long weekend you contacted me re brakes on my van just wondering if the ford has the brake wiring already installed so you just need to connect the controller ( and of course have the ford tail light trailer assembly ) to it or did they have to run all new connections to it in your vehicle ?
I just had a look. In the BF wagon the wiring is accessed through the jack access hatch. There is a blue wire in the loom going to the trailer socket but the local Ford mechanics have also run a separate blue wire from the front and connected it to the trailer wiring connection socket using a small terminal block. Probably more positive than the Scotch (I think that is what they are called) splicing clips.
So from that I imagine that there is some sort of problem at the front of the car regarding the blue wire. It seems strange that Ford has tow bars, transmission oil coolers and easy wiring for trailers but not for electric brake controllers.
I cannot see the activation wire - so presumably that is wired to the controller at the front dashboard. Other than that all wires from the controller disappear behind the dash so I am unable to see exactly where they go.
Previously I wired up our AU Falcon - ran the blue power wire and red activation wire from the front through channels in the body to the rear. The red activation wire was connected to the positive of the brake light (not the negative - if the bulb blows then the brakes will not work). An auto electrician could find the right wire in the loom at the front to save running the red wire right through - but I couldn't! A length of spring curtain wire was helpful - taped the two wires to an end and fed them through. Had to re-tape the wires several times after pulling them through holes.
If you do it yourself then do not use the switch on the brake pedal if you have cruise control. Apparently the brake controller interferes with the cruise control - or the other way round.
The resettable fuse had me puzzled but it turns out that they are readily available 'off the peg' from auto supply stores such as Super Cheap. They are a small square metal box with contacts at each end. Mounting is by tabs screwed to any surface. Note that like ordinary fuses they are rated by Amps.
Incidentally, my first controller was a Teckonsha Voyager. Simple and worked well. The sensitivity (braking force) is set with a thumb wheel and the levelling of the unit was also manually adjusted. When we changed from the AU to BF I went for a Tekonsha P3. It has digital display telling, among other things, the voltage being applied to the brakes and whether the trailer is connected or not. Braking force is set by pressing a button - from zero to ten. For our Freedom it is set on four.
Down here in civilisation (Canberra) there are businesses that call to your house and fit tow bars and install electric brake controllers. My son in law has used their services twice - saved me from doing the job.
Hope this helps.
Murray
-- Edited by Long Weekend on Wednesday 30th of September 2015 01:29:04 PM
-- Edited by Long Weekend on Wednesday 30th of September 2015 08:29:31 PM
thanks for all that went with the teckonsha unit and ended up having the auto elect fit it still took him 4 hrs ! haven't tried it yet as want to pull the drums off the wheels of the brick and re grease and check units work before going on the road
i did spot the blue wires in the harness in the taillight
will be taking it to be weighed first thing when i find the brakes work so i know what the weight is
