5th Wheel Turn Signal Failure
I have a 2014 Dutchmen Infinity fifth wheel that I purchased new back in March. I bought a new Silverado to tow it. Last week, on the way to a campground, I noticed the right turn signal on the trailer wasn't working. I learned a few lessons that I'd like to share.
Lesson 1. The trailer tail lights are a single component, meaning that there aren't separate bulbs inside that you can replace. If the light is broken, you have to replace the whole thing....but that wasn't what was wrong.
Lesson 2. The dealership service and parts folks are great, but you may not always be talking with someone who has a clue about electronics.
Lesson 3. Don't replace the tail light until you know for sure it is the source of your problem. I figured that since the running light was working, the only reason the blinker wouldn't work was because the light itself was faulty. WRONG. I drove 45 minutes to the dealer for the new $40 light only to find out that the new blinker still didn't blink.
Lesson 4. When you have an electrical problem, start at the power source and work your way to the problem. I assumed that the problem had to be in the trailer, because the other trailer lights worked and the other blinker worked. That told me that the trailer lights were all getting power from the tow vehicle, but that was where I made my next mistake. I recommend investing in a simple electrical test light. They run between $14-$30, depending on whether you get one with sound or not and will quickly tell you if your plugs or wires have 12 volts running through them. I ended up finally diagnosing the correct problem by turning on my truck turn signal and then touching each pin in my 7-pin plug. When I had the left side turn signal on (since that one was working) I found that one of the pins in the plug was beeping on and off, but when I turned the right turn signal on, there was no beeping. When I looked in my truck owner's manual, I found out that there are separate fuses under the hood for right and left trailer turn signals. I looked at the schematic on the fuse panel, identified the position of the correct fuse and when I pulled it out and inspected, it was burned out. It cost me a dollar to replace the fuse.
Lesson 1. The trailer tail lights are a single component, meaning that there aren't separate bulbs inside that you can replace. If the light is broken, you have to replace the whole thing....but that wasn't what was wrong.
Lesson 2. The dealership service and parts folks are great, but you may not always be talking with someone who has a clue about electronics.
Lesson 3. Don't replace the tail light until you know for sure it is the source of your problem. I figured that since the running light was working, the only reason the blinker wouldn't work was because the light itself was faulty. WRONG. I drove 45 minutes to the dealer for the new $40 light only to find out that the new blinker still didn't blink.
Lesson 4. When you have an electrical problem, start at the power source and work your way to the problem. I assumed that the problem had to be in the trailer, because the other trailer lights worked and the other blinker worked. That told me that the trailer lights were all getting power from the tow vehicle, but that was where I made my next mistake. I recommend investing in a simple electrical test light. They run between $14-$30, depending on whether you get one with sound or not and will quickly tell you if your plugs or wires have 12 volts running through them. I ended up finally diagnosing the correct problem by turning on my truck turn signal and then touching each pin in my 7-pin plug. When I had the left side turn signal on (since that one was working) I found that one of the pins in the plug was beeping on and off, but when I turned the right turn signal on, there was no beeping. When I looked in my truck owner's manual, I found out that there are separate fuses under the hood for right and left trailer turn signals. I looked at the schematic on the fuse panel, identified the position of the correct fuse and when I pulled it out and inspected, it was burned out. It cost me a dollar to replace the fuse.
