Okay, the new boat has a 5-wire system due to the surge brakes.
I have no tail lights, but the running lights work.
I took apart the “circle adapter thingie” and all the wires in there are connected. I pulled back the about 3 feet of conduit that goes over the trailer wires and no problems there.
I have no brake lights or tail lights. But, again, the running lights work up front.
Two blown bulbs in back, maybe:question: That’s my only idea…
'05 Wellcraft 232 Coastal (next week!)Check the ground wires.
Would the running lights work if the ground wasn’t working?
I figure if there’s a bad ground, then there’s NO LIGHT at all…
'05 Wellcraft 232 Coastal (next week!)Ditto on checking the ground. Often a trailer is wired with the trailer frame being the ground. If that is the case, each light has to be bonded ( grounded) to the trailer. Check to be sure the rear lights are bonded to the trailer.
I’ll check it out tomorrow. Thanks.
'05 Wellcraft 232 Coastal (next week!)Your ground wires on your tail lights are probaly exposed where they bolt to the trailer. Doesn’t take long to corrode in salt water.
Some lights have a bolt to the light fixture and the bolt actually is the ground. May want to disconnect bolt and clean trailer frame with sandpaper and put a new clean washer on the bolt that holds the fixture to the trailer if the fixture does not have a seperate ground wire. Good Luck.
Rog
“Double Trouble”
2001 Sea Fox 230
2001 Merc 200
Just thought of something, Take a wire and strip both ends and hold one end to the ground on the light fixture and the other end to a non corroded area of the trailer ( get a good ground without any doubts to the light not working) and see if the light comes on. If so, your problem is a Bad Ground if not you may have another issue.
Rog
“Double Trouble”
2001 Sea Fox 230
2001 Merc 200
Eliminate all the guess work!!! LED Light Kits are so inexpensive, strip the trailer of all old, and replace with new. Problem Fixed for a long time.
Finseeker Fishing Team
32’ Fountain
“ALCOHOL,TOBACCO,AND FIREARMS should be a convienience store, not a Gov. agency.”
replace the bulbs. should be 1157’s
tidewater216 150 suzuki 4 stroker
Check your fuses in your truck, mine has trailer fuses under the hood for each funtion on the rear harness (after you check the trailer bulbs)
A good tool is the ice-pick probe with a ground wire and a light in the handle. Available at the auto parts store. It works better on 12vdc than a meter because of the load the light puts on the system. Turn the lights on the trailer and probe around, you’ll find the problem quickly.
Good luck.
“The Fish Whisperer”
Goose Creek, SC
Had the exact same problem on my old trailer…had 4 grounds total and 3 of them were questionable. I cleaned them up and everything worked
Mike
“Seahawk” 204CC Angler, 150 Merc
I just rewired my trailer and put guide posts with the LED lights at the top. I went to plug it in and I got nothing but the blinkers to work. After spending a while checking all the wires and grounds I finally thought to check the fuses and it was a blown fuse. So moral of the story is check your fuses. That is a lot easier than tracing all of those wires.