FIX YOUR TRAILER LIGHTS (1) - Checking the truck side plug 

Glad it was helpful!

Awesome, thank you! KPO.

I'm glad you enjoyed the video. Sometimes the Camaro stories aren't received as well by some. KPO

Welcome!

You are welcome.

U should make a 6 minute video then I enjoy thorough videos. Thanks

@@Lovinflyindrones2022 100%.

Just installed a hitch and the harness and I didn’t want to buy a tester and there isn’t one if just want to check newly installed harness. all about whats coming from your vehicle I said finally. But I didn’t know he already had the tester hooked up.

Excellent tip, KPO.

You're welcome, KPO.

They all work

I love it, thanks for letting me know that, KPO.

Bill, that made me smile!

Thanks for sharing. I'm glad you liked the Ronnie story.

Awesome! KPO.

You are welcome!

Cisco Kid, when you apply the brake you should get 2 lights to light up on your checker. Now some checkers are labeled and some are not. But with the brake it, should be the lights associated with the green and yellow wire, if you can see the wire colors on your truck side plug. If 2 light up you should be good. As far as key position, if the tail lights on the truck come on you should be getting the signal to the plug too. If your still not getting lights on the checker you may have a truck side problem. Try cleaning the plug and look for damaged wires. Make sure the white wire is grounded good to the frame of the truck. I have several other Trailer Light vids that may help also. KPO

So glad to hear that Silvia! I guess it pays to go through the instructions. Happy trailering!

That can be frustrating!

@@KnettersPracticalOutdoors Indeed, it was frustrating, took me about 2 hrs. but it was an easy fix, and all is good. ;)

2 things come to mind. Are all lights off on the tow vehicle? If any one light is on and another light is dim on the trailer, that could be a grounding issue. Sometimes when fixtures aren't grounded properly they back feed through other lights. So anytime I hear lights being dim and the wrong ones coming on, that's a grounding problem. Also, some vehicles have a booster or power relay set up. This just means the power going back to the tail lights on newer cars sometimes isn't enough to power trailer lights also. So they put a booster pack on these cars. If you have one, maybe it's failing. Hope this helps. Let me know what you find.

I really hope this helps you out, KPO.

Haulin Ash, yes, like I said in the vid, if you can't find anything simple, the next step is to check the plug at the vehicle. Also stay tuned to my channel for many more vids on fixing trailer lights, Thanks for watching, KPO.

Also you have been subbed my friend, KPO.

This might help - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-LaUj7ZIrwAk.html

If you tried the checker in this video and all the lights worked coming out of the vehicle, then the problem is with the trailer. Poorly grounded fixtures are often the issue, also try cleaning both plugs up good.

Check the brown wire

@@KnettersPracticalOutdoors Thank you for the response! Recently I found, It actually blew a fuse. My car has an undisclosed fuse box under a front fairing where the fuse was located🥴 Two days gone thanks to ignorant fuse diagrams!…

Sounds like the problem may be with the trailer. Check this out ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-kqVykWhwHaY.html

true

check the connection point on the vehicle where the harness connects to the vehicles original wiring

That's a good one. When you hook up the checker, wiggle as many wires as you can on the truck while trying the lights. See if you can get it to fail. Also it's possible to light the LEDs on the checker but not have enough power to light actual tail lights. This is usually due to corroded wires or damaged wires on the truck. The wire can carry enough amps to light the checker but not the tail lights. I had this happen to me and the problem was in the "T" where the truck harness breaks into the original truck wiring. It was corroded at the "T". Also something isn't grounded right on the truck. Your other lights might be back feeding through the brake wire, when you use the brake, no path back and the lights go out. The corrosion I mentioned earlier could cause this. Let me know how it turns out.

Use the checker on a vehicle that is known to have a good working trailer light system. This will tell you if the LEDS are actually dim or not. If you still believe them to be dim on your vehicle you are experiencing a voltage drop in your trailer lights. Meaning you probably don't have the full voltage coming out of the plug for the tail/running lights. See - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-5Hfk5QKC7Ok.html Your ground should be good because you said the turn signals are bright. Try cleaning the plug. A small wire brush on the end of a drill works great. A .17 cal brush for cleaning a gun is the perfect size. If this doesn't help the next likely place for the voltage drop is were your plug is attached into your vehicle wiring. These connection points corrode whether they are a plug or a splice. I hope this helps, KPO.

Glad to help

Yes pick up one of these devices and make sure everything is correct coming out of the car. That's the first step. Keep me informed.

@@KnettersPracticalOutdoors yes thank you. So this morning after some leg work out in the sun to get the Uhaul to help test everything, my logic on the problem of the NONE blinking lights, i told the guy that i think the problem is in the new clip on harness, cause the blinkers and tail light, front and back on my car they all work,....when i connect the harness from the car to the trailer, all the lights work but don't blink nor do the brake light function on the trailet tail lights,...i feel everything is wired right on the trailer, from the car end is right also,...but the problems in the middle "the new harnesd"...the guy at the Uhaul said I could be right, but that the expert on the lightning system was off today to confirm that for us. So, went to get to a stereo instaler and got his opinion he said i am on point on my logic, but if i wanted them to check it for me, it was going to cost me $32 per hour....since i think i allmost get and finish this project i told him he will be my last resort. So then, I went to Auto Zone, they said that it also could be on a "relay"....but that they didn't have a "relay tester nor a fusse tester"....he also said that when we switch from regulat to LED lights the fuses and relays special for LED light must also be switched. I think that's NOT nesesary but i could be wrong on that. ...and last, It....i went to another place NAPA, they also think my logic is right, the the problem is not how the trailer is wired cause all the lights lighr up on it, and all the lights and function on the car end are working, it's got to be on the "new clip on harness." I did bught the tester,...all the lights on the tester light up and the "tail" indicator is on but the other two the "LT, and RT and BRAKE indicators, those are not lighting up when testing the "blinkers and brake". I feel i am 90% done with the project, my gut tells me it could be either on the new clip on harness or a fuse or a relay. What do you think??...thank you for your time.🙏🤗👍🤔

@@KnettersPracticalOutdoors o also i got me one of the Automotive Circuit tester,...and i tried testing the car end harness receiver but the tester is too long and that receiver is installed in a "tight" spaice.

@@KnettersPracticalOutdoors i used the tester, only oneclight lit up the "tail"...the other's didn't.

Some vehicles have separately fused trailer lights. Check manual for that. Or bad connection at the spot the plug attaches to the vehicle wiring. Let me know what you find, KPO.

Clean all the connection points on plugs and adapters and where it brakes into the vehicle wiring. That can be a problem area.

@@KnettersPracticalOutdoors Found it. It was a bad trailer plug. This plug has LED indicators. The LT LED blinks but the yellow wire connected to the pin was loose. Can’t trust the LED indicators. Have to check all connections. Thanks

Ronnie has patterned his life after the front man for Nightseeker. Thanks for that comment, KPO.

Thanks for the sub. I have seen corrosion problems where the wire harness breaks into the vehicle wiring. May have to roll a little sand paper into a tube and put it in the female holes and clean them up even a little better. Let me know how it goes.

Glad you enjoyed it

Sounds like you really can't trust the colors (what the color means or if it's still a good attached wire). I think at this point I would start from scratch, new fixtures and wire. It seems like the best option. $40 will get you everything you need. I'm currently working on a "Rewire Your Trailer" video. But it won't be out for a few weeks. KPO

@@KnettersPracticalOutdoors Rewird the trailer. Left turn is working fine but with the right they both are barely on. Grounded to the frame. Any idea?

It's hard to comment on this problem. So the trailer works with the other car? If so, the problem is with the first vehicle. Did you try a plug in checker like in this video? Does the other car have a converter? Hard to troubleshoot this one over the internet. Sorry I don't have a good answer for you, KPO.

@@KnettersPracticalOutdoors found the issue. It was a faulty powered converter. All good now. Thanks!

Trailer light tester is one name, but I've seen many different used, KPO.

I'm with you never heard of knightseeker and who pulls a camper with a camaro lol

@@johncarriere1893 Ronnie only drives Camaros so if he wants to pull a camper that's what he has to use. Knightseeker might be more of a Canadian thing. Thanks for watching, KPO.

Yeah WTF waste of time.

It's easier with the plug, KPO.

Harness is working to pull boat but I had to gut all inside of camper due to water damage. The old style to install was VERY rudimentary. Please help?

They will need to add a white ground wire running from the fixture to the trailer frame. If the fixture has a short white wire, attach it to that. If the fixture doesn't have a white wire attach your add on to the studs of the fixture, KPO.

Sounds like you need to run all new wiring? This can actually be a good thing. Running all new is often easier than trying to fix old rotten out stuff, KPO.

Rondy, that is very strange. I have never seen anything quite like that, but in the past when weird things were happening with trailer lights it is usually a poorly grounded fixture (or two). Check all fixtures to ground and make sure the trailer has continuity throughout. I have another vid that may help LINK - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-GolYLizOcow.html Let me know how it turn out, KPO.

@@KnettersPracticalOutdoors I’ve been working on it most of the afternoon and have made some progress. It’s still not at 100%. I ran a ground to both fixtures and that helped. Tomorrow I’m going to try and clean the ball and joint and run a ground from the bed to the frame since it is a tilt bed. I’ll let you know.

@@rondylee680 I think your on the right track, KPO.

Just replace it. By chance did it melt because an ex-girlfriend tried to light your Ram on fire?

@@KnettersPracticalOutdoors lmfao no hahaha

I've never experienced a problem like that (it dies with one action and then minutes later everything works and it's consistent). Is it possible your SUV has a thermal overload that resets itself after cooling down? I mean it sounds like a problem with the left turn signal light on the trailer, but normally short circuits blow fuses and open circuits just won't work. Both of those problems need intervention to fix. I know some vehicles have separate fuses for their trailer lights but again, fuses blow. I keep coming back to some sort of thermal overload that automatically resets???????? Let me know what you find please, KPO.

@@KnettersPracticalOutdoors The vehicle is a 2019 Chev Equinox. I will have to find a wiring diagram and maybe a short/open finder to help solve this. I don't want to start ripping the wiring loom apart to find it just yet.

And Ronnie really thought she was the one!

And a tester like yours shows everything works properly.

It seems like you have a fixture or two that aren't grounded properly. Whenever a light works but then doesn't work with another function added that tells me that the working light was back feeding through another lights ground. The part that doesn't make sense is you said the trailer works with another vehicle? I would still check and make sure all the fixtures are grounded properly. Let me know what you find out, KPO.

New day, new discoveries! I found a short to ground within the connector of the vehicle. When I would pull the slack out of the oem connector it would short 10v to ground through the running lights. When I would push it would release the short to ground and I would get 0v to ground. New connector fixed my issue.

@@KnettersPracticalOutdoors I genuinely appreciate your reply and you were pretty much spot on with over the internet comment section diag. Thanks for your time

@@anthonyinderhees1868 You are welcome. I'm glad you got it working, KPO.

You're welcome! I understand that Ronnie's cautionary tales aren't for everyone, KPO.

Hey glad you like the story, KPO.

No problem

Wes is right, KPO.

Noted

You may have some wires shorted together in the harness on the vehicle side. Follow the plug back and look for damage or corrosion, KPO.

No, but he is a big fan.

Using this LED plug in checker is one of the best ways to "Check the truck side plug" to see if it is working. I don't see how this is misleading at all. But I am sorry if you thought it was.

Thanks for the feedback, KPO.

True but you miss the best part.

Yes

I got a video for you ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-5Hfk5QKC7Ok.html

Yes, sometimes it does take me days to do things, KPO.

Thanks for the comment, KPO.

But you'll miss the best part.

Thanks

G, it goes that way sometimes, KPO.

Try this www.harborfreight.com/four-way-trailer-light-tester-66526.html?campaignid=12144811130&adsetid=117789299438&product=66526&store=&gclid=Cj0KCQjw54iXBhCXARIsADWpsG9OR7BTQIta6Hs7aejXbcfRn-sEPQ472Qggr6W_mi_bXBu0AWIK9EMaAn8cEALw_wcB

$23 at O'reilly's auto parts :-(

Noted

Well the title does say "Checking the truck side plug". "Fix your trailer lights" is a video series that I did, so I include that in all the videos in that series. Sorry if you were mislead, but making sure the truck side is working is vital to a working system.

@@KnettersPracticalOutdoors I see now their problem is how it loads on a phone you only see the first part of the title... Definitely eliminating the plug is the starting point!

That's what she said!

Well David, the subject matter is "trailer lights", LOL, thanks for watching, KPO.

You're right!

Thanks for adding in!