Bad earth ????

hi all

im having majour probs with the trailer electrics

right ive been under the trailer and ensured all wirers etc are clean and have tight connecter fittings BUT when i put the hazards on with the side lights everything flashes like a bad earth

could it be a bad earth on the car or the trailer??????

could i get round it by running a new earth lead on the trailer from the trailer junction box??????

also the fog lights on the car come on very dim when the sidelights and hazards are put on BUT THIS ONLY HAPPENS WHEN THE TRAILER IS CONNECTED

please help

griff

deffo bad earth probably in the actual light units themselves, try running a separate earth for your trailer indicators and/or side lights also try giving the trailer socket a good clean, take it off and check where the wires go in it will probably be full of rust and crud.

kev1nlm said:

deffo bad earth probably in the actual light units themselves, try running a separate earth for your trailer indicators and/or side lights also try giving the trailer socket a good clean, take it off and check where the wires go in it will probably be full of rust and crud.

Click to expand...

plus 1. always look at the trailer first ,if you think of it the trailer lays around for months not doing anything .

The quality of electrical connections on cheap trailer lights is crap, I've had loads of problems over the years.

To get a definitive answer, if you have a multimeter and spare piece of wire measure the voltage between the earth connection in the trailer light fitting and the battery -ve terminal - should be less than 0.5volts. If it is say 6 volts, this is your problem. Next measure at the trailer socket etc. until you find the weak point.

Cillit Bang kitchen clear works great on corroded trailer 7-pin sockets.