Troubleshooting 2006 Ram Pickup Whose Radio Stops Working When Trailer is Plugged In
Question:
We purchased a used forest river 27rlss 2016 model. And now when trailer is connected the radio in the truck loses power.lights and brakes all work o k Has motor tounge lift and electric stabilizers and Jensen radio system. Our last trailer was new and we had no issues I am worried it may damage other truck functions The a c stopped working and it was a bad sensor and 1lb low on freon My mechanic said truck wiring is o k Thanks.
asked by: Terry R
Expert Reply:
The trailer wiring circuits in a travel trailer like your tandem axle 2016 Forest River 27rlss should not interact with the radio in the truck in any way at all. There is no overlap of the lighting, brake power or +12V power circuits in the trailer setup with the power connection for the vehicle's OEM radio.
The only way that the trailer's wiring and the truck's radio share any common electrical connection is in that both have a 12V power connection. For just the vehicle radio to stop functioning when a trailer is plugged in is really odd since that would be a totally separate connection to the truck battery.
If the truck's radio installation was aftermarket, meaning not what came in the truck from the factory, then it is possible that the wiring installation for that aftermarket radio might have a fault. If it was aftermarket and if you can find the power wiring for it I would focus on that first to see if you can identify a wire with worn or cracked insulation or some other fault that could cause an interruption of the radio's operating power from the truck.
