hello all. I'm new to this forum and I need some help.

I Am trying to put trailer brakes on my 97 E150 without factory tow. I have already installed a 4 way flat harness and a hitch last year. 4 way I used is the T harness at the tail lights.
I ordered a prodigy P2 and the adapter harness. I have found the connector along the left toekick area in the cab.

I searched he'd for the plug by the rear left tire and didn't find one. Now from what I've read I should at least find a single plug and if it doesn't have factory tow then I may not find the one with the blue and orange wires feeding it. I'm not finding either one.
I'd like to verify that if I do not have factory tow then could I possibly still have the plug I need at the rear? And if I do not have the plug at the rear, where can I find those wires up front? I really don't want to run wires in to the drivers area and have to cut them off the plug out of the brake controller. I'd like to keep it cleaner then that but I need trailer brakes on my camper more then that.

Lastly what about the relays and fuses for the controller? I was reading that some guys need to find a relay box and use that. Is that a box from a factory tow unit? Will my brake controller not power up until I have that? Thanks for reading.

 

Here is an article. Hope it helps.

https://www.etrailer.com/faq-Ford-Fu...ontroller.aspx

 

Since your van has the connector for the controller, the fuse box under the hood will have the circuits for the trailer brake relays and fuses. Check your owners manual to be certain which spaces in the fuse box need to be populated and the proper fuse rating to make those circuits function as designed.

After that you need to find the bolt together connector next to the left side exhaust manifold. You will need to be under the van to see this. It may or may not help to have the doghouse off when you are working in this area. You will know after you crawl under there and see the connector. Find the connector, check to see if the proper wire colors run through it or stop there at it. Then tap into the circuit as needed, or re-pin that connector. Run the wires you need to the back.

This is something you want to have to do only once, so do a quality splice job on the wires. I much prefer to solder something important like this.
Do it right and you will never have to touch it again.

It is really not too difficult to do, just be sure to wear eye protection because you will be looking up at the underside of a used vehicle and there WILL be dirt dropping on you.

 

I don't have an owners manual. Need to order one. I did look at the distribution box under the hood and don't see any empty spots that have contacts in them so maybe someone threw them in even though they are not needed. I'll just be happy if I don't need to add a different box in. I will look for that connector this weekend to see if any blue or orange runs through it or stops there. My controller comes today so I'm hoping I can get that powered up easy enough, and then I can easily verify the proper wires under the van When I find a blue and orange someplace. Thanks for your input. I will report my finding.

 

Here is your owners manual
http://www.fordservicecontent.com/Fo.../97ecoog1e.pdf

 

ok so I couldn't find much around for wire so I ended up using a black heavy duty 12/3 cord to run back the van.

I verified and re verified that the wires went into the plug by the footwell and so not come out the other side. I cut and connected the blue and orange and then verified power to the blue wire when using the manual lever on the prodigy controller.
I also checked the orange and it's only about 11.75 volts. Would that be the relay possibly taking away a little voltage?

The he real question is, do I need to cut the black ground out of that harness on the one corner? I'm grounding theough the frame at the eyelet at the 7 way so I'm thinking no but am I better off using the ground from there too?

 

Where exactly is the 11.75V measured? And what is the exact voltage at the battery posts? If this is measured with the engine not running, it may make all the difference to have it running.
The voltage drop could be from the relay, too heavy wire gauge, or poor quality wire splice. Or if you sourced a section of wire that is not new, it could possibly be damaged internally in a way that is not externally visible.

The black wire should be trailer reverse. Depending on the trailer it will either be used to deactivate the trailer brakes for moving the trailer backwards or activating backup lights on the trailer or possibly even both. Check the black wire to see if it has a pink or green stripe on it, if so it is the trailer reverse. Otherwise, ground is ground and it won't matter where you connect the ground as long as it is a clean solid connection to the frame.