Trailer emergency brake cable

[zambonidriver]

I think the marina had this hooked up when they moved the boat, left it hooked up to the tow vehicle, and pulled the cable with enough force that it broke the hook off that attaches to the truck. I drove it home from the marina and tried to tell if the brakes were working. They definitely were activated when starting from a stop because I could feel them disengaging, but I didn't stop hard enough to feel them engage.

The cable is toast, and I'm just trying to make sure the brakes are working, which is tough with the boat on.

If the cable was pulled out with that much force, could that affect how they activate? They are clearly engaged when I start from a stop.

I guess I can disconnect the electrical and see if it still backs up but I think these are drum brakes (2012 boatmate) and I don't recall ever having the trailer not go into reverse before.

[zambonidriver]

Edit: These are disc brakes, tandem trailer. Duh.

The reservoir is bone dry, so I'm going to add fluid and bleed the brakes.

[DFTR Josh]

I would say most your problem is from the reservoir and not the cable. Should work opposite and breaks applied full time when the cable is pulled, been through a cable pull problem before, best to replace the entire unit and re bleed the breaks. It's pretty simple to change out with the correct tools.