Troubleshooting Red Light on Brake Controller when Headlights Are Turned On

Question

Question:

Red light comes on when I apply brakes assume this is right to let me know its working. However just drove after dark without trailer red light on when I turn headlights on....is this proper or did installer wire it wrong?? Was just installed last week

asked by: Art M

0

Expert Reply:

It may depend on the controller you are using. When you state the red light comes on my mind goes immediately to the Tekonsha Voyager # 39510 with the LED on top. When a trailer is connected it turns green and when you hit the brake pedal it turns red.

It should not be red when the headlights are turned on. It sounds like there is a bad ground wire connection to your controller. The headlights are probably causing more draw on your system and that is why it isn't noticeable until your headlights are on even though the ground should be stronger. Make sure you have a bare metal to metal connection for that ground wire if you have hardwired your controller.

expert reply by: Jason S

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Answer 1

Since you know there is a short in the braking system itself, I recommend starting with testing your trailer magnets. I've attached an article to help you with this. If the magnets check out then you know you have a short in the wiring. I…

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Answer 2

The issue could possibly be the brake controller or it could be the wiring of the overall setup. Testing the brake controller is fairly easy. Sever the blue brake output wire near the brake controller leaving enough room to reconnect it and then…

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Answer 3

The blue wire coming from the brake controller to the trailer brakes is the brake power output wire used to tell the trailer to apply the brakes once given the response from the brake controller. Therefore, you should not have a constant charge to…

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Answer 4

That has to be a brake controller issue. Sounds like the controller is backfeeding the stoplight circuit it taps into as a signal wire with voltage which is then activating your brake lights. When this happens the brake controller is in need of…

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Answer 5

The red LED light on the Hopkins LED Breakaway Switch #HM20060 indicates that the cable has been pulled. My contact at Hopkins said you may have the black and blue wires reversed. This would cause the LED light to stay illuminated. I have attached…

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Answer 6

No, the charging light on the Tow Ready breakaway system should turn off if it is not getting a charge from the vehicle. If it stays lit up that could indicate a short somewhere that is drawing power. It could be due to corrosion in the trailer…

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Answer 7

I would start by using a circuit tester, item #PTW2993 if needed, to check the wiring going to and coming from the brake controller. There are 4 wires that will need to be checked. White - Ground Red - Stoplight Switch Black - 12 Volt Constant…

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Answer 8

The breakaway system actually must be attached to its own separate battery by law in most states. Therefore, I cannot recommend that you use a seperate, auxiliary battery on the trailer or the vehicle for that matter for the breakaway switch. The…

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Answer 9

The cable loop for the breakaway switch in the Trailer Break Away Kit With Built-In Tester and Battery Charger, #50-85-315, does not attach to the ball. Run the pin through a safety chain loop on the hitch. Pass it through the loop on the other end…

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Answer 10

You are correct, you should only be getting output when the brake is applied, or the override switch is activated. It sounds like the controller might be bad, but to make sure, you should probably bench test it before tossing it. Use a circuit…

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Answer 11

I took a look at the online version of your 2014 Ram 2500 owner's manual. It looks like there should be a 30 amp pink fuse located in the F11 position inside the power distribution box (under the hood). This particular fuse is for the…

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Answer 12

To check the pins on the vehicle side 7-Way, you can use a circuit tester or the volt meter. The circuit tester will show you if a signal is coming through on the pin you are testing while the volt meter will tell you that and how much voltage is…

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Troubleshooting Red Light on Brake Controller when Headlights Are Turned On

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