Towing bracket

Discussion in 'General Motoring' started by Christopher, Aug 14, 2005.

  1. Christopher

    Christopher Guest

    Hi all,

    I added a towing bracket on my Volvo 460.
    No problem there.
    The electricals have me a bit confused. The original Volvo car kit wasn't
    available so I went for a general brand and installed it according to it's
    instructions.
    Now when I connect the plug from the trailer to the car, the bulb failure
    light on the dashboard doesn't go out anymore and thus stating that a bulb
    from the car is broken. This is not the case. All lights are working fine.
    Anyone has any idea how to solve this? Maybe relays between the car lights
    and the trailer lights?

    Thanks,
    Christopher
     
    Christopher, Aug 14, 2005
    #1
  2. Christopher

    Mike F Guest

    I can't speak definitely about a 460, but I'll assume it's wired the
    same as a 240/740. To bypass the brake bulb failure, I always run a
    wire from the brake light switch to the back for trailer use. The tail
    light bulbs are in the bulb failure circuit, so I tap into the licence
    light wire for the trailer's tail lights.

    --
    Mike F.
    Thornhill (near Toronto), Ont.

    Replace tt with t (twice!) and remove parentheses to email me directly.
    (But I check the newsgroup more often than this email address.)
     
    Mike F, Aug 15, 2005
    #2
  3. Christopher

    Roy Bolton Guest

    Hi Christopher,

    The bulb failure device is a reed relay which senses differences in voltage
    between the two pairs of bulbs. ie. indicators/brakes etc. If one of the
    pair goes out/or if there is a voltage drop as with a faulty bulb which
    still works, the relay senses this difference and switches on the bulb
    failure light.

    Therefore all wiring should be upstream of the bulb failure warning device.
    Check you wiring diagram for the best place to take the feed from.

    Regards,

    Roy
     
    Roy Bolton, Aug 17, 2005
    #3
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