a leak like this cause the brake to not engage?
3. What is the cable connected in pic 2 connected to?
4. What are the lube fittings for in this pic?



Thanks for the help. Oh here is a pic of the boat itself.

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2005 Horizon 180 LE

So...Welcome to the site!

I dont have the same actuator as you, so hopefully someone with more experience will weigh in - they typically do....

1. Is this something I could repair myself or am I looking at a complete overhaul?
Pretty likely that you will be able to troubleshoot and repair since you are mechanically inclined - although foreign to the first-timer, trailer brakes are actually pretty basic once you dig into them (I am currently replacing trailer hubs and disc brakes for my first time).

2. Would a leak like this cause the brake to not engage?
Possibly? As part of your troubleshooting, you'd be well served to pull your tires and inspect your calipers, rotors and pads - just to get a sense of their condition. Sounds like your system either isn't holding pressure, or your pads are shot, and since you're dripping brake fluid....

3. What is the cable connected in pic 2 connected to?
Hard to tell in that picture - is it electrical? Can you trace it to your brake lights, etc?

4. What are the lube fittings for in this pic?
Speculation on my part since I dont have that actuator, but I'm thinking that they are to lubricate the slides so that the brakes engage.

Hopefully that is a start until someone else comes along to set me straight!

Erik

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2002 Funship 214
VP 5.7 GX Si
2003 Tahoe

The cable in pic 2 is something the previous owner told me to hook to the hitch some sort of safety but he didn't know exactly what it was. The cable is not electrical.

Perhaps if I lube the actuator maybe the brake will engage, maybe it's stuck who knows I will hit it tomorrow.

Is there a place I can find replacement parts that anyone cares to recommend? The brake parts are tie down engineering. Checking their site in a minute.

Thanks

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2005 Horizon 180 LE

The cable is a safety feature. If the trailer becomes disconnected and this cable is connected to the tow vehicle, the cable engages the trailer brakes by pulling out of the trailer.

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2008 H210
Volvo 5.0 GXi
"Summer Sled"
Indianapolis

I have the same actuator and have had it apart, so maybe I can help. I'm guessing that the top cover on your master cylinder is loose, allowing fluid to leak (the whole top cover, not the big plastic plug). Or, the cover's gasket may be damaged.

I'm sure you already have basic knowledge about how the brakes work, but just in case... The theory behind the system is that when you apply the brakes on the tow vehicle, inertia causes the trailer to continue moving forward at its previous (higher) speed, thus compressing the actuator in the tongue. That compression serves the same purpose as you stepping on the brake pedal in your vehicle; it forces brake fluid out of the master cylinder, through the brake lines, into the calipers, forcing the pistons to press the pads against the rotors. The actuator moves forward and backward in the tongue on a pair of heavy duty rollers, and that's what those grease fittings are for.

Removing this actuator from the tongue is surprisingly easy. You just disconnect the main brake line from the rear of the actuator via an access hole in the bottom of the tongue, then remove those rollers; the right-hand side has retaining clips or Nylock nuts (depending on whether the recall was performed on them) and pull the whole actuator forward and out.

Here are a few pics that might help:

The "safety pin" retainers on my rollers:




The master cylinder portion of the actuator - I had to remove my actuator because the lockout solenoid had failed. Note how close the original solenoid is to the rear of the master cylinder - as part of this project I extended it back a couple of inches to make future replacement easier (I think it had to do with getting the solenoid positioned over that access hole in the tongue). Anyway, this is a good shot of the top cover and gasket on the master cylinder, which I suspect is loose or damaged on yours:






Since I'm posting pics anyway, here's a shot of the new solenoid, extended further back about 2". You can also see that the break-away cable (the one you asked what it attached to) is only attached to the actuator itself and comes out with the actuator; it's hanging down the front of my bench:



Note that this model actuator has a very specific sequence that must be followed in order to prime the shock dampener correctly (only applies if you have to drain the master cylinder). If you don't follow the sequence, it's likely the dampener won't prime and the whole actuator may have to be replaced. And of course almost anything you do to the actuator will necessitate a good brake line bleeding as a last step.

Finally, here's a PDF document for your actuator, I recommend saving it locally or at least bookmarking it.
http://www.tiedown.com/pdf/c462.pdf

EDIT: Rats. After typing all that, I see Jamestown Distributors has produced a great video of the whole process :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qq7uBniFZ6g

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Mike
2005 Four Winns 230/240
VP 5.7GXi/DP
1998 F-150 XLT
Boat Pic

Good job Mike.

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Gordon Arnold
New Hampshire

2003 268 Vista ..................................................................Prior: 97 245 Sundowner

Thanks for the reply I will be attempting the removal this week.

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2005 Horizon 180 LE