Evenbrake taillight setup for Subaru Outback

[murraymcleod]

The 2003 Itasca 27 MH I bought came with a Roadmaster Falcon All-Terrain towbar and an Evenbrake unit, but nothing else to go on the toad. So I bought the correct cross-bar and base-plate attachments, and an Evenbrake second-car kit to install the necessary components on my 2012 Subaru Outback (manual transmission). I have a few questions about the Evenbrake installation though:

1. The kit came with some sort of tail-light relay for brake light control, but do I need to use this if I plan to just use magnetic lights on the back of the toad with a connection from the RV itself? (And the toad's brake lights DO come on when the peddle is pushed by foot or by Evenbrake, when key is in the towing position.)

2. And if I don't need this relay to be installed, can the Evenbrake transmitter be wired to a "cigarette-lighter" plug so it can be installed in the toad just when needed, rather than requiring permanent installation as described in the manual? When towing, I'd just attach the transmitter to the toad via Velcro, plug it in to 12v with that plug, and attach the Evenbrake unit and break-away switch cord, and go?

Thanks in advance for any help with these issues.

[enblethen]

Sounds like a leak. It should not run unless system is being activated and pressure level has dropped.

[murraymcleod]

OK..got the Even Brake all hooked up (hard wired everything) and found that the 12volt receptacle in the center console is rated for 20amps, so all is good, and the Even Brake tests out OK!

Went for my first test tow this evening, and all seems fine.....except the Even Brake compressor runs about every two minutes, even when just sitting there in standby mode and doing no braking! Is this normal, or do I have an air leak somewhere? I'm afraid the constant compressing will run down the battery pretty quick!

[murraymcleod]

Proceeding with this installation....I was able to get the power connections to the ICX unit, but I'm having difficulty reaching the cold side of the brake light switch which needs to be connected to the ICX. It's way up in there and I'd prefer to not take the dash apart....

A previous post pointed out that the appropriate wires coming off the switch are the yellow and brown ones which I see (there are four wires total coming from that switch). But rather than trial and error, does anyone know which of these two might be the cold side of the switch?

But I was thinking that it might just be easier to tap into the brake light wire on the trailer wire harness I have on the Subaru (and is inside the vehicle, except when towing). Would involve a longer wire run from the back of the vehicle, but would sure be easier to access!

And one more issue....the Evenbrake manual says to plug the unit into a cigarette-lighter type plug that is at least 15 amps. But it seems mine are just 10 amps! Has anyone had any fuse blowing issues with this unit because of this problem, or are they just allowing lots of over-head for safety (my fuse didn't blow during the test cycle...)? The alternative, of course, is to buy another 15 amp adapter they sell to wire in....!

[murraymcleod]

I wonder if there's a mechanical switch inside the plug, or it's just some sort of electrical sensing to know when it's plugged in. At any rate I'm glad to know that the transmitter isn't on whenever I'm driving.

Now I just hope that wireless transmitter doesn't interfere with my MH's wireless backup camera! Towing a dinghy seems to ratchet-up the complexity of RV-ing!

[UsualSuspect]

Now that I think about it, I don't think it has power all the time. When I installed mine, I tried to program the second vehicle kit, and I had to plug the Evenbrake in to get it to pair with the remote. I thought maybe there was a some magic being done in the Evenbrake itself that needed pairing, but I guess it is the ICX it pairs, makes sense now. Sometimes the answer is just a phone call away.

[murraymcleod]

Regarding my question about having a hard-wired ICX "on" all the time while driving, and problems that might cause, I got the following response from Roadmaster:

"The ICX only draws power when it is plugged into the Even Brake and is inert when it is not."

[UsualSuspect]

They make another switch, the "Optional Stop Light Switch", available from RoadMaster, they come with a custom mounting bracket, so there are a few different part numbers.
I do not know if you have seen this yet or not, but this will save you some time locating the brake switch wire. I always verify it, most of the time they are probably right, but like measuring, it never hurts to check twice. RoadMaster Vehicle Specific Info CLICKY

[murraymcleod]

Are there cars that don't provide power to the brake light switch unless the motor is on? If so, wonder what happens with those!?

[enblethen]

This tells the transmitter that the pedal actually moved.

[murraymcleod]

UsualSuspect wrote:

You do however need to connect a wire from the cold side of the brake light switch to the towed's ICX (The transmitter box with the antenna). This wire sends a signal to the ICX telling the unit the brakes are applied, and will send a signal to the remote in the RV that will trigger a red light, and change the display from "Ready" to "Braking". The EvenBrake also has a feature if the brakes are applied for to long it will automatically release them, as well as alert you if it does not, this wire needs to be connected for that to happen...

So, if I read right, the transmitter (ICX) needs to use the voltage from the brake light switch on the toad to know when the Evenbrake is applying the brakes? It doesn't get that info from the braking unit itself (?).

Seems a but strange for the system to rely on another switch for that info, but if so, then I guess I may as well hard wire the ICX in (and have it power on whenever I drive the car, which will happen a lot more frequently than when I'm towing, as this is a car I use daily when not RV'ing!). Thanks to all for the good info!

[UsualSuspect]

I just installed one in my 2nd towed. You do not need the relay if you use the magnetic brake lights, the relay prevents the brake lights from coming on when your are towing it.
You do however need to connect a wire from the cold side of the brake light switch to the towed's ICX (The transmitter box with the antenna). This wire sends a signal to the ICX telling the unit the brakes are applied, and will send a signal to the remote in the RV that will trigger a red light, and change the display from "Ready" to "Braking". The EvenBrake also has a feature if the brakes are applied for to long it will automatically release them, as well as alert you if it does not, this wire needs to be connected for that to happen.

EDIT: The wire from the cold side of the brake light switch plugs into Terminal #1 on the ICX Transmitter.

[murraymcleod]

enblethen wrote:
According to the installation instructions, only hard wired item would be the brake away switch. It needs to be plugged into the brake unit.
It does not connect to any of the toad wiring, It is a separate wiring harness.

Yes, I would plan to permanently mount the break-away switch near the front of the toad, and then route the wire through the firewall, and then connect/disconnect that wire as needed from the transmitter unit.

It seems strange that they recommend the hardwiring of the 12v power for the transmitter (rather than an un-pluggable 12v connection), as then the transmitter would always be "on" whenever driving the car. Doesn't seem like that would be good for the unit over time....

[enblethen]

Yes, it should work just fine.
Only problem will be the power source. Check the power outlet to make sure it is hot all the time. It may need a separate fuse to meet installation requirements for amperage.

[murraymcleod]

enblethen wrote:
No, the relay is to prevent the toad brake lights from over riding the turn signal function from MH.
Brake lite relay
The brake unit must be wired to a hot circuit. Most lighters or power outlets are only energized with ignition switch turn to acc or on.

Sorry... I missed the "No" in your original response! So you think my intermittent use of the Evenbrake as needed will work?