7 way plug - no tail lights????

[curryp]

Interestingly enough my 7 way plug works for the brakes and signals but not the taillights. I have cleaned all the contacts on both the tow vehicle and plug to no avail. I also took the round black cover off and all the wires are connected to the terminals. Any ideas or suggestions? Thanks

[Cheryl]

Your tow vehicle may have separate fuses for the trailer connector. I know that my F-350 does.
Check your vehicle owner's manual.

Good luck.

[wavery]

Are the tail lights working on the TV?? If they aren't, it's the fuse in the TV. If the TV tail lights are working, it's in your trailer wiring (either TV or trailer)..

If you have a test light, check to see if you have power at the TV plug. If you do, you just eliminated the TV from the equation and the problem is in the trailer wiring.

No camper owner should ever be without a test light. They are about $3 at any auto parts, h/w or tool store.

[curryp]

Well, knowing the brake lights and signal lights work I am assuming the TV is working fine and it is the trailer wiring. I will tinker with it to see if I can get them going.

[wavery]

Well, knowing the brake lights and signal lights work I am assuming the TV is working fine and it is the trailer wiring. I will tinker with it to see if I can get them going.

Not a fair assumption;). That just tells you that the fuses are OK. You should take a test light and see if the plug on the TV side is putting out before moving on to the trailer.

If your turn signals and tail lights are inop....90% chance that it's a bad ground either on the trailer or the TV wiring. However, you say that it's just the T/L.........that tells me that it's probably a loose connection inside either the TV or trailer plug. If you're convinced that they are OK........you should check the connection from the TV harness to the TV wiring. Is it a factory connector or did someone wire the trailer harness for you?

[wavery]

Not a fair assumption;). That just tells you that the fuses are OK. You should take a test light and see if the plug on the TV side is putting out before moving on to the trailer.

If your turn signals and tail lights are inop....90% chance that it's a bad ground either on the trailer or the TV wiring.

[coach]

Well, knowing the brake lights and signal lights work I am assuming the TV is working fine and it is the trailer wiring. I will tinker with it to see if I can get them going.

You've got that backwards!

Knowing that the trailer brake and turn signal lights works (same wire(s)), you can assume the trailer is working just fine! :yikes:

Start at the TV connector and TEST for voltage.

[curryp]

The wiring is a genuine plug in Toyota part. I probably should check to be sure the plug ins are secure and clean. I had to replace it this past winter because the bracket was broken. Thanks for all the advice. I need to get a tester.

[curryp]

You've got that backwards!

Knowing that the trailer brake and turn signal lights works (same wire(s)), you can assume the trailer is working just fine! :yikes:

Start at the TV connector and TEST for voltage.

I will do so, but how do I do that? Where do I get a tester?

[coach]

12v circuit tester any auto parts store


I use a volt meter, same concept.

Knowing the pin layout, you probe the different pins to determine if voltage is making its way to the tail light pin, brake, left, right, etc.


7 pin wiring diagrahm
*View of the connectors is from the inside of the plug.


troubleshooting

[dkutz]

When you figure this out let me know, I have the same problem.

We just got back from a week long trip.  Started off with no driving lights, so only drove during the day.  Haven't had a chance to track down the issue yet...

[curryp]

The TV,  a Toyota Tundra with tow package, had a blown fuse. I checked the ones inside the vehicle but none of those were labeled for tow lights. I then hooked up the truck to our boat which when towed with our Toyota 4Runner had all working lights. When hooked up to the Tundra there were no taillights. Conclusion - problem with the TV. So, I took the truck over to the local mechanic and he had a 7 way plug tester that fits right in where the camper would plug in. The tester light for tail lights didn't light up.  The fuse that needed replacing was a 30 amp one that was in one of the three fuse boxes under the hood. On the underside of the cover there is a diagram that tells what each fuse runs. The mechanic had a tester to touch each fuse and sure enough that didn't light his tester was "Tow taillights" on the diagram. When asked how much I owed him, the mechanic said "a couple of bucks." I gave him $4 (all I had besides 20's) and was on my way. He also gave me an extra fuse that goes right inside a holder in the fuse box. Sometimes living in a small town has its advantages.

[AustinBoston]

The fuse that needed replacing was a 30 amp one that was in one of the three fuse boxes under the hood.

A fuse like that should only blow if you have a short bad enough to start a fire (in fact, it's possible to have a short bad enough to start a fire without blowing that fuse).  It is possible the original fuse was defective, but if you ever blow another one, please get the vehicle wiring checked.

Austin

[wavery]

I agree........I don't think that I've ever seen a 30A fuse for T/L. I realize that the trailer lights will have a lot more demand than the TV lights but 30A seems pretty extreme. I hope that it was just a fluke that it blew.

Your trailer probably has 4 clearance lights @.5A each and 2 T/L @ 2A each. That's a draw of ~6A.

Could it be that you unplugged your trailer harness with the lights on?? That may cause a fuse to blow.

[Hoagie]

When you figure this out let me know, I have the same problem.
 
We just got back from a week long trip. Started off with no driving lights, so only drove during the day. Haven't had a chance to track down the issue yet...

Your issues were more likely caused by Wayne putting a hex on you after all the harassing you gave him on the Smithwoods thread.
 
Wish you had said something about lighting problems at Smithwoods. We may have been able to track down the issue over a brown pop or two.