I am having a problem getting the running lights on my Ventura to work. i assume that the problem is in my car's wiring because the lights work with other vehicles. The brake lights and turn signals are fine.
I noticed today that other brands of trailers (Boler specifically) do not have running lights at the top of the trailer. Or perhaps the lights low at the back sides are running lights? So my question is, do you have to have running lights to drive during the day on the highways of Canada, in particular.
I would like to take the trailer to BC to have a family member work on the electrical system.
By the way, the car is a 2009 Toyota Venza in case anyone has this or another Toyota that has been tricky to wire and has some hints.
Patricia, if your trailer’s tail lights are working with the tow vehicle lights on, then the problem is in the trailer and not the TV. I suspect that the upper running lights are conneted (poorly) to your tail lights “running lights circuit”. If your trailer’s running tail lights do not come on when the TV lights are on, then I would look at your pig tail connections, using a simple test light into the TV plug first, and if that checks out OK, then open up the trailer’s pigtail and check the wires for corrosion or fractured wires. Best of luck.
Dave & Paula
I am having a problem getting the running lights on my Ventura to work. i assume that the problem is in my car's wiring because the lights work with other vehicles. The brake lights and turn signals are fine.
I noticed today that other brands of trailers (Boler specifically) do not have running lights at the top of the trailer. Or perhaps the lights low at the back sides are running lights? So my question is, do you have to have running lights to drive during the day on the highways of Canada, in particular.
I would like to take the trailer to BC to have a family member work on the electrical system.
By the way, the car is a 2009 Toyota Venza in case anyone has this or another Toyota that has been tricky to wire and has some hints.
If I'm not mistaken you have a tail light converter that takes the cars wiring and matches it to the trailer if you are using a four wire plug. You could test it with a trailer harness tester plugged into the vehicle harness. If you do not show any tailights at the output odds are the little electronic converter gizmo has failed if you do not see obvious damaged wires.
Edit, or the little clamp on connector they use to attach most wiring harnesses is not making a connection. That is a bit harder to check.
You could look at the little blue connectors I've pictured and see if one has a problem if the tester shows the taillights are out.
I doubt that running lights are required these days in Canada, as none of the Escape trailers currently manufactured have them, nor have I seen them on other trailer maker websites.
In the USA they are required if the trailer is over 80 inches wide, otherwise nope.
Trailer: Escape 21, behind an '02 F250 7.3 diesel tug
Mid Left Coast
Posts: 2,941
Quote:
Originally Posted by tractors1
I doubt that running lights are required these days in Canada, as none of the Escape trailers currently manufactured have them, nor have I seen them on other trailer maker websites.
In the USA they are required if the trailer is over 80 inches wide, otherwise nope.
my 2014 E21 has them
also yellow marker lights on the top front corners.
In Oregon vehicle code, the term "running lights" refers to the top lights on the front and back of the trailer, not the corner marker lights.
I learned this while building a custom stickie pick up camper in 1985 as I didn't see any reason to have the three centered lights at the top (front and rear) and leaving them off would mean fewer potential leak holes. I had to check with Oregon DMV to have them look up the requirements and definitions.
Trailer light converters are cheap and unreliable... I have often seen them cause issues with vehicle lights, let alone trailer lights, and replacing the converter often solves the problem.
With a 4 pin connector, one of the pins is the ground wire.
On the TV side, that ground may just attached to the frame somewhere, may be exposed to corrosion. It is best to have the ground wired all the way to the battery.
Likewise on the trailer side, are all the lights connected to that ground wire?
If you have the old incandescent bulbs in the side markers or running lights, that may not be making good contact in the socket.
I have a "72" Ventura and had the same problem. The body is fibreglass and the lights need a ground wires found that mine had bad connection and to replace the connections in the front under the seat and same in the back under the seats, Good luck ,
Guy
I thought they were referred to as "Clearance Lights", named, so that you can check your mirrors at night and tell whether you cleared that low overpass. Did you hear a bump?
...Apparently you didn't. Now you might want to move it, see the "No Parking" sign?
I am having a problem getting the running lights on my Ventura to work. i assume that the problem is in my car's wiring because the lights work with other vehicles. The brake lights and turn signals are fine.
I noticed today that other brands of trailers (Boler specifically) do not have running lights at the top of the trailer. Or perhaps the lights low at the back sides are running lights? So my question is, do you have to have running lights to drive during the day on the highways of Canada, in particular.
I would like to take the trailer to BC to have a family member work on the electrical system.
By the way, the car is a 2009 Toyota Venza in case anyone has this or another Toyota that has been tricky to wire and has some hints.
Your car is required to have running lights for day use given its age and of course it already does have them on it. So no worries there. But are confusing the situation. Your trailer is an entirely different vehicle as far as the law goes.
If I have read the following document correctly then given the age of your trailer you are allowed to install them if you want to but it does not state in this document that you are required to install them. If it was a requirement then it would have said you are required to put them in. http://cvse.ca/vehicle_inspections/P...unningLamp.pdf
Day time running lights in Canada are only headlights, every car or truck sold in Canada since 1990 have them. One still needs to turn the headlamp switch on for the taillights to work.
Trailer light converters are cheap and unreliable... I have often seen them cause issues with vehicle lights, let alone trailer lights, and replacing the converter often solves the problem.
The trailer light wires come from the vehicle, they have nothing to do with the circuits that are coming out of the converter. So therefore the converter itself is not involved in the trouble shooting tree diagram for solving tail lights, marker lights or running lights. Yes the converters can be bad but you are confused about what circuits they are powering.
Day time running lights in Canada are only headlights, every car or truck sold in Canada since 1990 have them. One still needs to turn the headlamp switch on for the taillights to work.
It think you got that right, it clarifies the issue. So many similar names are being used for different items.
The trailer light wires come from the vehicle, they have nothing to do with the circuits that are coming out of the converter. So therefore the converter itself is not involved in the trouble shooting tree diagram for solving tail lights, marker lights or running lights. Yes the converters can be bad but you are confused about what circuits they are powering.
I was talking about the converter in the tow vehicle wiring harness that combines the turn and brake signals (for those vehicles that have amber turn signals), not the 120V to 12V converter in the trailer.
I am having a problem getting the running lights on my Ventura to work. i assume that the problem is in my car's wiring because the lights work with other vehicles. The brake lights and turn signals are fine.
I noticed today that other brands of trailers (Boler specifically) do not have running lights at the top of the trailer. Or perhaps the lights low at the back sides are running lights? So my question is, do you have to have running lights to drive during the day on the highways of Canada, in particular.
I would like to take the trailer to BC to have a family member work on the electrical system.
By the way, the car is a 2009 Toyota Venza in case anyone has this or another Toyota that has been tricky to wire and has some hints.
Canada requires only daytime running lights which is your headlights on during the day. If your vehicle does not have daytime running lights then you must turn on your headlights. It is so drivers can see you coming. I don't believe your trailer lights have to be on during the day.
But, you do have to turn your headlights on in a tunnel ( signs will advise ), even though you have daytime running lights. Turning on your headlights also turns on the taillights.
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