Trailer / Car electrics...

O.K. this is not exactly a H16 problem... but it is related to the transportation of Hobies. I tow my Hobie on a trailer with the standard US illumination kit (rear light - blinker combo all red). The towing vehicle is a VW van with the European style lights (amber turn signals, rear lights, stop lights - all separate). I got one of those hoppy(?) conversion kits that suggest that they would convert a European style vehicle to a common bulb system found on US trailers. The kit is installed but I have only running light function. The turn signal functions on the trailer is only visible if I remove the trailer’s lens covers and look at the light bulbs themselves (just a very dim gleaming light). What do I do wrong??? Any other converters that might work better than the one I am using???

Thanks,
Patrick

The first place I look when I have trailer wiring problems is the ground wire. Sometimes the hitch itself will act as the ground, but not always. For testing, take a jumper cable and connect a bare metal spot on the tow vehicle to a bare metal spot on the trailer. After that is done, you can narrow down any individual wire or light problems, knowing that you have a solid ground connection.
Jack

I concur with the above post, do not depend on the ball as a ground. What happens is somehow the other lights find a ground off in the other direction and cause a short. I don't understand this either but I think that is what happens. Obviously make sure no hot wires have frayed and are touching the frame.
I have lost two 'cruise controls' which worked off the brake light, until I found some resolution. Again caution if the lights do not work right, do not push it and think it is going to fix itself, or you will learn the way I did. To further protect against the reverse polarity, I added a diode on each curcuit. Also, one of the two the filaments in the bulbs can break off, touch and cause reverse polarity.

Hi,

Thanks for the responses so far. The trailers wiring harness is new. I installed it by soldering the cables and I used heat shrink tubing instead of the crimp on junk. When I test the trailers electrics, by running 12 volt to the individual pins on the plug /connector the whole system seems to work fine. I can basically simulate all the light functions the trailer should have. This is why I think the trailer is O.K..
Ground... I had the same concerns with bad ground connections, especially since I have on of those tilting style trailers, where the tongue is hinged to the rest. I decided to run the ground wire past the tongue to a permanently mounted piece of frame.

In the next days I might try to find someone who lets me hock up my car to a properly functioning trailer... will see if the problem is caused by my car!?
Does someone know about those converter modules (I currently use a Hoppy brand black box style module converter is integrated in the connector) ? Are there good and crappy ones? Which types should I avoid?

Thanks,

Patrick

I am pulling my H14 with a 1989 Nissan pickup. I also have the same problem. On my trailer I modified the lights, removing the wire on the frame bolt (for ground) and soldered on a separate ground wire. I then ran this wire all the way to the hitch plug. This bypassed using the frame for any electric connections, guaranteeing that I will never have a rusty ground connection, the largest problem for all trailer wiring. With this perfect ground, I still have the same problem you do, my flashers are very dim. I am using a conversion kit that came from Napa on my truck. I know this is not the answer you are looking for but it eliminates a bad ground connection off the list of possible problems. Please keep us posted once you get it fixed.

Thanks
Capt Morse

If you have checked the ground and all of the wire connections are correct, then I would suspect a bad converter. I used one on my jeep cherokee with no problems. I used to have another trailer I used with my nissan truck, and instead of the box I just added two lights so one could be run / brake and the other turn.

You can check the trailor with a new 9 volt battery and test each function to eliminate the trailer.

Hi,
I stoped at the friendly local home improvement store, and they let me hock up my van to one of their new trailers. Same problem as with my hobie trailer at home - running lights - but no signl or brake light. So I guess it is the coverter - or the person who installed it (me)...

Patrick

Here is a pic of the thing that caused all the problems with my trailer electrics - the evil Hoppy tail light converter. I replaced the one in the pic - the new coverter is working well!!!

Did you replace it with another Hoppy? Or with another brand.

I am glad that the problem was found and corrected. For those who are, or who may (in future times) follow this thread, I'd like to share a related anecdote.

A fellow cat sailor bought a used cat and trailer. He hooked up new lights on the trailer and did the wiring on the truck. Everything worked well when 12 volts was applied to the trailer.

When the trailer was hooked up to the truck, things were not working correctly. I troubleshot the system and here is what I found: The ground wire was securely screwed into the bottom of the steel bed of the truck. [color:"orange"]The bed of the truck was sitting on vibration isolators, resembling motor mounts which, did not allow an electrical connection between the bed and the chassis of the vehicle! [/color]

On a side note, this dielectric isolation of the bed of the truck makes me wonder about static electricy implications.

The lesson learned is that the trailer needs to be connected, via ground wire, to the same hunk of metal that the battery is connected to, not to the electrically isolated bed of some trucks.


GARY
(IBEW)

Damon... Yop! I used an other Hoppy converter... the new one did the job!

Patrick

Hey Patrick...

Just another option for future projects! I had this same issue with my Hobie trailer and my utility trailer. I resolved it by buying a pair of amber running lamps for each trailer. After installion, I replaced the dim bulbs with brighter ones, and ran separate wiring to the front of the trailer. I used a two wire plug from Radio Shack (that can only be plugged together one way) to connect the trailer wires to the wires spliced from the car's turn signals. The trailer wires share the ground wire.

This has worked well for over 7 years.

Mark Owens
1976 H16 Sail # 19857