Curt Trailer Wiring Harness Does Not have Power on a 2016 Honda Odyssey

Question:

I installed this on my 2016 honda odyssey and I am not getting any voltage to the wire harness. What kind of voltage should I have to the wire harness and which wires if the brake lights are on and I installed in correctly?

asked by: Jeff O

Expert Reply:

There are a couple of things to check with the installation of Curt trailer wiring harness # C56378 on your 2016 Honda Odyssey. First, make sure the fuse is installed in the red power wire. If it is installed make sure that the fuse is good and replace if needed. Also make sure that the white ground wire is attached to a bare metal surface.

Next check that the second fuse is installed in the proper location and that it is not blown and move/replace if needed. According to the instructions: Install the provided 10 amp mini fuse in position 2 in the fuse panel. It is denoted as 'Trailer Small LT' on the fuse panel cover. It is entirely possible though that position 2 might not be labeled Trailer Small LT so if that is the case then the fuse would go into the position that does have that label.

But it is possible that you will need 2 additional fuses. In location 8 there should be a 10 amp fuse and in location 11 there should be a 7.5 amp fuse. If those are not present then install them and see if that fixes the issue.

Also in the fuse panel make sure the harness is plugged all the way into the socket. Sometimes it takes a bit of force to get it to seat all the way.

If everything is installed and the fuses are good, and the ground is attached in good spot, and you still do not have power getting to the 4-Way end then it can be tested to determine if the issue is with the harness or something on the vehicle.

Basically, you can use a circuit tester such as # PTW2993 to test the wiring going into the converter box. The red wire with the fuse on it should have 12-volt power (the vehicle key may or may not have to be in the on position). The other input red wire is brake lights, brown is taillights, green is right turn signal, yellow is left turn signal.

If there is power on all of those circuits when the function is activated, then you can move on to testing the 4-Way end. If power going into the converter is good but there is no power on the output side, then there is a problem inside the converter and the wiring harness will need to be replaced.

I recommend Tekonsha harness # 118521 should you need to replace the harness.