Town & Country's a Tow Vehicle Finally

Update time...

Got my brake controller wired in... We had a dear loved one pass over the weekend so I took some of the down time and installed the trailer wiring and the brake control in between all the activities and planning... Yea I know, strange... I like working on cars when I need to think and clear my head. So over three days I progressively got this job done.

I feel a lot better by accomplishing something... But Man I am going to miss my wife's Paw Paw..(he was like my own!)

I'm going to call this a budget brake controller install because I did this "on a budget" for a reasonable amount of money.

Here is my parts list....

1) Used Draw-Tite Intella Stop brake controller I scored for $55 (it's a relabeled Prodigy one with the red display) price includes the pigtail...($35 for the control on eBay and $20.00 for the pigtail at Camping world)
2) Valley powered and circuit protected tail light converter (Fire-sale on eBay for $13.00!!) (I already had 30 ft primary wire for this and a sweet 20 amp fuse to power the converter)
3) 50 ft Blue and 50 ft Black 10 ga primary wire from eBay for $22.00 shipped to the house
4) Misc connectors- ring terminals, end to end connectors etc- $20 ish with TONS left over....ever heard of Posi-Taps? They are AWESOME btw...
5) Hopkins 7 way super tough awesome vehicle side connector I bought years ago and never installed.... It's tough tough tough and I think I spent $13 ish years ago.
6) 40 and 30 amp circuit breakers - $6.00 ish
7) Etrailer...install videos- Free

Total for the budget install was $129.00...

Now, there were tools and electrical tape and wiring loom and zip ties that I already had so those were not counted but could add another $20 -30 ish depending on what you have in your toolbox.

I was successful in hiding the wiring inside the vehicle behind the panel on the drivers side quarter panel trim. There is a access panel here on the Mini-van where the jack and the air pump is located.

When not towing there is no evidence of the trailer wiring... When I need to tow I just pull the wiring out from behind the access panel and lay the wires outside of the rear hatch and hitch up and connect the wiring.

All connections are secure and the brake controller works like new... Zero complaints there. The 7 way works like it should and overall, it's a clean install. I was fortunate to find the red display Prodigy instructions still on the net.

I'm really looking forward to the self leveling feature of the Intella-Stop (Prodigy) and the boost feature.

I'm happy...now I just got to start looking for a budget (used) 400-600 lb weight distribution hitch and start researching pups for our future camping adventures.

Thanks everyone!

Jeremiah

jerem0621 wrote:

Oh, and I am NOT going to install the trailer wiring on the outside of the vehicle. It will all be mounted on the inside out of the weather, tucked away behind some of the panels. Basically the only time the 7 way RV plug will be in the elements is when we are towing. That should increase the life of the parts significantly.

Thanks!

Jeremiah

Good photos. I installed a class III Curt hitch on our 2013 Grand Caravan. It also tucks in nicely behind the bumper cover. My Draw-Tite on my 2004 Ford Freestar tucks in the same way. It always bugs me to see the Toyota Sienna vans with the hitches hanging down really low.

I agree with the comment about keeping the lights inside. I have not installed mine yet (I have all the parts). I installed the hitch myself last year, but health issues prevented me from doing the rest of the work, but installing the wiring inside is easier than crawling under the van. Good idea.

TXiceman wrote:
Your hitch ball is on a typical dead weight stinger like used to pull a boat trailer. You will need to get a new hitch head with weight distribution bars and a sway control.

Ken

Not for my little utility trailer. :)

My pup or Hybrid will absolutely have a WD hitch and sway control, I am a firm believer in them.

Thanks!

Jeremiah

duplicate


Ken

Your hitch ball is on a typical dead weight stinger like used to pull a boat trailer. You will need to get a new hitch head with weight distribution bars and a sway control.

Ken

We really liked towing with our T&C. Decent power, 17 MPG with the pop-up. Enjoy!