help me get my ducks in a row before going to the dealer

[DZink24]

several months ago, i was in a thread about the 3rd gen electrical issues, trailer wiring and the TIPM. i need to get this issue adressed (i have lights on some trailers, and none on others) i am out of extended warranty, and i am afraid that they will give me some excuse as to why the TIPM can't be "reflashed". i have had the plug checked by a former Dodge mechanic who now runs a trailer sales business, and everything is a-ok from the plug back, stopping at the computer. has anyone had this issue and had it "reflashed"? i don't want them telling me i need a new TIPM when all they need to do is spend 20 minutes with the truck hooked up to their diagnostic module.

 

[Simplysmn]

From what I was told 2 week;s ago they don;t reflash them they just replace them my cost was 485. 00

 

[DZink24]

thats what i was afraid of...

 

[Simplysmn]

plus they have to program it with your vin info

 

[MTaishoff]

Think on the 3 Gen, 2005 and older all trailer circuits were fused; 2006 and newer had TIPM CB for the turn signals only.



When I looked into it; the TIPM reflash from 15 to 20 AMPs on the Turn Signal CB only applied to the 2006 year. I think my 2007 came with the CB set to 20 AMPS.



I copied what others have done here to protect my TIPM. I removed the Trailer Hitch plug at the Bumper and soldered in an in-line weather proof fuse holder in each of the turn signal wires and put 10 amp ATC mini fuses in them.

 

[sag2]

You can't reflash the TIPM because your truck does not have one. Instead it has a PDC with a Front Control Module attached to the front of it that does all the "controlling". The FCM can be reflashed.

 

[DZink24]

You can't reflash the TIPM because your truck does not have one. Instead it has a PDC with a Front Control Module attached to the front of it that does all the "controlling". The FCM can be reflashed.

hmm. thanks for the info. i'll keep that in mind if they tell me i don't have a FCM. this is why i am a TDR member

 

[jelag]

We tow several trailers... . we've taken a different approach... . we've ran a new set of wires... . a heavy 8 gauge wire from the batteries to faster charge the batteries on the trailers... we've picked up almost 1 volt with a volt meter at the trailer batteries..... the trailers and ground circuits reflect this heavier wire... . 50 amp fuse... .

One of the trailers has a power dump bed and a huge battery to power that pump so the higher voltage means better performance..... my 5er has 3 batteries and we run a large inverter to power stuff in the trailer when we dry camp this means that we always get a full charge during the day... even with the low voltage supplied by the computer controlled alternator...

All the rest of the wiring is now run off the circuit(light) off the back of the truck... and it only triggers a set of relays on each trailer... . the relays, one for each circuit use as a supply the 50 amp circuit and supply power to the lights... the load on the truck factory wiring harness is less than 1 amp per relay, and the lights are brighter on the trailers. Higher voltage I'm sure... in a couple of cases almost 2 volts more. .

Because of the bad winters and snow, we don't run LED lights... the winter snow won't stay melted off the LED lights when its really cold and blowing... . so we run the sealed plastic unit and replace them as they burn out... . but at least at 15* and blowing snow you can see the back of the trucks...

All the connections are non-insulated butt connectors including the wiring on the brakes, we than use a clear shrink tube with adhesive in the tubing, so when it's heated to shrink the tube, the adhesive melts and seals the connection water tight... because the connection is clear... . we can later see any kind of contamination in the connection... . every time I would work on the 5er and see a 3-M snap connector I'd change it out... I'm guessing I've removed 30 or so of these... . to improve all the connections...

This whole thing was costly when we started... . 3 trucks, 4 different trailers so we used delcity.net for relays, connectors, shrink tube... etc... but after the change over we found far fewer problems as the time has gone by...