Tail light power problem....

[SargeW]

Since I rarely tow the toad after dark, I have recently discovered a problem with my 7 pin connector at the back of the coach. For some reason I can't figure out, there is no power to the pin that powers the tail lights. All the rest of the pins have power, and function normally. The tail lights on the rig work normally, as all of the other lights.

I even took the plug apart and tested the wire that runs to the tail light pin. No power.
Is there a fuse just for the tail light circut?? I am stumped..........

 

[SargeW]

Since I rarely tow the toad after dark, I have recently discovered a problem with my 7 pin connector at the back of the coach. For some reason I can't figure out, there is no power to the pin that powers the tail lights. All the rest of the pins have power, and function normally. The tail lights on the rig work normally, as all of the other lights.

I even took the plug apart and tested the wire that runs to the tail light pin. No power.
Is there a fuse just for the tail light circut?? I am stumped..........

 

[Hitchhiker-WO]

I'm not a Winnebago owner but I think I heard someone who is mention that there are some diodes in that circuit to prevent back feeding of power from the toad to the MH. If so, you might want to track them down and test to see if they are bad.

 

[full-timer]

The wire may have rubbed on the chassis and shorted out,in this case you will have to run another wire if you cannot find where it is.

Joe

 

[SargeW]

I was wondering about the diode possibility, but I didn't know if the diode controlled all the lights on the circut, or if each circut had it's own (Stop, tail, turns ect).

 

[John Mc]

Yes, there are fuses just for the 7 pin connector. Our Meridian is a 36G so I'm not sure if the compartments are the same, but our fuses for the trailer connector are behind a panel in our power (water and electical) compartment. That's that rear-most compartment on the drivers side. The panel is on the rear side of the compartment and has some screws that come out to remove the panel and reveal the fuse block. It's pretty well hidden; a Freightliner fuse panel covered up by a Winnie panel.
I hope this helps, it's a little hard to explain.

 

[chasfm11]

When you said that you had a 7 pin connector, I didn't think about this but it might be worth some investigation. On our coach, the stop lamps and turn signals go to separate fixtures. When those signals are transferred to the toad on a 4 prong connector, there is a 3-2 converter box in the circuit. Initially, I had toad light problems and discovered that my 3-2 converter was bad. I had to replace it. It was physically mounted to the frame at the rear of the coach and I found it by following the toad wiring pigtail back.

Just a thought.

 

[SargeW]

All great suggestions guys. I will research the different possibilities and let you know.

 

[SargeW]

Well, I checked all around the electrical compartment for a possible access door. No door or panel of any kind. Then I crawled underneath and searched for a fuse block on the frame rail. No evidence of anything at all. Back to square one............

 

[John Mc]

On ours, it doesn't look much like a door. More like the back panel of the compartment. The screws are black so they were hard to see.
Or maybe your 32T is laid out differently.........

 

[RV Wizard-WO]

Sarge, what chassis are you on? Have you called them? They can tell you exactly where the fuses, relays and diodes are located. You may also want to check the 7 way connector itself if all else is good.

 

[SargeW]

Mike,

I am on a Freightliner XC chassis. I also took the 7 way connector apart and checked the continunity of all the pins. All tested good. When I stripped the electrical tape off from around the back of the wire loom and tested the running light wire, there was no power there. All of the other pins in the 7 way connector have power and function normally.

 

[JLModer2]

I haven't been close enough to an 06 to be sure, but the chassis fuse pannel I believe is behind the house pannel, which is hinged. Take a couple screws out, swing out the pannel, and you should see it.

I believe it should be in the front most bay on the driver's side.

 

[Gary CA]

SargeW: Check out TOW PLUG PROBLEM by Hardy 11-23-06. You may be able to locate the fuse block.

 

[stevedg007]

Sarge...I lost my tail lights too. So my 2 cents worth of advice: Turned out to be a broken ground wire in the back of the coach. There is a large wiring loop hanging in the back section, between the inside and out side fiberglass end cap. This wiring loop was just swinging in the wind, so to speak, the more the coach moved the more the wire loop moved around. Finally breaking the grounding wire off the frame. This caused all tail lights to quit and the marker lamps also. Checking all fuses, everywhere, and all fuses were OK. It was the ground wire in the very back. I found it between the tail lights as explained above. After replaceing the ground wire and zip tying the loop to the frame....everything works.

Good luck........and happy trails!

 

[SargeW]

Well, I found that pesky fuse panel. I finally got a few minutes after the SeeLevel II install, and sent an e-mail to Winne customer service with a specific question about were the fuse panel was. They got back to me with an e-mail within a few hours. They told me the location, and even copied a page out of the engenering diagram book.

There it was, hidden in plain view! I was sure that it was going to be sequestered behind some panel or wall. Nope! Those clever devils put it right on the wall next to the AC unit in the water heater bay. There is a wall seperating the waterheater and a bunch of wiring and such. There big as life was the fuse box, containing several clearly marked fuses. The front of the box even had a 4" tall white "#2" on the cover. It is placed conveinently on the outer edge of the wall, with easy access.

I popped the cover open, and pulled the clearly marked 20 amp fuse. Sure enough it was open. I popped in another fuse and just to make sure, I tested all the other fuses as well.

I guess manufactures do learn something from time to time. Guess I will have to save my grumbling for some other time!

The help and suggestions of everyone here was also invaluable. Thanks for the assist!

Sarge