The brake control box regulates the amount of voltage going back into the plug. There is additional wiring involved in tying your braking system and battery power to the rear plug, which activates the trailer brakes when you depress your brake pedal. The trailer brakes are activated electronically by the use of a brake control box mounted under the dash in the tow vehicle. The other type of brake system is electronically controlled electric brake control wiring. Simply put, when the inertia force of the tow vehicle's braking action activates the master cylinder in the surge coupler, the trailer brakes are activated. The master cylinder is mounted on the front of the trailer so any tow vehicle can tow the trailer. Surge brakes are an independent system activated by a master cylinder at the junction of the hitch and trailer tongue. Most boat or water sport trailers are equipped with hydraulic brakes, sometimes called surge brakes. There are two types of brake systems used today. If a trailer is longer than 15 feet or weighs more than 1500 lbs., it must, by law, come equipped with a brake system. Your hitch installer can determine your wiring needs based on the type of trailer you are towing as well as what kind of tow vehicle you have. Instead of needing simple wiring to run lights only, some trailers require extra wiring to run electric brakes, 12-volt battery charge lines, back-up lights and refrigerator power as well. Wiring gets a little more complicated when you tow larger or more sophisticated trailers. Improper wiring can lead to blown fuses, and in extreme cases, overheating of wires which can result in a fire in your vehicle. So, if you are a do-it-yourself wire person, please ask us for advice before doing your own wiring. In many cases, we must bypass the computer system when we wire a vehicle for towing so that the towing wiring doesn't confuse the vehicle's computer into thinking something is wrong with it's lighting system.Īgain, special converter units and wiring harnesses must be installed to alleviate this problem. We are also seeing more sophisticated computer systems being installed on vehicles nowadays. Required for some vehicles to avoid vehicle light circuit damage. Eyers Trailer Hitch Center sells and installs tail light converters and trailer light power modules to accomplish this.Īll trailer light power is routed through the tow vehicle's light circuits.Īll trailer light power is routed directly from the tow vehicle's battery via a separate power line. Tail light converters are required to connect a vehicle with a 5-wire system to a trailer with a 4-wire system. Most import vehicles and newer domestic vehicles have both a red brake signal and a separate amber turn signal (2 bulbs per side). Most trailers are wired to use a single red light for both the brake and turn signals (1 bulb per side). The law says that any trailer that protrudes 4 or more feet behind your vehicle or visually blocks your taillights must be equipped with it's own taillights, and your vehicle must have a connection to the trailer's taillights.
#Break away trailer wiring driver
Your qualified hitch installer will wire up your taillights, signals, and brake light functions into a special plug or connector in order to access the trailer's light systems.īasically, when you flip on your turn signal or push your brake pedal, the lights on the trailer must also signal your intentions to the driver behind you. The trailer lighting system must not be directly spliced into your tow vehicle lighting system. Special light and wiring systems need to be installed on your tow vehicle before you can tow any trailer.
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