trailer ??

[FatManStroke]

okay i got a carson trailer that has been sitting about 3 yrs. i need to use it but the beepbeepbeepbeep lights are not working.. the only ones i can get to work are the side marker lights. the back runnin/brake lights wont work. what im wondering is if the battery is dead and if it controls any of the lights? does the battery just control the brakes? need a place to start troubleshooting. one bulb on the rear lights is broke but they worked when i parked it. im cleaning the connector now and will replace the bulb. im also going to check the bearings for grease. i drove it around the block a little while ago and it seemed fine as far as the tires and bearings are conserned.

another question.... how do i know if the trailer brakes are working??? my truck has a u-haul brake control but im not sure on how to use it. i probably wont need it to get the trailer home but im going to be towing my bronco 2 to WA in a month and i will need to make sure they work by then?

thank's FatMan

[Dave]

do all the lights on any other trailers you hook up to work and as far as the brake controller goes there should be a green light that comes on when you plug the light harness in

[ndurbin]

The lights would get power from the plug/truck lights so start there and work towards the taillights on the trailer checking the wires. The battery on the trailer is probably no good if it's been sitting for 3 years and has had no use. It's only job is if the trailer comes unhooked to activate the trailer brakes so the trailer doesn't run away. A quick way to ensure the trailer brakes are working is to jack one side of the trailer up, have a buddy get the tire spinning by hand and then you add a 12v power source to the brake wire at the plug. The brakes should lock up the tire, can repeat that on the other side.

Greasing the bearings would probably be cheap insurance as a can of hub grease only costs about $10 - $15.

[FatManStroke]

thank's fellas. okay i cleaned the connector and checked the bearings for grease. bearing grease looks good and on the way home (250 miles) all the lights started to work. i checked the wires for chaffing and all was good must have been the connector. driver side light came on when i had to put on lights still pass side tail light didn't work. when i got about 20 miles from home the pass side tail light started to work. so im going to clean the connector again with some alcohol and keep a eye on it.

the brake controler only has a red light. i will check the brakes next week and get a new battery for the emergency brake away.

[fordnut85]

Don't forget to check your grounds. Some people like to use the trailer ball to ground the trailer to the truck and it never works right. That battery is just for the breakaway, it won't affect the service brakes at all.

[FatManStroke]

didn't even think of ground good call....

[owtcast]

Originally Posted by fordnut85

Don't forget to check your grounds. Some people like to use the trailer ball to ground the trailer to the truck and it never works right. That battery is just for the breakaway, it won't affect the service brakes at all.

Exactly. Some trailers are wired to use the ball as the ground and if there is any rust, paint, grease, etc. on the ball, tongue, receiver, hitch mounts it will screw with the connectivity. It's usually easier to add a dedicated ground than to trace all the places that could be failing to ground.

[Ditty]

I grabbed some electrical connector cleaner at Advance Auto to install my chip a few months ago. It was like $3-4 for the can. Worked GREAT! Try something like that on the connectors and use a greeny or toothbrush if you can get it in there.

X2 on the grounds!