Need help in wiring up trailer rear lights

[alan H]

My perris pacer was purchased without working rear lights. I'm confused on how to wire the fixtures, each has 2 bulbs, with the bottom bulb being a dual element. Can I assume that the socket with the dual element bulbs would be for stop/ turn signal and that the single bulb socket would be for running lights ? or am I missing something ?
The rear light fixtures are reflect-o-lite #720 /#750

Hopefully someone can advise me in the correct wiring

Thanks in advance

[Thomas G.]

Generally trailers have a single, dual filament bulb. The bright filament is for brake / turn signal and the dimmer filament is for running lights. Is there possibly a back up light also built into the light fixture?

[Roy in TO]

What colour wires were coming out of the light fixtures? Sometimes that will match with standards.

[alan H]

on the socket w/ dual element bulb...the colors are red & green
on the socket w/ single element bulb..only a single white wire

[BCDave]

I will start off by saying that I have never even seen a Perris Pacer, so my comments are i respect to "general practice".

A lot of times, there will be a dual element bulb that is brakes on the bright element and running lights on the other element, with turn sigs on a separate, stand-alone bulb that would be behind an amber lens.

Others (Far more common on trailers!) may have brakes/turn sigs on the bright element and running lights on the other, with the separate bulb being for back-up lights.

Do you have the lenses for the lights? If not, now is you opportunity to install whatever kind of lights YOU want back there, by wiring in what YOU want!

[Roy in TO]

Could it be the 2 wires are brake and signal with the single used running light?

[Harlequin]

in the tail lights that came on ours there are 2 bulbs. a dual filament that is running and brake\turn. then there is a second bulb that is connected to the brake\turn wire by the continuation of a metal plate inside the fixture. if yours is set up similarly and you don't know which wire is which coming out of the trailer, that will help. the wires for the running lights should be the same color for both sides and connect to the part that doesn't continue onto the second bulb. turn signal wires will be different colors for the different sides and connect to the part that does continue. the white wire (on scamps at least) is the negative/return wire.

[Joe MacDonald]

On my Trillium I had basically the same set-up, and this is what I did:
the light with the single wire should be a marker or running light.
The light with two wires, one is for Brake/signal, and the other is another running light, the ground wire for each side has to make contact with the metal part of the tailight fixture.

[Roy in TO]

You will need a circuit tester. With good bulbs I would check both the red and green to the white. If you have continuity with both, then the white is the ground. If that is the case take the bulbs out. Then check for continuity with the pins and both wires to the white.
The wire that will give you continuity on pins in both sockets will be your signal/brake wire and the other your marker light.

If the white is not your ground, see if the metal connecting the two sockets is.

Post your findings.

If I were to hazard a guess, the red is your brake and signal, the green your marker. That taken from traffic lights at an intersection, the red light meaning caution when it is flashing, stop for solid and the green is for go.

[RRJR]

Standard Trillium wiring is as follows

White--Ground
Red---Left signal
Brown- Right signal
Green-- Marker lites
Blk or Blue--12 volt line
Yell-- B/U lites (Op)
Lt Blu--Electric Brakes (Op)

Ron

[RRJR]

Al
Check both left & right sides, you may find the other lite is wired Brn & Grn being R/sig & marker Left side Red-sig and grn for marker.
The extra bulb could have been for older toes with the separate brake and signal bulbs .
Best to test all wires fromj trailer to get it RIGHT>

Ron

[alan H]

Okay you have all given me some great ideas....i'll post my results once i figure out this mess....so it sounds like what most of you are saying is the light with the single wire should be a marker or running light.

[Roy in TO]

I would think 1 bulb lit = marker light
2 bulbs lit (all 3 filaments) = brake and or signal - you want those to stand out from the marker light

[Thomas G.]

Originally Posted by alan H

Okay you have all given me some great ideas....i'll post my results once i figure out this mess....so it sounds like what most of you are saying is the light with the single wire should be a marker or running light.

Remember the filaments are different level of brightness. If you power up each wire sequentially, with a battery or battery charger, it should be obvious which filaments are intended as running and which are brake or turn lights.

A bright, brake filament wired as a running light can be confusing to other drivers.

[Frederick L. Simson]

Originally Posted by Thomas G.

Is there possibly a back up light also built into the light fixture?

This number is usually molded into the plastic lens, and only refers to that bit of plastic and not the fixture as a whole.
One determining factor is the color of the plastic lens:

• Is it all RED?
• Is it part RED and part AMBER?
• Is it part Red and part Clear?

The other determining factor is the type of bulb each one is.

• 2 filament bulbs have one Bright and one Dim.
• 1 filament bulbs are either all Bright or all Dim

On my Fiber Stream I changed out the original fixtures for ones that included a Back-up light.
The model of the lens is a REFLECT-O-LITE NO 910 / 950 .
The lower bulb is an 1157; a 2 filament bulb:

• The Bright filament is for the combined Brake/Turn Signal
• The Dim filament is for the Running or Marker

The upper bulb is an 1156; a 1 filament bulb

• Its Bright filament is behind the Clear section for Back-up lights
• The amber appearance is actually RED built-in reflectors reacting to the camera flash

If your plastic lens is all RED then the 2 filament bulb is the same as mine, one Bright and one Dim.
You need to determine what the 1 filament bulb is:

• Is it Bright?
• Is it Dim?

[alan H]

Fred....where did you get your REFLECT-O-LITE NO 910 / 950 fixtures and could you measure the size....I really like the look of ours

[Frederick L. Simson]

Originally Posted by alan H

Fred....where did you get your REFLECT-O-LITE NO 910 / 950

I got them from a local RV Parts store that orders their stock from this RV On-line Catalog.

While the LENSES are Reflect-o-Lite, the COMPLETE FIXTURES are Peterson.

My Left Tail Light (with the built-in License Plate holder) is Peterson #13382.
My Right Tail Light (Plain, no plate holder) is Peterson #13412.

Lens size = 8 9/16 wide
................4 5/8 high
................1 15/16 deep

[RRJR]

Fred
The single fil bulb on top has to be the backup bulb. It's behind the clear lense.
The double fil are marker (on lowest lite) and brake and turn combined on the brightest.

Ron

[alan H]

The single filament bulb on top was backup
The double filament are and brake and turn

also found a ground problem (isn't that always the problem)

[BCDave]

Actually - it is a completely hopeless situation - the only hope for saving your sanity is to transfer the title and give the trailer to me - since my wife says I am already nutz there is nothing to lose........