Scooter, You should not have the caravan brakes pulling the car to knack is to have them so they compliment your tug's brakes not override them.
You don't give any information on Tug or type of Brake controller, the van's weight, etc.
It is usual to set up your brakes in a large area like a empty carpark so you can test the settings and get it right before travelling - I like to set mine on a gravel road it is best to set the brakes using hand control and letting the brakes lock on gravel then back it off a bit.
Speak to a couple of Nomads in a caravan parking area - just lift your bonnet and look in - half a dozen experts will come out of the woodwork.

I note that you noticed the problem 'after coming over the range'.

I always get into the transports lane & come down very slowly using the gears.  As a general guide, I use the same gear going down that I would need to go up.  Easy in a manual.

This way I rarely use the breaks coming down any range except for occasional small 'stabs' to reduce the engine revs to the normal 2200 or thereabouts. Never a smell or fade.

I do this in a 2.8T GQ Patrol with a 2.4T Jayco Westport following.  Mind you, the 4.2EFI GQ has particularly good, beefed up, brakes as standard.

 

I have my brake controller adjusted so the trailer wheels don't lock up (just) and the boost is then set at 3 when on the highway.  I drop it to 1 or 2 when in town.   I like to 'just' feel the trailer brakes as I come to a halt.  Perhaps a bit aggressive for some.   

My trailer brake shoes lasted for >200,000km including over most ranges in AU & then they had almost 50% material left when I replaced them.  The Patrol went through 2 sets in 270,000km.  Replaced both times with lots of meat left.

-- Edited by Cupie on Tuesday 27th of November 2018 08:41:33 PM

I constantly adjust the brake bias between tug and van depending on conditions. Travelling slowly in traffic I have it wound off so the van is only braking lightly. At speed on the highway I have it up a bit more to give better braking. In hill country I use the gears but am adjusting bias as needed.

Hi all.. I have A red arc pro installed and a new Dmax dual cab auto, caravan is 2.9 ton loaded . thanks for the suggestions,to be honest I just left it in auto going up and down the range and it did not appear to struggle other than like I said the smoke from the brakes. I have checked the brakes on car and van and all working so I guess I need to put it into a lower gear going down hills to overcome the over heating. Cheers scoota

Hi scoota, we have the "Tow Pro", and I found the dial numbers a bit hard to see when you are driving, I made up a "Cheat sheet" that I stuck on the sun visor that in big writing show which way to turn the knob, and any other info O may want to know. Basicly the same info that's in the instruction booklet.

There are two types of Tow-Pro controllers available. See Tow-Pro Range. The Tow-Pro Classic is the older synchroniser style of controller that the major manufacturers of brake controllers either no longer supply or do not heavily promote them. They are the ones that require resetting for different conditions. When you apply the brakes they quickly ramp up the braking power to the maximum you have set. It does not matter how heavily or how long you have been braking the braking effort from the van will be the same.

The Tow-Pro Elite has two operations modes, proportional and synchroniser (or user-controlled mode as Redarc call it.) Proportional controllers have a sensor in them that senses how heavily you are braking. The controller will thus apply the brakes of the van to match the tugs braking effort (when you have set the controller up properly.) I would strongly urge those with a Tow-Pro Classic controller (or any other synchroniser style controller) to replace it with a proportional controller pronto before they get into strife fiddling with the controller on the move.

The following is a graphical representation of how the two types of controller work.