Side by Side Comparison of: Reese Towpower vs Hopkins Towing Solutions

I have used this controller for many years on many vehicles, and never had a bit of problem out of them. Currently I have them installed in (3) vehicles: A Chevy conversion van, Chevy 1500 pickup, and a Chevy 4-door 1-ton dually. I tow all sorts of trailers, and have never had a problem using these controllers. They're not fancy, but they work and are very reliable. I have pulled trailers loaded down so heavy that my dually (with a 454 in it) struggled to pull because they were loaded down so heavy, but I had no problems stopping using this brake controller despite the weight of the load.

There's a reason that this controller has been around SO many years. If it was junk it wouldn't still be on the market. As with anything, you can get a bad one, and I'm sure it happens. But I have never had any problems with any of the ones I have owned. As long as you wire them right and set both dials properly, you shouldn't have any problems. I highly recommend this controller.

Oh, and also, from what I have seen, you simply can't beat the price!

For years our shop had exclusively stocked the Draw-Tite Activator® II. It is literally the most solid reliable brake controllers we had run into. And in the past 15 years of installing them, we have never had one come back on warranty. Because of our increased cost on the Draw-Tite units, I decided to look around for a more cost effective unit of similar quality. I stumbled across this while looking at different controllers and noticed it looked very similar to 5500. Because the price point was about $20 less than the Draw-Tite, I decided to order it and give it a shot. When it arrived, I opened it side by side next to the 5500. The packing, along with all the warnings and instructional materials, were literally identical. The controllers themselves are identical, aside from the sticker with the company's respective names. The only functionality difference between the two is that this controller has wires coming out of the controller, whereas the draw-tite is 'plug and play', giving you the common factory connector already attached to the harness on the controller. If you are not electrically inclined and your vehicle has this connector already, then you may be better off spending the 20 extra bucks and saving some time with the draw-tite. However, if you have an older vehicle or one with no trailer brake plug, or you just want to save 20 bucks, go with this controller. All the internals are the same, and will function identically when installed.
One suggestion I have for installing this controller; avoid the blue scotchlock connectors provided in this kit if at all possible. Go get some good nylon butt connectors, or ideally, uninsulated seamless butt connectors with double walled HD heat shrink. Get either channellock 909 or Irwin 2078310 crimpers. These blue scotchlock connectors are incredible unreliable and are extremely susceptible to corrosion and moisture. Because they make such a small contact point on the wires, even a small amount of corrosion can cause strange intermittent failures. As a related tip, if you are having problems with your trailer lighting, inspect your wiring and remove all scotchlock connectors and replace them with heat-shrinked butt connectors. These are the number one cause of issues on trailers we work on at my shop.

Excellent for the money...great value. Does what it's suppose to do...brake the trailer when I brake my truck. Fully adjustable both in term of aggressiveness of braking and synchronizing with the truck braking. Don't pay attention to the compatibility guide on amazon website. I talked to Reese Customer Rep and this controller is universal as long as you know the wiring configuration for your vehicle. The website said it wasn't compatible with my 2011 Silverado...IT IS!!!!

Blunt pig tails are under dash right above brake pedal for my 2011 Silverado. Truck red wire (12VDC) to controller black wire. Truck blue wire (trailer brakes) to controller blue wire. Light blue wire w/white stripe (brake pedal to activate controller) to controller red wire. And finally truck white wire (ground) to controller white wire. Truck orange wire not used.

Find red wire under hood tucked between fuse box and inside driver side fender panel to lug in front of fuse box with 8mmx1.25 nut. Follow controller's included setup instruction. DONE!

Cost me one fifth to install myself verses having it installed for me!!! Well worth the 30 minutes it took me to install.

Easy to install (assuming you have a good pair of cutters and crimpers! the product page said it would not fit my truck, but I installed it just fine.)
Easy to dial in, had my brakes on the trailer working in about ten minutes. Love the read out along with the error codes, really helped get the whole system up and running faster. Highly recommended!!

The Reese Towpower is a very good brake contoller. Don't be chased off by the vehicle application chart. This controller will fit any vehicle, any year etc. I have a 1977 Ford F150 and it was simple to wire into my existing wiring. The directions were easy to follow and, along with your wiring harnes plug at your hitch, a novice should be confident enough to install this in under an hour. I like that the Reese Towpower can be installed in any position under the dash...it doesn't have to be installed on a level plane, and the brake proportion adjustments are an easy dial with your thumb. When I first saw the price I thought this must be a mis-print or a used unit. It isn't... it is brand new just like from a bricks and mortar store. I had shopped around and was prepared to pay in the $90-$100 range at the local national retailers. Boy was I fortunate to search on Amazon...I saved a lot of money! Don't hesitate to buy this Reese Towpower if you are looking for a controller for your trailer brakes.

Used for a couple years until I sold my truck. This works just as good as the ones built in to newer trucks. A little bulky, not easy to install but it is easy to mount inside the cab, instructions are good enough.

You will need to run wires, and more than likely through the firewall of your vehicle! You need to know what you are doing or this is not for you!

The car trailer I have access to had a wiring issue which blew the tail light fuse in the owners truck. I also towed the trailer while the short was present(unknown at the time) and it never blew my fuse. Not sure if it was dumb luck or the difference in controllers. Either way it does what I wanted it for so I'm happy with it. Had no trouble installing with supplied directions.

Works well to stop our travel trailer, but it feels like it is either on or off. The trailer we are towing weighs approximately 5500 lbs. to stop smoothly we have it set at 4 to 4.5. Anything less than that and the trailer tends to push our tow vehicle. Also, once you let off the pedal and gently roll forward, the trailer brakes completely lock up and th trailer drags tires. I think a progressive braking would be a huge upgrade if you are on the fence. Looks like I may be switching to something that stops more smoothly.

Amazon says it won't work on my 1990 Chevy C1500 1/2 ton 2WD. Hooks up like any other brake control. Is adjustable as far as as mounting at an angle. And brake pressure and quickness of brake application. The only thing that stumped me was I didn't adjust the unit before trying the brakes. After reading and following the directions, it works as fine as the $120 controllers.

My 2002 Suburban had the receptacle already wired to the back bumper. Installation was fairly simple, just had to solder the plug's pigtail to the controller, a video can be found on U-Toob. I suggest soldering over twisting or "butt" splicing, you don't want this to fail at the wrong moment. My trailer has a battery that requires charging en route and, again the wiring is already there. My truck required a large fuse (30 amp) to be installed in the main fuse box under the hood (upper right had corner). The controller connector socket is under a cover to the left of the steering column, under the dash. The controller makes pulling my 22' RV safer and simpler and is quite adequate. I haven't used one of the more expensive ones so I can't compare the performance between the two. If your vehicle is already wired with a 'towing package', go this route and save some $!

good

If you have to save the $50 bucks this unit works but grabs hard and is not nearly as progressive / adjustable as the more expensive proportional type controllers. I pull horses and it was unacceptably rough braking. I do get it that in some cases budget is king.

Works well, just can't read the gain in brake power, the window is very cloudy/ blurry

fit my 1996 F350 dually 4x4 , does not give digital read out until you are pressing the brakes so while driving you have zero indication where it's set at

Hi everyone.
This unit is not a plug and play. Only has 4 bolts one bracket and the unit. Will have to cut and butt or solider. Your choice. I had to buy and cut up a 3015-P harness to install 2004 Chevy suburban.

Quit working after 4 pulls with a motorcycle trailer. I realize it isn't super expensive but when I called tech support, they said it was either my truck or my trailer. My truck is a 2015 Silverado and trailer is a 2014 United but they are confident their $40 controller is totally fine. So much for lifetime warranty.

Does the job at a great price but not nearly as smooth as some of the other brands at a higher cost.

i'm sure that there maybe some of you out there that had decent success with this particular unit. Installed this in a 2000 3Z 71 4 x 4 suburban. Unfortunately the unit never performed properly which caused my brakes to stutter trying many different settings and even consulting a professional place. As I see it there are many other units out there that have excellent reviews that are far higher than this one. In my opinion don't roll the dice, and just take the money you would spend on this and put it towards something really nice especially when you're pulling a trailer behind you.

I ordered this in accordance with my make and model truck (2001 Silverado Z71) but the wiring harness it came with wasn't even close to correct. After getting frustrated tying to get it to work I gave up and picked one up from the auto part store. The harness that the auto part store controller came with was wired much differently and wouldn't ya know it, it worked like a charm. buyer beware.

It randomly broke within a month while I was hauling two horses and a 4500 lb trailer. Almost killed me and the horses.

Have not hooked it up yet but should be just fine, Not fine it doesn't work the mechanic worked over a week and come to the conclusion that it was a faulty unit. Unfortunate for me it was over a month old so they say i have to eat it. Would be willing to get a credit but was not offered that.
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I ordered this brake controller during the winter for a trailer that I was reconditioning for a trip I have planned in Aug. When I got the controller I didn't install it right away because I was still working on the trailer (new deck, wiring, painting etc...). as with all my projects I preordered everything before hand. I installed the controller the first week in Jun and when I activated the controllers manual override switch it showed a ER message. After spending a day checking every wire and connection just to make sure that it was not the wiring or the connections I decided to believe the trouble shooting guide that came with the controller. The guide states that a ER display is a "Internal Brake Control Problem" and identified the solution as "Return the unit to dealer for evaluation". When I went back to Amazon to return the controller I found out that the window of time that I had to return this item had expired. Being that I have never had to return a item in the past I was not aware that there is a time limit on when you can return a item. Even though I have not had any issue with other items I have purchased through Amazon. I now know that when I have a need to prepurchase items for future projects I will buy local from now on. As for this controller it will be going into the trash and I will just count this a expensive lesson.

could not get to work even after I went to a dealership who sent me to an aftermarket truck accessory shop, they couldn't get it to work either, had to send it back.