Trailer Brake Controller.....again

Thanks all for the response. I was just reading the info that came with the controller. It is a Tekonsha Sentinel. It is fully electric. The newest instructions for GM are for 1999 models. I have it in a 2002. It has two adjustments. One is an inertia sensor to set the level. The other is rate of gain to set braking power. It has about a 70' range it has to be mounted to work properly. I have that o.k. It has a green light that comes on when trailer is plugged in that shows everything is juiced up properly. That works. I have juice through the plug to the trailer. It has a green light then 3 red lights that light up in sequence as you apply more brake. All I get is the green one. Never makes it into the red unless I work it by hand. I have the rate of gain cranked all the way up. Two of the trailers I pulled with a 1986 Chevy with same controller and everything worked fine. Other one I didn't have then. I was reading the instructions and may have stumbled over something. When it warms up a little I am going to reset the level inertia doodad and see if that helps. I though it was right but maybe not. If that doesn't help I guess I will start checking wiring and voltage to everything. If that is all good I guess I will replace the controller with a newer model. Don't know what else to do. Hate to spend money if I don't have to.

My 2003 2500hd is wired different then my 1999 was.

I wanted to add something. The truck is a 2002 2500HD that was factory wired for towing. I bought a pigtail at NAPA that plugs in the electric panel under the dash. I am 99% sure everything is wired correctly. This is not my first time working on this type of stuff.

Just wanted everyone to know that I know a little something about what I am doing. I don't claim to be an expert though. Thanks for the help.

I think those trucks changed a lot from 2002 to 2003. I got the pigtail from NAPA that plugs in under the dash to hook up a controller. Rest of truck was wired from factory for towing. I think I'm o.k. there. I am going to go pretty deep into this before I give up on the brake controller. I am convinced it will work. It was made to work. I heard that one at an auction one time:>)

Don't take offense to my comments. I just want everyone to know that I have done this type of stuff before and that I am not a rookie. Doesn't mean I know it all either. Thanks.

ok,, its inertial driven.. so you will NEVER see the the red lights unless you moving and then hit the brakes. sitting still it will NEVER show red lights unless you manual apply them.


Is this what you mean??? OR, you never see the red lights when your moving and step on the brakes???

I have a Tekonsha Prodigy in my F150 and it works fine. The '01 F150 was pre wired, I just got the proper pigtail and plugged it it. Took about 5 minutes to mount everything.
When we got a new Suburban in '06, I specifically wanted the towing package - something I always get, and was assured by the dealer that the Prodigy would work. I got the proper pigtail for the Prodigy so I could swap it between vehicles. That's something I seldom do but wanted the capability.
The pigtail would not plug into the slot under the dash. It was very close, but there was one extra little tab in the slot under the dash that prevented it from plugging in. After a lot of phone calls, found out that GM had changed things slightly and that the pigtails would not work on the new trucks. Further found out that the even if the pigtail would have plugged in, it wouldn't work because the wiring between the plug in and the rest of the system is not hooked up. All of the wiring was installed but purposely not hooked up due to "liability issues". Some of the wiring was laying under the carpeting, and the insulation had not been stripped off for installation. Dealer service department was completely unaware of this, I found out from internet searches and had to tell them, and they later confirmed that this was correct. The store where I got the supposedly correct pigtail was also unaware that the new GM's were different. Since I had specifically asked and had been assured that my brake controller would work with the new Suburban, the dealership ended up installing and hooking up everything for free. But it took several weeks to figure out what was going on. So don't assume that your truck is OK and the problem is with your controller.

have you tried it moving?

is it getting a brake line sense signal?

does manuall operating it make your brake lights come on?


soundguy

MCL just a thought. I had two trailers and they both worked and one day one of them did not work as good so I got to checking and the brakes were out of adjustment. I set the brakes up and it solved my problem. I hope yours gets solved as easy.
Bob

I don't get them when moving.

Thanks for the ideas. Gets a little warmer I will do some investgating.

Are you sure there is actually a problem? Wiring in a brake controller isn't rocket science. Power, Brake trigger, Ground and Brake are the only wires. I would hook it up and pull the trailer for a while to see if you even have a problem.

I can't tell by what you posted above but the controller won't actually function unless, it senses a trailer load, the brake trigger is on (brake pedal pushed) and the intertia pendelum is swinging.

I have a digital controller in my truck and even when I hit the brakes hard the most I have ever seen is 40. The controller goes to 80.

I don't think gain would affect the lighting. The lights are based on percentage of available power not output voltage. 30% of a max of 11 volts and 30% of a max 14 volts would still show the same light pattern.

MCL, I also believe you may have a wiring issue. I wired in a controller in my '99 Silverado last summer with an aftermarket pigtail to the box on the firewall. It worked fine, then my nephew with a 2003 Silverado borrowed my trailer. I offered him the controller and all instead of him buying that for just one camping trip. Thinking the whole works would swap out flawlessly was a mistake (the trailer brakes came on full when the running lights were turned on). We spent an hour noggin' scratching, tracing and retracing wire paths and schematics. By deduction we finally got it working. The required pigtail plug pin configuration for both trucks was the same but wired differently from there. If I rememer right there was an issue with where to hook a fine light blue wire.

Good wiring,
Bill