Burning smell in cabin while towing

[queenOfHerLariat]

Vehicle: 2019 ranger lariat, secondhand, recently purchased, factory tow package.

TBC: Redarc tow pro elite ordered from Redarc, not Ford. installed myself with minimal knowledge. Maybe I spliced the wires poorly? Could this cause this?

I towed something for the first time in my life yesterday. Trailer is at the campground now. It's a 3500lb 21 foot camper. No WDH. Didn't notice any swaying on the highway. No issues with control while operating. I actually got 15mpg while towing if you can believe and this was in the hills of NE Pennsylvania.

What really scared me was I noticed a burning smell in the cabin while towing, particularly when braking while going downhill. I hate to report it smelled like burning clutch. I know what burning clutch because my parents clutch went out while we were going through a holiday lights display (at the very beginning... All four of us had to ride with the tow truck driver through the rest of the lights display for 5 miles on Xmas eve lol...).

Is this normal? I have to drive 100 miles back tomorrow. I checked the wiring under the dash this morning and all is good. No burn marks. Can someone please quell my fears? Maybe towing isn't for me.

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[Grumpaw]

Smell while braking going downhill points me to the brakes on your trailer...thinking the gain is set too high and brakes are grabbing....OR....no brakes on trailer and your Rangers brakes are overheating while slowing both the truck and trailer using the trucks brakes.
Have you tried, on a level area, at around 25 mph, just applying the trailer brakes by themselves ??? They should not "Grab" in a sudden way. but they should slow the entire truck/trailer safely. If they grab and jerk the rig to a stop, the gain is set way too high, and if you hit the brakes going downhill the trailer brakes are engaging way too much and probably overheating.

 

[airline tech]

I am kind of wondering if the Front Brakes were getting hot, the Ranger has a big Air Inlet for the Climate Control. With this happening when braking and downhill the weight of the trailer is overloading the Front Brakes as that is where the weight is shifted.
Now I do not tow but I have a feeling you need to adjust the Trailer Brake Controller to allow it to take some of the braking action.
The man for this is @Grumpaw, he can surely help with that.

 

[seasprite]

What really scared me was I noticed a burning smell in the cabin while towing, particularly when braking while going downhill. I hate to report it smelled like burning clutch. I know what burning clutch because my parents clutch went out while we were going through a holiday lights display (at the very beginning... All four of us had to ride with the tow truck driver through the rest of the lights display for 5 miles on Xmas eve lol...).

How long did you ride the brakes? The clutch burning smell sounds like you over heated the brakes. Look at your rotors and see if they look like they have been overly heated or scorched.

 

[airline tech]

To isolate between the Truck Brakes and the Trailer - Look at your Rotors through the wheels, do they look tarnished and dark colored and have a residue (coating) of brake pad material on them?

 

[Grumpaw]

Let me add....as this is your first time towing.....are you using the tow mode ??? This will aid in slowing going down a grade. Additionally, you can downshift to a lower gear via the + and - buttons on the gear shifter. Dropping to a lower gear will help in slowing.
But, first you must get the braking correct on the trailer to match the input when you hit the truck brakes....this is hard to explain over a web site...it's the kind of thing that requires a "hands on" approach

 

[queenOfHerLariat]

This is the rotor on my front right wheel and back right wheel on my RANGER not trailer. Do these look overheated or scorched? @seasprite

 

[seasprite]

Yeah, those rotors look like they have seen some heat. I would take @Grumpaw's advice and try to let the transmission help with the down hill drive. If your brakes get to hot they won't work as well, known as brake fade.

 

[queenOfHerLariat]

@seasprite thank you for your expertise. What does it mean from here? Do I need new rotors or just to take it easy? God I feel like an idiot. I just bought this truck.

 

[Chris M]

@seasprite thank you for your expertise. What does it mean from here? Do I need new rotors or just to take it easy? God I feel like an idiot. I just bought this truck.

You're not an idiot, as evidenced by your acknowledgement something is amiss. You're just inexperienced, and you've come to the right place to get some very seasoned help. @Grumpaw is a resident expert and I'd definitely heed his advice here.

 

[airline tech]

They don't look bad, but I would take the advice from @Grumpaw and readjust the TBC so they its taking up some of the braking action as well as Tow-Mode will downshift the transmission and also absorb some of the amount of braking required (engine braking)

You want the TBC to give an equal amount of braking to match the truck as it appears the TBC is being under braked, and the truck is doing most of the braking.
Again, I do not tow, but that's my theory of what is happening.

 

[Grumpaw]

Suggest you try the brakes on the Ranger, without towing....just drive it normally, brake normally, and see if it stops the way your used to.
As far as setting up your truck/trailer.....it's not something that is easy to do for a novice. I would suggest trying to find a knowledgeable person, familiar with rv trailers to gain some insight into setting up a rig properly. Much more involved than just hooking up a brake controller and hitching up. Without knowing exactly what equipment you have and how it's set up, its very hard to give advice, some of which may be totally wrong without knowing your rig/equipment.
I urge you to seek out someone in your area who may be able to give you hands on help.

 

[RangerBill]

From the pictures of the rotors, I don't see anything wrong with them. If the brakes did overheat, it may have affected the pads.

 

[queenOfHerLariat]

Thanks everyone for the quick replies, I don't mean to ignore anyone. I'm out right now and want to give a proper reply when I get back to my computer. Ill do so soon when I'm back at the campsite.

 

[seasprite]

Like @Grumpaw said drive the truck without the trailer and see if your getting a pulsation through the brake peddle when you come to a stop which could indicate a warped rotor. If you did over heat them you'll probably just have to replace your pads and rotors sooner than normal.

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