Running Lights Not Working

foxden

Just returned home from a rainy 3 day trip and had an odd thing happen during the trip.  Prior to this trip I attached a rear view camera to my Tab and used the running light wires for power.  Worked fine before the trip but about 30 minutes in I noticed that the camera showed "no signal".  When I got to the campground I saw that my running lights were not working either.  My first thought was a loose connection but when I unplugged the 7 pin and plugged it back in, the running lights and camera came back on.  That happened a few times while I was camping.  I plugged in the 7 pin to check things and lights/camera didn't work.  Then they did.  No signal on the way home but when I drove into my driveway, the camera was working again and so were the running lights.  The brake lights, backup lights, signals, etc. all work fine.  Never a problem with those.  It sounds to me like the 7 pin may be the problem since unplugging and plugging it back in sometimes corrected it temporarily.  Anything else I should be looking for?  Is one "pin" of the 7 pin just dedicated to those side running lights?  Can I get a 7 pin tester or is something else better?  I did crawl under the sofa while camping and checked the connections where I added the camera wires.  It all looked good.

pthomas745

The word "dialectric" sticks in my head from reading practically every forum in this site....here is a search for the word and some threads that discuss 7 pin maintenance..

https://www.google.com/search?q=dialectric+site:http://tab-rv.vanillaforums.com/&oq=dialectric+site:http://tab-rv.vanillaforums.com/&gs_l=psy-ab.3...2118.8821.0.10059.28.21.3.0.0.0.272.1590.17j2j1.20.0.dummy_maps_web_fallback...0...1.1.64.psy-ab..8.0.0....0.I0M-_x0bmLw

foxden

Good point @pthomas745 I briefly thought of that but thought it must be something more complicated.  I will definitely give that a try and hope that is all I need to do!

Michigan_Mike

If it were me, I'd take the wiring harness apart and tighten down each screw lug in the trailer's male end, then do the same thing at the female receptacle at the back of your tow vehicle.  The wire comes up into these points and each wire slips into a small stud with a ser screw and occasionally they will loosen up.  

There should also be a set screw or screws holding the harness body onto the plug end and the same at the female receptacle.  Check for possible corrosion  on the wire ends as well and you can buy some  dielectric wiring compound at your local AutoZone store and put some on the ends of the wire and also where the wiring plugs into the vehicle.  It's probably something very simple and unfortunately these things seem to pop up after projects like the one you just completed, etc.

But to answer your other question, there is a seven prong tester that is available and can be purchased on Amazon or at your local RV store.  I stopped in to Camping World up in Northern Michigan a couple of years ago and they checked my wiring for me, for free.

Good luck!

ericnliz

@foxden, Agree with @Michigan_Mike about checking your connections. Our Avalanche was purchased used, and already had the tow package from the factory. That being said, I had a similar issue with the seven pin connector. I open the door for the seven pin connector on the Avalanche, and found slight corrosion on the connectors. I used a small brass brush, and carefully scraped off the corrosion with a small flat tip screwdriver. I then applied dielectric grease to the pins & slots on the trailer with a Q-Tip. Took care of the problem & hasn't come back since. I also applied the dielectric grease to my shore power connector on both the trailer, and the cord ends (even put a little on the threads for the connector, and it's a LOT easier to screw on now) to prevent corrosion. Hope you find what the crux of your issue is, as I know how frustrating it can be. 

TabulatorJim

In getting our 2018 Tab 320S ready for the season, our left back turn signal and brake light did not work. As the countdown to travel was on and we sought forum advice, we assumed it may need replacing, we ordered a new one, the Kaper II L15-0021 Red LED Trailer Turn Light, from Amazon. 

Preparations were made a further tests conducted. Taking the old one apart and checking it for rust and loose wires, it looked as if replacing this may not prove difficult.

While waiting for its arrival, we sought advice from someone we trusted. We took our unit to Sunwest RV Centre here in Courtenay on Vancouver Island, where we purchased this, and spoke with Erik Vierstra, the service warranty advisor. He went over a series of procedures to see if we could isolate the problem. In order, he is what happened:

1. As the tow vehicle lights all worked, he advised tracking the problem from this on back. He tested the brake/light connector. No problem was found.

2. Next, Erik recommended using dielectric grease (as was suggested above by ericnliz in 2017) on the brake pins. I purchased a very small tube of this from Lordco Auto Parts and applied this using Q-tips without success.

3. Just prior to travel, the replacement light arrived and there was no time to install this. As a last ditch effort, I decided to give the dielectric grease a final try. This time, I cleaned deeper and much more thoroughly – it worked!

We all lit up and had a great holiday.

Hope this helps others enjoy one too.

Cheers,

Jim

Bayliss

@TabulatorJim, good job!  You likely had some corrosion built up on the connector that controls that light, and probably resolved that when you did a deeper cleaning.  You might also want to spray some electrical/electronic contact cleaner (e.g., CRC contact cleaner) on all the pins/connectors (receptacle and plug) for the 7-pin connections, let it dry, and then reapply the dielectric grease for added protection.