DannyGarcon Posted May 28, 2020 Share Posted May 28, 2020 I have this "contraption" in the engine bay of my 1965 Riv 401 and I haven't been able to figure out what it is yet. Can anyone give me their best guess? It appears to be wired up to the positive battery terminal and is also tubed to the brake master cylinder. The lever seems to be connected to an electrical switch inside the device. From what I can tell, it doesn't do anything when I move the lever. I have not pried the contraption open yet. I also have not seen anything like this in any member photo's of their Riv's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KongaMan Posted May 28, 2020 Share Posted May 28, 2020 Looks like it raises and lowers the mower blades. 3 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted May 28, 2020 Share Posted May 28, 2020 A set up for electric trailer brakes? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kdml Posted May 29, 2020 Share Posted May 29, 2020 Search for Vintage Kelsey Hayes Electric Brake Controller Tow Car Kit 56943 on eBay. Looks like what you have 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted May 29, 2020 Share Posted May 29, 2020 When I bought my 63, it had electric trailer brakes, that's why my guess in a previous thread. But the controller in my car, and the ones like it on Ebay, was installed under the dash right under the ignition switch where the driver could move the lever and control the trailer brakes without using the brake pedal. But every time you applied the car's brakes, the lever would move even if no trailer was hooked up. Why this one is under the hood is anybody's guess. Unless it's something other than a trailer brake controller Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivdrivn Posted May 29, 2020 Share Posted May 29, 2020 2 hours ago, RivNut said: A set up for electric trailer brakes? Trailer brakes. That’s the first thing I took out of my ‘71. But I guess a boat tail is good for pulling a boat. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
60FlatTop Posted May 29, 2020 Share Posted May 29, 2020 It looks like a dynamic idle adjust switch. You hitch your trailer to the car and you can adjust the idle in Drive while hold the level to engage the brake. Funny it is on a '65. The Turbo doesn't put the idle down like a Dynaflow. Maybe they carried it over from a previous car. Bernie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JZRIV Posted May 29, 2020 Share Posted May 29, 2020 Normally it should have been mounted under the dash so the lever was accessible to driver. The lever is to manually operate trailer brakes. The installer probably didn't feel like running a line through the firewall. Driver of course would not have had the option to manually activate brakes but that is generally an uncommon need in normal use. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC1968Riviera Posted May 29, 2020 Share Posted May 29, 2020 (edited) Where does the bottom "wire" (?) coming out of the bottom of the box lead off to? I see it's circled upon itself a couple of times before heading towards the engine. Have you traced it down to where it leads? Does your car have or look like it once had a trailer hitch? Edited May 29, 2020 by NC1968Riviera (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted May 29, 2020 Share Posted May 29, 2020 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J3Studio Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 You learn something every day—I've never towed a trailer, so I didn't know such devices existed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KongaMan Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 IMHO, the question is why the controller is plumbed with a brake line rather than having an electrical connection to the brake switch. That implies a graduated application of the trailer brakes; one that's consistent with pedal pressure. A lot of these systems are binary: the brakes are on or off (like your brake lights). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbinator Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 On 5/28/2020 at 9:28 PM, kdml said: Search for Vintage Kelsey Hayes Electric Brake Controller Tow Car Kit 56943 on eBay. Looks like what you have Sir, my vote goes with your observation. thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DannyGarcon Posted May 31, 2020 Author Share Posted May 31, 2020 On 5/28/2020 at 8:28 PM, kdml said: Search for Vintage Kelsey Hayes Electric Brake Controller Tow Car Kit 56943 on eBay. Looks like what you have That's it! Perfect match, even down to the leftover adhesive where the sticker was. So since this is installed in the engine bay and not the cabin, would that mean the trailer brakes would have been synced up with Riv brakes (without manual control)? I have not noticed any other signs of a trailer hitch/ tow package installed. Maybe they were set up differently than the basic U-Haul brackets I'm used to seeing. Here's a picture of the rear with no tow signs ( that I see) of a hitch setup. Also, here is the brake line that comes out of the "contraption" connecting to the master cylinder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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