A trailer manufactured after June 30, 1988, is required to have brakes on all the wheels in the state of Minnesota. This is applicable to a trailer with a gross weight of 3,000 pounds or more, or a trailer with a gross weight exceeding the weight of the towing vehicle. Trailers with three or more axles manufactured before the date are not required to have brakes on the front axle, as long as the brakes on the rest of the wheels meet the required standards. Unless a trailer is equipped with brakes that are sufficient to control the movement of and stop the trailer, it cannot be drawn on the highway in Minnesota.
A trailer of more than 6,000 pounds can only be drawn on the highway in Minnesota if it has adequate brakes to stop if detached from the towing vehicle. Such a vehicle must have a breakaway brake device which will apply and hold automatically if the trailer is accidentally detached from the towing vehicle. And trailer being towed by a vehicles with an anti-lock brake system must be equipped with electric brakes. The towing vehicle must have have an electric controller.
In Minnesota, a vehicle towing a trailer with a gross weight exceeding 30,000 pounds cannot be towed at a speed exceeding 45 miles an hour, regardless of whether both units are equipped with brakes that meet state standards.
