I recently installed a trailer brake controller on my highboy and today i tried it out, it doesnt seem to be working. The light with turn on to adjust how much brake it is getting but i cant get the brakes to even lock up on the highest setting. i heard that it had to be hooked to a specific wire on the brake light switch, maybe i hooked it up to the wrong one? Anyone have any ideas? Thanks

 

Did it come with a wiring diagram? I think the blue or orange wire on them is always the elec trailer brakes power wire? Hit up a travel trailer, stock trailer sales place for help.

Even a boat place might have a suggestion. I have trailer wiring diagrams in my shop, so I do not have to remember that stuff.

I always test connect things before I do a final clamp connector install, good luck sorry not so much a answer, but a suggestion at least.

Does your have a sweep switch to manually apply them also? What brand controller also?

 

Yes it has a manual controller as well, its a Curt Manufacturing controller. I have everything hooked up like the diagram but on the brake light switch it doesnt specify witch one to hook to. I read somewhere it had to be hooked to the down hill side (i think is what they called it) so im not sure if it matters or maybe if i have it hooked to the wrong one, regardless thanks for the suggestion.

 

You need the trailer brake wire connected to the wire that sends power to the brake light side of the bulb, other wise you will hot wire it and lock up the brakes.

Reg trailer tail light (running lights) get power from reg truck tail light power wire, it's easier when I am laying under it, sorry.


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If you are getting no brakes, even using the manual override, you do not have power to the controller as the switch overrides the pedal. The wiring to the controller is:

Black is hot off the battery. Make sure the black is hot all the time. It does not switch with the brakes.

Red is off the pedal switch or brake light and goes "hot" only when the brakes are activated. It definitely makes a difference which side of the brake switch you tie too.

White goes to chassis ground

Blue goes to the trailer brakes with connection normally be made at the seven pin receptacle on the rear of your truck.

If you go to "etrailer" online, you will find plenty of wiring diagrams, but it is all generic.

When you use the manual switch, you feed power from the black directly to the blue lead to power the trailer brakes.

If you have it wired correctly, go the seven pin receptacle at the rear of your truck and have someone activate your controller while you check for voltage at the brake pin on the seven pin and ground.

Good luck,

Steve

 

Steve great amount of info and I am saving it to a word doc, FYI he is wiring a old 76 and I imagine does not have a 7 pin plug no where on that truck.

Usually the most you get is a PO hack job installed 4 pin , and at least I guessed/remembered that the blue is trailer brakes pwr.....

Does Walmart?? sell a in line "plug and play" for the brake light plugs for our old rigs??

 

RV Tech - Thanks for the info. I wired in a 7 pin connector the same time as i put the controller in. I will have to check and see which wire i tapped into on the brake light switch. I will also test with a voltmeter to see if i am getting power back at the harness. Thanks for the help

 

77 & 79...no one makes a plug n play for our rigs...I am actually doing my brake box and 7 wire plug today....I have looked at all the auto marts and walmart and even truck specialty shops in the area...no plug in plays..I am removing my 6 round and putting in a 7 blade...dont forget to use an inline braker or fuse on power side..mine calls for 20 amp..

 

Good to know there is not one P&P, and I have a 6 pin (horse/stock trailer) and 7 pin (20 ft car hauler) correctly wired by the PO of the truck. And a Valley brand class 4 receiver, along with a Tekonsha? controller.

 

Thanks for mentioning the fuse. I do this stuff so much I just assume.

Steve

 

Yes i used an inline braker as well. I just need to verify my brake light switch and everything else should be correct.

 

Important to note, and you probably already know this, but if you have a Tekonsha controller such as a Prodigy (and nearly all high-end controlers), you will not feel anything when it is working. It has an accelerometer which matches the trailer brakes to the truck brakes as it slows. There is absolutely no seat-of-the-pants feel. A lot of folks don't realize this and think it is not doing its thing when they are towing.

To test with your meter at the back of the truck, you have to use the manual override. Tekonsha products are very reliable and it rarely the case they cause a problem, so if you do have an issue, it is best to do everything else first.

Just a heads up,

Steve

 

Yes i assumed that i wouldnt feel much but i tried to get the tires to lock up on wet ground to verify that it was working and even when i turned it up i couldnt get it to lock the trailer brakes up even on the very soft ground thats why i assumed they werent working.

 

If the truck isn't stopping, the trailer brakes aren't either.

I have both Ford's Intergrated Brake Controller in my F-150 and a high-end aftermarket Hayes G2 in my F350. They both work great, but no one would ever know they are doing anything. I actually favor the aftermarket controller because it can be set to read amp output to the brakes and you know exactly how much power they are drawing.

As a general rule, however, if a high-end controller is not putting out an error message it is working as it will kick an error message or signal out if it can not find the resistance of the magnets in the trailer brakes. The new controllers are supposed to work seamlessly and darn if they don't!

I carry a fairly expensive tester in my truck and can actually ride down the road with someone and have em hit the brakes and read what their controller is doing, but most folks do not want to spend the money for it.

You can try a couple of things. First, you can go to an empty parking lot with the trailer in tow and try stopping with and without the seven pin cord on the trailer connected to the truck and see if you can feel the difference in stopping distance or difficulty.

You can try dialing the controller output all the way up and if you have a clamp meter that is capable of reading DC amps, with the trailer connected, you can put it around the blue lead feed the brakes and you usually will see a couple of amps, while standing on the brake pedal. You will not see anything unless the controller is set all the way up. This varies by controller.

Or you can take it to someone like me with the test equipment. I am trying to design a make-it-yourself tester the average user can use and will post the design on FTE under the towing section, if I can get it worked out.

Oh yes, I almost forgot. when fusing the power lead to the controller, the manufacturers often recommend the use of an auto-resetting fuse rather than a one time blow. Once in while you might get a wire chafe that isn't constant and if that happens the brakes will come back, when the wire isn't hitting.

Good luck,

Steve

 

Thanks a lot Steve, i also do have an auto-reset , not the one time deal. Is there a certain amount of voltage that you should be able to read at the 7 pin when the brake controller is activated? Or should you just be able to tell that you are getting some volts back there?