Circuit Tester Recommendation to Determine if P3 Brake Controller Senses Trailer Connection

Question:

I have the ETBC7 Brake Controller Installation Kit installed on a 2012 Toyota Highlander with factory 4-way. I am getting a No Trailerinch on my Tekonsha P3 controller using the Tekonsha trailer emulator. What are common issues and what are the troubleshooting steps? I have not used the 7-wire on an actual trailer, yet. When I first installed the unit, I seem to remember having an issue testing with the emulator, but finally had success for all circuits. I am getting ready to pull a trailer and need to be sure everything works per specification.

asked by: Richard T

Expert Reply:

The P3 brake controller part # 90195 needs to sense an amperage draw on the brake output circuit to know that a trailer is connected. We've found that not all emulators will be able to test a brake controller properly so the best recommendation we can make would be to use a # PTW2993 to to test the circuit as that will put enough draw on the circuit to allow a trailer connection.

expert reply by: Jameson C