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Electrical gremlins - again

nick_the_fish

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So having battled to get the new ARB bumper on, I plugged it in only to find some electrical oddities.

The brake lights and indicators on the bumper come supplied with a loom that plugs into the trailer socket.

Now, If I plug in the bumper loom then both indicators work but the hazards don't - as in not even on the truck - the whole circuit goes dead.

**unplugs everything**

However if I turn the hazards on THEN plug in the bumper loom then the hazards continue to work on the truck and on the bumper. Also both indicators work.

**unplugs everything**

Finally if I turn on either of the indicators and THEN plug in the bumper loom then sometimes the hazards work, but sometimes nothing works - not even in the truck.

So - my conclusion is that it seems to be something to do with starting the hazards going in the first place - either from cold or as part of the flashing sequence. Presumably the only thing between the switch and the lights is a fuse and a relay? If thats correct, then its got to be the relay. I know that circuits sometimes draw more currant when they start, so wondering if the relay isn't able to cope with the additional load due to the extra lights (its worth noting that I have a second set of indicators on the front bumper too).

Any thoughts electrical wizards?

N
 
Are they LED Nick or just conventional jobbies..... I entered a world of confusion when i decided to put all new LED on one of my trailers... Just a thought
 
Good thought @Higgy but there normal bulbs.

Actually managed to fix it. I disconnected the indicators in the front bumper and the rear ones now seem to be working. So looks like something was overloaded somewhere.
 
Sounds like your trailer socket is direct wired rather than through a trailer lights booster relay. If this is the case the extra lamps will overload the flasher relay.

If you change bulbs to LED ones you will cure the problem BUT you may go the other way and need a ballast resistor or two on each side to get the flasher to operate at the right speed.
 
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