No Brake Lights with Hopkins Plug-In Harness On a 2013 Volvo XC70

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Question:

I purchased the tow light harness above for my 2013 Volvo xc70 and installed it. My problem is that the harness connects to the lower brake lights on the car. When the volvo rear hatch is closed, the vehicle only uses the lower brake lights as adaptive brake lights and not during normal braking. When the tailgate is up the lower brake lights work, when the tailgate is closed they do not. Since the harness is tapped into the lower lights, I dont get trailer brake lights. I realize that this is on the vehicle side of things, but the harness sales should not be compatible with my vehicle if this is the normal state of the car. I can find no information on the web about re configuring the lower brake lights to operate outside of adaptive mode. If you have any insight on how my might adapt this harness to work with my vehicle, Id appreciate input.

asked by: Anthony R

0

Expert Reply:

There are two different sets of tail lights on a 2013 Volvo XC70, a pair in the quarter panel at chest height and a pair in the lower bumper at knee height. I took a look at all the trailer wiring harnesses for a 2013 Volvo XC70 (Curt T-Connector part # C56386, Tekonsha T-One part # 118774, and Hopkins Plug-In part # HM11143735) and these all show the connectors plugging into the tail lights at chest height (see photo). It sounds like you may somehow have them plugged into the tail lights at knee height and not the tail lights at chest height as that would very well cause the issue you are having.

If you take a look at the attached instructions for the Curt T-Connector, these are much more detailed so they should help with the Hopkins Plug-In. I took a look at all of the other reviews for the Hopkins Plug-In and no one else mentioned this same problem so I believe the issue is with the installation portion.

expert reply by: Conner L

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Answer 1

Trailer wiring harnesses for your 2011 Volvo XC70 use powered converters to draw the power for the trailer's wiring. This prevents the taillights of your Volvo from having to power the trailer wiring. The Hopkins kit part #HM11143735 that fits…

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Answer 2

I have attached a photo for you which shows a vehicle WITH the raised edges on the end panel and a vehicle WITHOUT the raised edges on the end panel. This end panel is attached to the vehicle's body, not the rear bumper fascia. If you take a look…

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Answer 3

When installing The Tekonsha Prodigy P3 Trailer Brake Controller - 1 to 4 Axles - Proportional #90195 on your 2012 Volvo XC70 the only other part you would need would be The Wiring Kit for 2, 4, 6, and 8 Brake Electric Trailer Brake Controllers…

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Answer 4

For your 2015 Volvo XC70 I would recommend the Curt #13266 over the Draw-Tite #75916. These trailer hitches have an almost identical design. Although the Draw-Tite has a higher towing capacity, it looks like both of the hitches exceed the towing…

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Answer 5

The Curt T-Connector Vehicle Wiring Harness with 4-Pole Flat Trailer Connector #C56386 and the Hopkins Plug-In Simple Vehicle Wiring Harness with 4-Pole Flat Trailer Connector #HM11143735 are similar units from different manufacturers that are both…

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Answer 6

It sounds like you are having an issue with the running lights on your trailer. If that is the case then since you have tested the trailer connector and found that power is not reaching this, you either have a blown fuse, bad converter, or shorted…

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Answer 7

The brake lights and turn signals are sent along the same circuit for trailer wiring so it's a bit odd that the turn signals are working fine but the brake lights aren't powering on with the Tekonsha Harness #118463 installed. Most likely the…

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Answer 8

The Draw-Tite Max-Frame Trailer Hitch Receiver - Custom Fit - Class III - 2" #75916 will give you a hitch height of 14-1/4 inches from the ground to the inside top of the receiver. That means you will have a ground clearance of 11-3/4 inches at…

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Answer 9

The #118739 Tekonsha T-One harness and #C56355 Curt T-Connector harness are both custom fit for the 2017 Volvo XC60. The installation is the same for both. The Curt has a powered converter using SMT and the Tekonsha has a powered ModuLite converter,…

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Answer 10

The difference between the Class II and Class III hitches has to do with their Gross Trailer Weight (GTW), their Tongue Weight (TW), and their Hitch Receiver Size. Class II trailer hitch receivers have a 1-1/4 inch receiver and can be rated up to…

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Answer 11

I've never heard of an actual third brake light connector on a camper shell to plug in on a truck and we don't carry any parts to do that. The light generally needs to be hardwired into the truck's brake light circuit. The issue with this…

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Answer 12

If you are needing the hub and drum assembly then you will want to go with the Dexter Trailer Hub and Drum Assembly #8-201-5UC3-EZ but if you are just looking for an idler hub then you will want part #8-213-5UC1 instead. These come with the correct…

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No Brake Lights with Hopkins Plug-In Harness On a 2013 Volvo XC70

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