Troubleshooting Brake Controller Manual Override Brake Lever Causing Unit to Shut Off

Question:

I installed a 90195 tekonsha on my 1999 ford chassis v10 motorhome. The motorhome did not have an adapter plug. We wired everything correctly to the diagram. Wiring the black power line directly to my 12 volt engine battery, and running a white ground wire to the negative side of the battery. When i apply the manual brake handle the system shuts on and restarts. I do have a 20amp auto relay switch between the battery and the controller. The controller does work fine when just applying the brake pedal, all of the trailer lights work correctly as well, the only issue were having is just using the manual handle. Help!!

asked by: Ryan A

Expert Reply:

Because your Prodigy P3 # 90195 is shutting down when you hit the manual override on the controller, it sounds like you have a surge that is tripping the circuit breaker to protect your controller. This could be from a bad ground connection or a short in the brake controller output wire. I recommend checking your ground connections first to make sure they are bare metal to metal at the controller as well as at your 7-way and also that your 20 amp circuit breaker is properly grounded (through the mount in most cases). Then if the problem persists I recommend cutting the blue brake output wire 6 inches behind the controller. Use a circuit tester like # PTW2993 on that blue wire and test your manual override slide. If the slide works properly and does not shut down your system, then run a new wire # 10-1-1 sold by the foot from that location to your 7-way trailer connector. If it still shuts down, then you will need to replace the controller itself.

expert reply by: Jason S