Alright guys. I have tried to work with my local dealer on this issue and I want to take their expert opinion to the bank on this, but I am not so sure they are correct on this issue.

The first time I noticed the problem was back in the fall after getting out of the truck at the ramp to take the straps off the boat. There was a strong smell of burning brakes and a lot of heat coming from the wheels on the trailer. When I returned to the house the smell was there again and I noticed the wheels on the trailer had a lot of brake dust on them. I took the boat to the dealer for them to look at the trailer and repair anything that needed attention. About a month later I had to call to see if they had finished with my boat. They told me everything was fine and I was good to go. I took the boat back to storage and there it sat until January.

The first outing with the boat this year I noticed the same smell again. Remembering that they told me everything was fine, I went with it and used the boat a few times. My partner seemed very concerned with the amount of heat, smell, and brake dust on the wheels. He recommended me taking it back to the dealer. I took the boat fishing once more before I took it back with the intentions of having my facts straight. I bought a IR heat gun and wanted to see exactly how hot the brakes were getting.....



376! This was under normal driving conditions. No heavy braking, no traffic, pretty flat roads. My question is.... is this normal?

I have had several trailers in the past and never had this issue before. Yet, the dealer tells me again that this is perfectly normal and the brake pads look fine. I find that hard to believe as I have to spray the wheels down after every trip because they are black with dust. I have tried 3 different vehicles at different hitch angles.... same result. The problem now is, I am suspect to believing that there has been some premature wear if not damage done to the brakes, rotors, and possibly the wheels and tires. Being that the trailer is under warranty, I surely hope that I am overthinking this issue and nothing is wrong, but I have reason to believe that the brakes are dragging.

Any ideas?

Sounds like they are rubbing, 376 degrees seems awful hot, somethings going on.
Take it to a different dealership?

Brake actuator in the the tongue of the trailer. Start there. Check that you have electric surge brakes.

I would jack one side of it up and make sure the brakes are releasing properly.

I had that Happen to me and unhook the quick disconect on the brake line @ the trailer removel tounge and reconnected. this let the presser on brake release

I can drive 200+ miles, and immediately put the back of my hand directly on the rim (do this on EVERY long trip, every time I stop). It's warm, but not hot to the touch. That sound WAY too hot to me. I'm a non-confrontational person by nature...but, I would do what I had to at the dealership to make them realize that they needed to figure that out, and fix it. I would have concerns that the tires on that axle will be trouble down the road too....JMHO

Take it to a trailer place. They will know what they are doing.

If I were to put my hand on that it would burn the skin of them, lol. I do have concerns with the tires on that axle as well as all the other parts that have premature wear on them now. I just bought the boat last April. I am non-confrontational person as well, but I have my limits too.

I would love to just take it to a trailer place, but this is a warranty issue and I would really like for the dealer to repair the trailer and replace the worn parts under warranty. Money is not the issue, it's the principal of the deal.

If you find the answer to this problem, please post it here. I have had the same issue with mine and have found that the only way to completely get rid of the problem is to crack and re-tighten the bleeder valve on one of the cylinders, effectively disabling the braking system. I recently re-primed my brakes and had them work fine on one trip and not so well on the next trip. I have also replaced everything on mine except the brake lines but the problem still persists

Take it back to the dealer. Take your heat reading gun with you. Call them right before you get there. Have them meet you as soon as you pull in. Take a reading and go from there.

+1 Sounds like your brakes are engaged. A few months ago my safety cable came loose, caught on something, engaging the brakes, and they dragged all the way home, heating up. Check your actuator to make sure, yours could be too. (I have a UFP actuator.) I ended up replacing the pads and bearings because of the heat

I'm willing to bet you paid good hard earned money for that boat and it wasn't cheap, there is nothing that should be confrontational at all if your dealer stands behind their products! If you cant stop and touch your wheel wothout burning your hand ten that temp is not right and it is obvious you have something wrong. If the dealer will not help you (that's a whole other can of worms) then contact the trailer manufacturer and then tell the dealer your going to post about your experiences on the world wide web. LOL

I'm sorry but I just can't understand why some people are hesitant to hold a dealership to the fire when something is obviously not right. These people probably promised you the world when you bought that boat.

Sorry but that's just my opinion and I would consider myself a "nonconfrontaional" person as well, but this should not hve to be a bad situation if the dealer is worth their salt.

Should not be doing that, you're gonna cook bearings-blowout tires or heat and ruin those seals. There is several things that could be causing it. Bad Actuator- lines need to be blead or your calipers are bad. When the brakes are released the wheel should spin freely, if not there is a problem. You should be able to touch your wheels when you get to the ramp and not burn ya. Have somebody else that deals with trailers look @ it, they can do warranty work as well.

The only problem with that is dealing with the issue of having any other problems down the road. They are the only Skeeter dealer anywhere close to me and the last thing I want to do is piss them off so that I will have to wait even longer to get my boat back.... it took them 2 weeks to tell me that there was nothing wrong with the trailer the last time!

I'll look into another EZ loader dealer. I just hate dragging it everywhere knowing that I am doing more damage to it. I am sure that there is already wear and tear done.

Trailer hubs should be no hotter than warm to the touch after a trip. You probably already cooked the grease in the bearings and burned up the seals. I would take their arse to task if it is under warranty.

Myself, I would never give these guys my business again. Two weeks to tell you nothing is wrong?? Wow! I hope you find some better customer service on your trailer.

I needed the boat to be ready to go to Falcon, and it wasnt. So needless to say, I didnt go when I was supposed to.

What dealer are you using? If you thought making them fix a possible warranty issue would lead to them holding a grudge then why did you ever buy from them in the first place? That's like having insurance and being scared to file a claim because you don't want to hurt your brokers feelings

What are you taking a reading of? If you're taking a reading of the brake disk I could maybe see that temperature especially after just stopping. It looks like you are taking a reading from there.
Most people feel their wheels or hubs and if those temps are too hot to touch you have a problem but most people have no idea what the temps they have on their disks.

If you want to check and see if the brakes are releasing properly jack a tire off the ground and see if the wheel turns freely or if its dragging on the brake pad. You should be able to tell easily enough.
I am guessing that if your brakes are dragging and are excessively hot your disks would show signs of heat.

Why don't you call EZ Loader in the morning. They are very helpful and since it's under warranty ask who is authorized close to you to get you back in the game soon. It's the actuator that is bad. But has caused other parts to be suspect. You need to take OT somewhere else anyways. If its who I think it is anyways.

On the other hand of your able to tow it with out noticing resistance you Have a hoss of a truck. You said previously that it smells like Burnt brakes that's a reckognizable smell that's not normal, period. If the fuse is blown on the truck to the trailer back up lights then it wont release the actuator so that it does not engage. But even then it would be very noticeable with the resistance.

http://www.ezloader.com/

I would tell the dealer to fix the problem. If they don't I would call Skeeter and tell them the problem with the dealer ship and who they could refer you to take the trailer to and if they don't have anyone close I would take it to whomever you choose and send the bill to the dealership. Oh and I would charge them mileage past the distance it would take you to drive to the dealer ship.

Yep .... When your warranty is out.... believe me... they won't hesitate to tell you are out of luck. I would take it back and inform them unless they want to deal with my lawyer they better get it fixed. Call Skeeter as well.

It's an EZ Loader issue not a Skeeter issue. It's like if you have engine trouble on your Yamaha you going to call Skeeter? They can help a little but the warranty lies with EZ Loader the trailer manufacturer.

Oh that trailer probably has Vault Hubs you may not have much damage to bearings but have them replaced anyways.

I'm not thinking they'll hold a grudge over a warranty issue. I do however think they might have some negative feelings towards me talking about their poor customer service.

They are a Skeeter dealer. I bought a Skeeter boat regardless what trailer it came on. Looked like from the pic's the wheels and trailer have Skeeter plastered all over it. If I buy a new rig from a dealer I would expect them to stand behind it and make the calls to EZ Loader for me if needed.

under the coupler is a latch that needs to be released every time you hook up your trailer. i have disc breaks with a a60 coupler. sqaure one. just looks like a latch hanging down. pm me if you can,t find it .
ski

I am calling BS on that one, he didnt piece out that boat when he bought it. He bought a Skeeter boat and trailer therefore it's a Skeeter issue. They will fix it but you might have to call the factory to get some action on this issue.

How many titles do you get on a paid off boat? 3 last time I checked. Yes I agree Skeeter dealer should take care of it since its what the boat rides on and what they SOLD. But again my point is just that Skeeter should help with the process if the dealer won't help. But EZ Loader is the manufacturer and where the issue is. Nothing to do with boat. Those wheels are made from some body other than skeeter and installed on the trailer. Skeeter is not in the wheel business. But can help you get a new one if needed. Chances are that wheel will be sent from EZ Loader when Skeeter customer service calls them.

When you buy a new boat and the tire blows out you gonna call Skeeter and say the dealer won't give me a new tire? I would deal with straight with Goodyear. That's just my opinion but I see things different.

I had a Mercury issue under warranty on a blown power head. I called Legend to let them know. They do all they can to help you but in the end it had nothing to do with Legend it had everything to do with the service sales dealership and Mercury. Not the boat manufacture. Take it with a grain of salt if you do not agree.

I'm going back to the dealership tommorow to try and work with the sales manager. I'm hoping he can resolve this issue before I end up destroying something.

The latch is always down, even though it says to be pressed up, it will not stay in the up position. The service manager told me that this is also normal. I am just going off what they have told me at this point. In my opinion this boat is under warranty, I am not going to start making modifications or adjustments to the platform while under this coverage.

good for you! Don't let anyone make you think twice about holding the dealership/skeeter/ezloader etc to the fire. You agave them money for that boat so follow the money trail until you get an answer Hopefully its a very simple fix and you can be back on the water enjoying your rig!

The trailers that are under skeeters are JUNK! EZ loader trailer is nothing but a piece of [censored]. Mine the fenders were welded on too close and gave minimal clearance on the boat. 1/2 inch on both sides. Called EZ loader their fix was to send me double bunks to raise the boat on the trailer. Classic Arkansas engineering. Then one of the bolts backed out of the brake caliper and it fell onto the inside of my wheels causing it to crack and break. New brake lines, caliper, brake shoes, wheel and tire. EZ Loader says " that is normal ".

I agree with you that you have a problem with your brakes dragging. But you are going to have a bigger problem getting EZ Loader to fix it.

Like they told me drive to Arkansas and leave it with us and we will take a look at it.

The number for the Skeeter warranty is 903-398-0541 the person has always been helpful. The people at EZ load also have been helpful in the past. Your rotor should never be more than 150. Do you have manual release or electrical.

I have had extremely good Luck with EZ loader customer Service.

The Problem with expecting Dealerships to fix trailer issues is you have MARINE mechanics working on Trailers, which is not their specialty.

Did you just try and bleed the brake system, sounds like you have air in it!