Trailer wiring melted!

[sfeaver]

Had a problem on the weekend where after moving the van for the first time in two weeks, the brake lights stayed on dimly. Well eventually I found the cause. Thought I would share it, would be a good idea to take a quick peak if you have a connector like this. On the new one I covered everything in dieletric grease so the water can't attack it again.

Had quite a smell too, although at first I just assumed it was the exhaust since it had been sitting so long. Well it wasnt!

That wire that is missing was complete eaten away from corrision. Thats the orange wire.





Hope this might save someone some agrivation. The orange wire is fed from the front underhood fuse panel with a 30 amp fuse. Thats where the feed for keeping the lights came from. But if I hadnt found the cause I wonder what would have happened if it melted more!

Scott

[1Gary]

Holy Crow Scott!!!.Any chance to install a in line fuse closer to the plug??.You sure have me thinking about one now.

[astroturf]

Good find. I might have encapsulated the wires in a silicone though. Do you have a pic of the repair? Again Thanks for sharing. Jim

[potskie]

I have seen that happen on all of our trucks at work. It was so bad on our F650 it melted the entire trailer fuse/relay box ( the F650s have a seperate fuse/relay box for the trailer stuff). The round 7-ways seem to have an issue with that. We tried Die-elec grease but we use them so much that it still happens. The weather covers don't seem to keep any crap out either. I have opened them before and found chunks of rock salt in the connector.

What we have taken to doing in the winter when we don't use them except on a few select trucks is to remove em and enclose the wiring.

[LiftedAWDAstro]

Yup, had that happen on the SPB once while at Lockdoc's house. At first I thought the brakes were sticking but then as I walked around the rear, I saw the smoke.

[Smiliesafari]

Excellent post, Scott. Thanks. I can't tell you how many of those connectors I've had to replace on the vehicles and trailers at the landscape company. Even here in Florida they corrode quickly. I'm glad your vehicle didn't sustain any damage.

[Kabey's Van]

I too have had the same issue, must be a crappy design.
On my pickup I moved the plug-in to the front of the box, on the inside. Then I extended the wire on the trailer so it can reach the front of the box.
This keeps it out of the weather and away from the road grime. Haven't had a problem with it since.

Peter

[potskie]

Excellent post, Scott. Thanks. I can't tell you how many of those connectors I've had to replace on the vehicles and trailers at the landscape company. Even here in Florida they corrode quickly. I'm glad your vehicle didn't sustain any damage.

Hey I work in that industry :P I'm convinced in the summer it's the grass clippings / fertilizer and winter well winter is obvious.

[wkastro]

I just wired the seven conductor jack on my 2003 AWD Astro. It has the tow package. I wired the turn & running lights through a flat four, inside the jack box, so I can disconnect them when not in use. Just before I cut the wires to length, I checked the 12V (orange) wire - it was hot!!! I unplugged it at the block by the driver's left foot, and will leave it unplugged when not in use. I suspect that the corrosion problems seen in the jacks at the rear bumper are due to the combination of the miserable, wet, salty environment and the 12V + ground left on full time. I did my best to keep out the weather, used dielectric grease inside the connector, and will leave the lights and power disconnected when not in use. I'll give a corrosion report after the next Michigan winter.