2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission Trailer Brake Wiring Problem

[RHerrick]

I am trying to trouble shoot the lack of trailer brakes (on a 5th wheel trailer).



I have a Tekonsha controller (installed by the dealer in 2001), and two 7-wire sockets, one in the bed and one under the bumper at the hitch.



With the trailer plugged in, the controller shows a green pilot with no brake peddle pressure which changes to red when pedal pressure is applied. But there is no voltage between the pins for the brake and the ground at either of the sockets.



If the trailer is not plugged in, the light on the controller is dark.



Is there a fuse that I am missing? I recently drove. with the trailer, through a very heavy rain. If water got into the wrong place, can it short out a Tekonsha controller?



The rest of the lights on the trailer work normally.



Any suggestions?

 

[B.G. Smith]

In the PDC there is a fuse, #8 and a relay, the one in lower right hand corner that pertains to the trailer electric supply. Don't know if they cover the brakes, that should be an auto resetting breaker I would think. bg

 

[GAmes]

Do you normally get voltage to the pin by just applying the brakes? Do you get voltage with the manual lever? On mine there there are two wire bundle connectors behind the left front tire that you can only get to from underneath. One of them has the wire to the trailer brakes and a ground, among others. Every now and then after driving through the rain I will get a brake/abs light, but only if my controller is installed. Water gets in there and causes just enough of a short to light up the abs computer. Easy to pull, clean and dry out, but not easy to seal. I've tried a bunch of things over the years with no luck.

 

[jelag]

Test the fuse first...

If you have a good test light... . and put it on a good ground... I usually check the light with the 12V lead that is hot all the time... than I move it to the trailer pin... .

When the brake pedal is pressed the test light will glow and get brighter as the pedal is pressed harder... . or you can do the same by using the override button on your controller... light touch of the button will let the test light glow, and the more you press the button the brighter it will get... .

I've never had a truck with a bad wiring harness... have seen a lot of trailer plugs with corrosion inside the connector on the truck... we clean those and apply dielectric grease to the connections as we reconnect them... .

 

[SSolderitch]

what he said.



You could use a spare brake light bulb & socket and even wire it to another 7 pin plug. then you can test both sockets.

you can also unplug the unit and make a tester from another Tekonsha wire that supplies 12v, ground etc. and add the bulb on the blue wire...



If the breakaway switch is ever activated and the 7 pin connector still connected then the controller will be damaged! Breakaway wire needs to be longer than the 7 pin wire. Did you have you trailer inspected... and they left it pluged in when testing the breakaway switch, burning up your unit?