question about TSB 08-021-06

[TGriffith]

This is the TSB and the reflashing of the trailer light "fuses" from 15 amp 20 amp.

I took my truck in and asked them to do this (I have a 32 car trailer with a ton of lights on it) and I'm getting reading to use it for the first time with this truck. I wanted to be proactive and NOT get stuck without trailer lights on my trip, anyway they reluctantly agreed to do it and the receipt mentioned a reflash of the ECM (has this number by it 18190424) but is there any way for me to know forsure that they changed the amp rating?



thanks, Terry

 

[Bob4x4]

The flash you were looking for is done to the tipm not the ecm. Flashing the ecm has nothing to do with the tipm.



Bob

 

[TGriffith]

The flash you were looking for is done to the tipm not the ecm. Flashing the ecm has nothing to do with the tipm.



Bob

Yup, I knew that. I'm wondering if they listed it that way so that they could charge Chrysler back for the service (the listed the ecm flash as check engine light being on which it wasn't) that's why I wanted to verify the TIPM reflash.



thanks

 

[TowPro]

I have a 32 car trailer with a ton of lights on it)

thanks, Terry

That's one heck of a trailer, even train cars don't hold 32 cars!

 

[CDonaldson]

I was in to my dealership requesting the 15 to 20 amp change also, they listed the TSB # on my invoice, not that number you have.



32 ft trailer, eh? So do you haul 2 cars on it? My 32' GN has a ton of lights, I changed ALL the bulbs to LED, also LED's on my headache rack, and in the tail lamps, front turn signal lamps of the truck.



I am suprised I didn't have some kind of problem with a low voltage sensing, that will be the next problem with this stupid computer controlled lighting system we have.



CD

 

[TGriffith]

That's one heck of a trailer, even train cars don't hold 32 cars!

Oops :-laf I meant that the trailer is 32 feet long



LOL

 

[TGriffith]

I was in to my dealership requesting the 15 to 20 amp change also, they listed the TSB # on my invoice, not that number you have.



32 ft trailer, eh? So do you haul 2 cars on it? My 32' GN has a ton of lights, I changed ALL the bulbs to LED, also LED's on my headache rack, and in the tail lamps, front turn signal lamps of the truck.



CD

Did you have trouble with the TIPM or did you just take it in and ask that it be done? They were fussing because I hadn't actually had an issue YET...



I haul two Jeeps, we're a big Jeeping family and go to an number of events every year. Heading to AK soon to wheel at Superlifts off road park.



I've thought about switching to LED's but hadn't gotten to it (or really wanted to spend the money)



Thanks

 

[CDonaldson]

I did not have TPIM issues, I did it to hopefully avoid them. My dealership was fussing too, their stance was "afterall WHY do something BEFORE it causes a problem, maybe could never be a problem". My answer was "Dodge had it's head firmly up it's rectum with this stupid system, not for trucks that actually WORK, DO TRUCK STUFF like towing and highly illuminated trailers".



Dodge failed to do their homework on this one, or even think it out, it's a very expensive proposition to those of us who tow. Think of it in this manner - you're out in the middle of no-man's-land, 3am, HOT as hades and YES maybe you DO have some sort of electrical problem that causes you to loose your lighting. In the olden days usually that meant finding the FAULT disconnecting whatever, popping in a new fuse and going down the road. NOT ANY MORE, now you have the 3-strikes law in your TPIM and it just ran out of time, you are now DEAD on the road with what may be a tailer load of animals just waiting for someone to assist you or the sun to come up and get hotter!!!



I would have preferred fuses, a relay system, anything BUT what we have AND if I would have known about this system I would have NOT bought the truck. This to me is a GROSS error on Dodges part and has cost quite a few denaro to hopefully bypass the real issue - a really stupid design. The led bulbs ended up being close to the cost of a TPIM replaement unit. So I looked at it like an insurance policy and changed my bulbs out. I also added a fuse box to every one of my trailers so the TPIM would not start recording events and shut me down. Every circuit is now fused, then a relay in line to control the voltages to the light circuits so they NEVER draw more than what the computer thinks they should. PITA.



CD

 

[TowPro]

A quick fix, several of us have done. Buy the Reese "tap" that is used to install an additional 7 pin in the bed. This "tap" T's into the factory wire harness, it adds around 1' of wire between the factory connectors. I cut into this 1' harness and added 2 inline fuses to protect the PCM from dodge's stupid design.

These fuses not only protect the 7 pin connector in the bed, it protects the factory 7 pin connector. The factory 4 pin connector is spliced in before this "T" so it is not protected. I just don't use the factory 4 pin, I have several 7 to 4 pin adaptors left over from other dodges I have owned so I just use them.