No Trailer Running Lights After adding 4-Way Wiring and a 7-Way Adapter on a 2007 Saturn Outlook

Question

Question:

I installed the hitch and wiring harness on my 07 outlook. I have the flat four pin connected to a 7 pin adapter that I also purchased through you. I dont have the blue, purple or red wires connected to anything. I gorounded the white wire to the frame. Problem is that I dont get any running lights. Brakes and turn signals work fine. Any Ideas?

asked by: Jacob D

0

Expert Reply:

The First thing I would do is make sure that the ground wire from the wiring harness, # 118434, and the ground wire from the Adapter, # 30717, are attached to good ground locations that are free of paint, primer, and corrosion on your 2007 Saturn Outlook.

It sounds like you may have already done this, so once you are sure the grounds on the vehicle are good, make sure the connections between the left side taillight and vehicle wiring harness are fully seated and locked in place. The left side is where the wiring harness gets the taillight signal from also.

Next, without a trailer connected, disconnect the 4-Way harness from the adapter and test it for proper function with a circuit tester, like part # PTW2993. If you are not getting a taillight signal at the connection point where the brown wire goes into the connector, then you will need to check the inside of the connection points to be sure one of the pins has not gotten bent or damaged. If not, the harness must have a short somehow and would most likely need to be replaced.

If the 4-Way connector on part # 118434 is working correctly, plug it back into the 7-Way adapter and test the inside of the adapter with the circuit tester. You should get a reading on the # 3 terminal in the 11 O-clock position inside the connector. We have a wiring article that has a photo of the inside of the connector that is labeled to make checking the functions of the 7-Way easier.

If you have taillights at the 4-Way, but do not have taillights in the 7-Way adapter then the adapter will need to be replaced. If the adapter has power to the taillight terminal, you will need to turn your attention to the trailer wiring.

On the trailer I would start with checking all of the ground connections. Make sure each light is properly grounded to bare metal and there is not something like a plastic license plate holder causing a weak ground.