How is Vehicle and Trailer Wiring Grounded on a 2001 Dodge Ram 2500

Question:

I owned a trailer in early 80s and wiring trailers was much simpler from the book...use circuit tester-find parking lamps wire usually brown ,then yellow and green for turn sigs /brake...three wires maybe a backup lite wire...but the ground was on frame of vehicle and was transfered to trailer thru ball and hitch..if either was rusty-drive around block to scrape thru rust...is my 01 ram 2500 the same or is there a ground wire on ram that has to transfer to lights on trailer ?

asked by: Bill

Expert Reply:

When adding trailer wiring to a vehicle or if a vehicle has it from the factory the harness itself is grounded to the vehicle and the connector on the trailer side is grounded to the trailer frame.

To add trailer wiring to your 2001 Dodge Ram you can use # 118329 to add a 4-Way flat connector. I have included a link to the installation instructions and a video showing a typical installation.

To add a 7-Way you would first install the 4-Way and then use isntallation kit # ETBC7. I have included some links that explain the ETBC7 installation. Note that even though the 4-Way is grounded, the 7-Way also has to be grounded to the vehicle frame.

expert reply by: Michael H