trouble shooting trailer lights....

**0rion** · 04-14-2011, 06:46 PM

Taking the boat up to Lake Erie tomorrow for walleye. Get everything hooked up today and the trailer lights are a mess. I will probably just rewire the whole thing tomorrow but I'd rather solve this instead and rewire it when I get back. The quicker I get the lights going the quicker I get there.

Here's where I'm at so far. Right now I have turn signals and brake lights on both sides but no running lights. I would imagine it's going to be a ground but not sure if it's the white main ground or something else. I thought the brown wires controlled the running lights and if that's the case and it's a bad ground on the brown wire then why are my turns and signals working?

**cheap80z28** · 04-14-2011, 06:55 PM

its been a while but I think if your using a 4 wire flat that thr yellow and green are for both the brakes and signals. the brown is for the running. only one white wire which would be ground for the whole system. so if you just don't have any running lights, it could be a cut brown wire, or even the plastic coating could have rubbed thru and be touching the frame somewhere.

**Modulistic** · 04-15-2011, 12:27 AM

Just strip them all and twist them all together.

I have the same problem with my dmax, but nobobdy gives a shit up here so I havent really fucked with it. Let me know what you find out though. lol.

**Zapper2003** · 04-15-2011, 02:37 AM

Get a better scope.

**Danger731** · 04-15-2011, 03:19 AM

yah get a fluke on it.

**0rion** · 04-15-2011, 03:31 AM

Originally Posted by Modulistic

Just strip them all and twist them all together.

I have the same problem with my dmax, but nobobdy gives a shit up here so I havent really fucked with it. Let me know what you find out though. lol.

I'm fairly certain it's the brown wire on the boat trailer.....it almost has to be. This plug is a little different. It has 2 brown wires instead of 1. I don't remember ever seeing one like it....still just 4 pins but they run 2 browns from the one pin. I'm going to rewire the whole trailer this morning.....those wires are old and brittle so that's probably the easiest way to fix the issue.

**TLS_Addict** · 04-15-2011, 07:14 AM

Originally Posted by Zapper2003

Get a better scope.

Thats what I was thinking.

**0rion** · 04-15-2011, 08:22 AM

fixed....just rewired the whole trailer

**Zapper2003** · 04-15-2011, 01:53 PM

I've never had smoked walleye...its damn good eatin' fried though.

**suede** · 04-16-2011, 11:01 PM

Originally Posted by TLS_Addict

Thats what I was thinking.

X3 i was gonna suggest shotgun.... easier to "shoot taillights"

**pajeff02** · 04-17-2011, 04:36 AM

My father brought his Trailblazer over last weekend and said he didn't have any power to the trailer running lights. Turned out to be a fuse in an electrical box located under the back left seat. The truck came equipped with a factory tow package -- thank goodness for owner's manuals or I would have never figured it out.

**0rion** · 04-17-2011, 10:32 PM

what a fucking nightmare fishing trip......couldn't take it on erie. Had 6-9 ft waves all weekend. Had to put it in the Maumee River. Way to big of a boat for that river. I knew we were in trouble when we were launching at a jet ski ramp and I backed it down and all 4 tires of the truck in the river and the bottom of the hull on the boat wasn't even wet. Moved over 4-5 feet on the ramp and it was dug out enough to launch the boat. River averaged 2-4ft with some 5-6ft holes in it. I had to keep the motor trimmed all day and couldn't go more than idle on the throttle. As we were leaving the motor died and wouldn't restart. Get it on the trailer and back to camp and the plugs were fouled to hell. Not sure if it was because of the trim I had to keep on it combined with idle speeds all day or it was just from the excessive cranking I did on it while working on it.
I'm going to take it to a local lake and blow it out when I get a free day and the weather is decent. Boat has sat for 3 years and hasn't been above idle since I got it running so it needs ran a bit.
All that for 2 fish Saturday......between 10 guys. 40mph gusts and off and on rain all day.

**blackSS01** · 04-17-2011, 10:37 PM

Originally Posted by 0rion

what a fucking nightmare fishing trip......couldn't take it on erie. Had 6-9 ft waves all weekend. Had to put it in the Maumee River. Way to big of a boat for that river. I knew we were in trouble when we were launching at a jet ski ramp and I backed it down and all 4 tires of the truck in the river and the bottom of the hull on the boat wasn't even wet. Moved over 4-5 feet on the ramp and it was dug out enough to launch the boat. River averaged 2-4ft with some 5-6ft holes in it. I had to keep the motor trimmed all day and couldn't go more than idle on the throttle. As we were leaving the motor died and wouldn't restart. Get it on the trailer and back to camp and the plugs were fouled to hell. Not sure if it was because of the trim I had to keep on it combined with idle speeds all day or it was just from the excessive cranking I did on it while working on it.
I'm going to take it to a local lake and blow it out when I get a free day and the weather is decent. Boat has sat for 3 years and hasn't been above idle since I got it running so it needs ran a bit.
All that for 2 fish Saturday......between 10 guys. 40mph gusts and off and on rain all day.

Jesus! You fuckers must like to fish. First time during the trip were it became a hassle and my ass is gone

**suede** · 04-18-2011, 12:46 AM

Originally Posted by 0rion

what a fucking nightmare fishing trip......couldn't take it on erie. Had 6-9 ft waves all weekend. Had to put it in the Maumee River. Way to big of a boat for that river. I knew we were in trouble when we were launching at a jet ski ramp and I backed it down and all 4 tires of the truck in the river and the bottom of the hull on the boat wasn't even wet. Moved over 4-5 feet on the ramp and it was dug out enough to launch the boat. River averaged 2-4ft with some 5-6ft holes in it. I had to keep the motor trimmed all day and couldn't go more than idle on the throttle. As we were leaving the motor died and wouldn't restart. Get it on the trailer and back to camp and the plugs were fouled to hell. Not sure if it was because of the trim I had to keep on it combined with idle speeds all day or it was just from the excessive cranking I did on it while working on it.
I'm going to take it to a local lake and blow it out when I get a free day and the weather is decent. Boat has sat for 3 years and hasn't been above idle since I got it running so it needs ran a bit.
All that for 2 fish Saturday......between 10 guys. 40mph gusts and off and on rain all day.

any of you guys bowfish?

**0rion** · 04-18-2011, 04:16 AM

Originally Posted by suede

any of you guys bowfish?

I haven't but a few of my buddies do. I'm going to try to get with them later this summer and go carp shooting.

**Danger731** · 04-18-2011, 05:59 AM

I just rewired my trailer yesterday. LED lights and new wires all the way back. The trailer had the original lights from 1976. I have had intermittant issues trouble shooting a bad turn light or something so I went and rewired it.

**Daniel P.** · 04-18-2011, 06:47 AM

Originally Posted by suede

any of you guys bowfish?

I do, me and my buddies go to a local marsh every summer and shoot carp.

**0rion** · 04-18-2011, 07:43 AM

Originally Posted by Danger731

I just rewired my trailer yesterday. LED lights and new wires all the way back. The trailer had the original lights from 1976. I have had intermittant issues trouble shooting a bad turn light or something so I went and rewired it.

I kept the same lights but used new wire. It's just easier than piecing together old stuff. This was 15 year old wiring and it was fairly brittle....can't imagine how brittle your stuff was. It's cheap to do.....have probably $20 in it.

**Danger731** · 04-18-2011, 02:00 PM

my light kit was 39, 7 bucks for self tap screws, 8 for the lexan to cover the old oval and mount the new lights onto. unk the cost of 3 broken drill bits. My light lenses were bad.