trailer wire harness

[tom le]

I have a nitro 898 with a trailstar trailer. I have brake lites and turn lights but no running lites. Another problem that I encounter is that my trailer plug has 8 wires going into 5 plugs. (3 whites, 2 browns, 1 yellow, 1 green and 1 blue) The bps replacement unit only has 5 wires.



Help please.

 

[Jim in VA]

Tom - trailer wiring colors are usually standard. White is typically a ground wire. The brown, green and yellow wires will be the positive leads for the right and left turn signals and brake lamps. The blue is usually for electronic lock out of the surge brakes. Given that you have two brown wires - I'm guessing those are for the brake lights (one on each side). If your running lights aren't working, but your brake lights are, I would guess a bad ground. I'd check to make sure the white wires have a good connection.



Not sure what the "replacement unit" from BPS is, but if its a new plug, you'll want to keep the white wires together, the browns together and the yellow, green and blue as separate. To figure out what goes where, I'd look at your existing plug to match up.

 

[Bruce Freeman]

Brown is running lights, two beause they are split for left and right, greeen and yellow are left and right turn and brake, blue is brakes? White is ground, most trailer light problems are with the ground. Swing away or drop down tounges have a major issue because the ground is in front of the tounge break.



BF

 

[john edwards]

 

[john edwards]

I had a trailstar trailer that did the same thing. I had turn signals and brake lights but no running lights. Turned out to be a fuse in the truck. Replaced it and never had a problem since.

 

[Bob G.]

I had a problem with my running lights on my trailer a few years ago. Mice had got into the trailer channel during the winter and chewed on the harness exposing the bare conductor. Everytime the harness touched the trailer, a fuse blew on my truck for that circuit. I replaced the harness down both sides of the trailer. I now keep an Adirondack Mouse Trap in the garage where I store my boat for the winter.

 

[Gary Hunter]

I picked up my 2011 Z6 from dealer last Sept. and was heading down the interstate. All lights on trailer were working fine. It started to rain ... hard. I looked in the rear view and the running lights/tail lights were out. Got home and found that brake lights and turn signals were ok. The thing is tail lights on my truck work but not on trailer. I checked brown wire from truck pigtail with a probe and no juice. I can't figure it out 'cause tail lights on truck (2007 Expedition) work fine so it can't be a blown fuse in truck. Running lights on trailer haven't worked since. (any and all ideas are welcome at this point).



Thanks.

 

[Scott Hammer TOXIC]

Do you have juice from the truck to where your trailer plug plugs in (the outlet on the truck) If you do then it's a bad plug and an easy fix. There is also a separate fuse for trailer lights on Fords under the hood that makes your trucks lights separate, in other words there is a separate fuse for the trailer.



TOXIC

 

[Gary Hunter]

Thanks Toxic. I'll check the fuses in the truck again.