I've searched here and other sites, not a lot of info except it seems that some people will use twist ties, Velcro strips and/or small bungee cords to hold the trailer plug in the receptacle on the truck.
I NEVER had an issue with my 2011 SD, even at -20 when the wiring was stiff as a ..... well, you know. Now I've traded for a 2012 SD, and the plug just drops out whenever it feels like it. Definitely turning puts stress on it, but it just never seems to seat properly, just barely touches the contacts when the lip on the lid is positioned correctly.
So what do you guys do? Was I just lucky with the 2011? I bought a new socket from the dealer, and it is the same. Sloppy fit. So am I now bungee cord boy to keep the plug in? I'm off to the trailer shop tomorrow to see if there's something on their shelves that fits better.

Any ideas? I'm not thrilled with the thought of the plug dropping out and losing the brakes. With my luck it would be on a 3 mile downhill.......

 

we leased five 2012 trucks & none of them had trailor plug problems, & they all towed trailers,so something is wrong with one or the other halves on your 7 pin plug.good luck.

 

On the receptacle of everyone that I have owned the lid has a catch that is suppose to hold the plug in.

Your cover for the plug does not do this?

 

I agree with the above. something is wrong here with one component or the other. this is not a normal problem.

Steve

 

Definitely not normal. I actually broke all the clips holding the female side on the truck because it is such a tight fit

 

I have a plug in the bed and under the bumper and both are very tight and lock via the lid on the male portion of the plug. In fact you almost need something to "persuade" it to lock into place. Something definitely missing.

 

I agree. The lock is there on the lid, but the fit of the plug into the receptacle is sloppy, and it does not feel like it engages properly. I'm taking the new socket I bought for the truck to our local trailer dealer to see what's up. I can compare it to the same brand trailer sitting new in his lot and also his replacement plugs. Glad to hear that it's not normal, because that means it can be fixed.

 

There's a set screw on the plug that holds the plug assembly to the casing properly. You might check to see that this assembly isn't moving back into the casing with pressure, thus not allowing it to plug in completely.

 

Thanks for the tip on the setscrew. I know what you're referring to but this trailer side plug is one piece molded. It looks like a combination of slightly smaller size (length and OD) of the plug itself and very low temperatures making the wire much stiffer have caused this problem. Not being able to move to warmer climates, I picked up a Reese replacement plug, and it fits properly at -15, no retention issues. So to go one step better, I've ordered a complete replacement cable with plug from Curt, now that I know it's the trailer side that's having issues.

EZ Hauler, you sold me a nice trailer, too bad you cheaped out on the wiring!

Thanks for your help guys, real opinions instead of that sheepish stuff at rv.net

 

Just make sure when you wire up the new harness, you wire it up "mirrored" to the receptacle to ensure proper contact to contact.