Wiring the trucks tailights when it is being towed behind a camper

[realshelby]

I would think that placing a 12v feed onto the jump posts under the hood would be sufficient to maintain the 12v battery in the hybrid. Assuming the BMS is active in accessory mode if not just have DC powered maintainer in 12v lead to the posts.

Not sure what that statement has to do with my post? I do have the battery charge line from RV to my underhood jump post. Learned that from flat towing my Cmax.

But my post was about battery powered auxilliary tail and brake lights like some folks use when flat towing. Nothing directly to do with a Maverick.

Sponsored

 

[MakinDoForNow]

Not sure what that statement has to do with my post? I do have the battery charge line from RV to my underhood jump post. Learned that from flat towing my Cmax.

But my post was about battery powered auxilliary tail and brake lights like some folks use when flat towing. Nothing directly to do with a Maverick.

Sorry, mis understood. Install the curt or other seven pin relay detector that has plugs to install between the trucks harness plugs and the tail lights which requires a separate 30 amp circuit from a adequate source usually at or near battery terminal. Does not affect current draws on the existing truck lighting circuits. Can leave trailer connected through the 4pin trailer plug so the trucks computer operates properly in its drive modes.

 

[realshelby]

Or you could install the auxilliary bulb socket in the towed vehicle taillight housing. Wires from that run to the front of towed vehicle and hook into the 6 pin socket you have installed there. Done. The last three I have done were installed and never touched again.

 

[Bandaid]

Update on my towing lights.

I made brackets out of 1 1/2" aluminum angle and fastened the trailer lights to them. I removed the upper tie down holds at the rear of the Mav bed and bought longer metric bolts to hold the light brackets in place. I did have to make a 1/2" wood spacer between my brackets and the bedside to get clearance for the brackets and the plastic bedrail cover.
I made up my own wiring harness which unlugs from the lights. That gives me the option of leaving the lights in place when we are driving around and not having the harness just thrown into the bed of the Mav.
While towing, I did velcro wrap the harness to the two door handles and also fed it through the engine compartment, to keep it from buffeting the paint while towing. Yes, the harness could use a soft cloth cover to avoid scratching, as pointed out by someone else. The other alternative would be to secure the harness under the truck.
I bought an adapter for the seven pin plug on the back of the camper using only the four pin for the tail lights. I did not plug in the lights from the dolly, as I find them useless for anyone following my vehicle! I believe they are on the dolly only to meet Federal and State guidelines.
All in all, my system worked as planned and with only one additional modification to cover the wires with a soft cover, it is the way I will go for the amount of towing I will be doing. One other thing I did was to replace the 1157 bulbs in the lights with LED 1157 bulbs. This should increase the brightness of the lights.

Bandaid

 

[realshelby]

The "soft cover" for the lighting harness sounds good. But there is one problem with it. When you tow in the rain, that soft cover will absorb all the road grime ( you all know how dirty a toad gets when in the rain...) and become sandpaper!
There really isn't any way to totally eliminate marks on the paint when you have wiring running across it.

 

[gwrace14651]

Make sure the wires going from the coach to the magnetic lights are tight. I surface scratched the paint on my CRV because the wires were flapping in the winds some.

On the Mav is there a place between the bed and cab where the wires could be run underneath the truck. That would eliminate any paint damage from wires riding on the paint. Then the magnetic lights would install on top of the cab.

Sponsored