Brake Controller Causing Brake Lights and Acceleration to Malfunction on a 2013 Nissan Frontier

Question:

I recently took my 2013 Nissan Frontier to the dealer because the brake light would not turn off when I shut the vehicle off and it was draining my battery. At the same time I began to notice some acceleration issues. The dealer told me the brake controller that was installed to tow my camper was the culprit and they disconnected it. I called Camping World where I had the brake controller installed and they said they never heard of such a thing happening yet my truck is working perfect now that the brake controller is disconnected. Im afraid theyll give me a hard time about reinstalling a new brake controller. Have you ever heard of this happening before and if so how do we avoid it happening again?

asked by: Lisa P

Expert Reply:

You do have a very interesting situation. I spoke with my contact at Tekonsha, who is one of the leading brake controller manufacturers out there, and he said that the only way that a brake controller would be causing the brake pedal on your 2013 Nissan Frontier to activate (which it sounds like what is happening) is if it were hardwired incorrectly. Any brake controller will have 4 wires on it; one that is ground, one that is run to the battery for power, one that is run to the brake controller pin on your 7-Way, and one that is connected to the COLD side of your stop light switch (only gets hot when brake pedal is pressed).

It looks like your Frontier has a plug on it for a brake controller to use a plug-in adapter, like part # 3050-P for the Tekonsha Prodigy P3 # 90195. It is very unlikely, but if your plug-in adapter is pinned out incorrectly and you have some internal short or damage on your current brake controller then that might be causing your brakes to activate.

You can try using a circuit tester, like part # PTW2992, to test the different wires on your plug to make sure they are working correctly but it sounds like you will need a new brake controller.

If you check out the picture that I attached of the # 3050-P adapter you can test the wires on your plug for functionality with a circuit tester (remember the pins will be mirrored on your plug). The White is Ground, Blue is to the 7-Way, Black is 12V Power (will have constant power), and Red is for COLD side of the Stop Light Switch (which will only have power when the brake is pressed).

If everything checks out okay I would have to say that it was your brake controller and that you need a new one. I recommend the P3 # 90195 and adapter that I mentioned earlier as it is the easiest brake controller to use and has been found to be very reliable.