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Wiring question


GingerKid

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I just rewired my ranger for a 7 pin harness, and now everything works except the the running lights. I had thought that the running lights were with the same wire as the tail lights but at a lower voltage, maybe the 7 pin is different? The auxiliary wire is for auxiliary power and not auxiliary lighting right? Any ideas on what I did wrong?
 


GingerKid

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looks like I'm going to answer my own question here. I mis-interpreted the diagram that came with my 7 pin wiring plug. The top left pin was marked taillights, which I assumed to mean brake lights. I found another diagram that labels this pin as the one for the running lights. I'll rewire it and see how it goes. I'll post the diagram if anyone needs it
 

adsm08

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Tail lights are the ones that come on with the parks and headlights, brake lights come on with the brakes.
 

Will

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Yeah, you answered your own question.

That picture you posted--the terminology isn't very good. On our site, in the tech library, we have a complete explanation with better diagrams. Like this (truck side):


The center wire can be anything you want. An intercom for states that allow passengers in a trailer, for instance. I've not seen a trailer with backup lights. Taillights and running lights are the same circuit, naturally. The 12V is for charging the trailer battery.
 
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I have a trailer with backup lights. They don't help, but they are there.
 

GingerKid

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Well, I had limited success. I wired the correct wire to the correct pin, and now I have running lights, but they're too bright. Like brake light bright, instead of the lower power they're supposed to be. Hitting the brakes give no change either. Any ideas? Did I get the wrong wire again somehow?
 

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Did you use a tap to connect to your truck or did you try to splice into the harness? It could be that your truck requires a converter because the turn signal and braks use different filaments or bulbs. The brake and tail lights have the same voltage--it's the bulbs that make one brighter than the other.

It appears you do need a converter as this is the tap listed for your truck:


Once that is plugged into the harness under the tailgate, you use this to adapt it to the 7-pin RV plug:
 

GingerKid

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I guess that would be my problem then. I have the part that plugs into the harness, but there isn't a converter on there, just the wires coming out. I had to use a multimeter to figure out which wire was for what. I'll make a trip out later today and grab those two bits, thanks for the help.
 

GingerKid

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Well I got the parts installed, and everything seems to work fine so far. The running lights are still brighter than I think they should be, but maybe thats just the bulbs in this particular trailer. Thanks for the help
 

TomB1269

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FYI, Not all trailer are wired to the standard diagram. Particularly ones with 6 pin blocks and have a specifically made 6 pin block to 7 pin round ambilical. In addition, I have seen some 7 pin rounds that show 12v hot in the middle and revers in the #4 position.
 

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