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Trailer Brake Question

Rog Man

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Rog Man Enthusiast

Rog Man

Posted
Posted

I have a 2006 GMC 2500HD I bought it used but i was told that the trailer hitch and brake controller are all factory installed.

My question is , should the green light in the controller ALWAYS be on?

Of coarse when i brake the light turns yellow and the controller indicates if there is a problem the light will be red BUT even with the key out of the ign and the truck all locked up the green light is ALWAYS on. Is this normal?? progress.gif I even went to Nicholson GM on the south side and asked them if this was proper?

They couldn't answer my question except to say that they didn't think the green light would draw enough too matter.

You would think GM would know ????

Sheesh.

On my huntin buddy's Ford truck it works like this.. the green light indicates the trailer is plugged in and all is well.

when he steps on the brake the light changes color and when he unplugs the trailer the green light goes off?

My truck shows green when nothing is plugged in?

If my brake controller is faulty i would like to change it but it seems even the outfit that built my truck can't answer this simple question? progress.gif

Rog Man Enthusiast

Rog Man

Posted
  • Author
Posted

OOPS !!!!!!

I got an internal server error 500 when i posted this so i reposted it and now i see it is posted twice?

Can a moderator please delete one of them for me??

pwall Senior Enthusiast

pwall

Posted
Posted

Did GM have 'factory installed' brake controllers in 2006? Thought that started in 2007, but I can be wrong.

Are you sure it's not an aftermarket controller? Does it reside under the dash and have any labels/name on it?

Rog Man Enthusiast

Rog Man

Posted
  • Author
Posted

I was told it was factory install but i guess i was naieve????

I snapped a pic of it. It all plugs in there are no wire splices or anything , thats why i thought maybe it really was factory installed???post-58540-1231657525_thumb.jpg

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builderpaul Enthusiast

builderpaul

Posted
Posted
I have a 2006 GMC 2500HD I bought it used but i was told that the trailer hitch and brake controller are all factory installed.

My question is , should the green light in the controller ALWAYS be on?

Of coarse when i brake the light turns yellow and the controller indicates if there is a problem the light will be red BUT even with the key out of the ign and the truck all locked up the green light is ALWAYS on. Is this normal?? progress.gif I even went to Nicholson GM on the south side and asked them if this was proper?

They couldn't answer my question except to say that they didn't think the green light would draw enough too matter.

You would think GM would know ????

Sheesh.

On my huntin buddy's Ford truck it works like this.. the green light indicates the trailer is plugged in and all is well.

when he steps on the brake the light changes color and when he unplugs the trailer the green light goes off?

My truck shows green when nothing is plugged in?

If my brake controller is faulty i would like to change it but it seems even the outfit that built my truck can't answer this simple question? progress.gif

 

 

Not factory installed. This was not an option till 07.

 

2 things:

 

My controller stays on for about 5 min after the key is turned off. Are you sure yours is on all the time?

 

Yours may not be hooked up to the correct power supply. These hook up with a harness to the panel under the dash above the brake pedal. See if the wires from the controller go into this box. There is a plug in area for the controller should be no wire splicing needed.

 

As long as the controller works that light being on will not effect the batteries life.

pwall Senior Enthusiast

pwall

Posted
Posted

Yeah, definitely not a factory brake controller.

A buddy of mine has a 'uhual' brand in his truck, and I'm sure the light is on all the time. He hasn't had any issues with battery drain in 2 years.

 

Might be a good time to consider an upgrade to a Prodigy. ;)

bassmaster345 Enthusiast

bassmaster345

Posted
Posted

I have an aftermarket trailer brake that I want to do away with cause I have no use for it. I know when they hooked it up they added or moved a fuse in the box under the hood, after unhooking this unit do I need to remove or move the fuse back? Not sure which fuse it was. My truck is a '04 2500HD

Paul58 Enthusiast

Paul58

Posted
Posted
I have an aftermarket trailer brake that I want to do away with cause I have no use for it. I know when they hooked it up they added or moved a fuse in the box under the hood, after unhooking this unit do I need to remove or move the fuse back? Not sure which fuse it was. My truck is a '04 2500HD

 

I have an aftermarket brake controller on my truck as well (Prodigy) and as far as I can tell, I just need to disconnect it and remove it and nothing more. The fuse they relocated may have been an unused fuse filling a blank spot. Not sure why they would have relocated the fuse if it was connected to an active circuit because you would have lost power to what ever it was protecting! I would say just unplug the harness from the back of the controller, tie strap it under the dash out of the way, remove the controller and mounting bracket and be done with it!

pwall Senior Enthusiast

pwall

Posted
Posted

In the '04, the fuse (which would have been a 40amp ??) was for the 'charging' circuit to the trailer to charge the on-board battery.

If you remove the brake controller, there is not real need to remove the fuse. The wire in the hardness would be live, but if nothing is plugged into it, shouldn't matter.

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