Trailer brakes disconnecting

[centerline]

Okay, I am hoping someone can help me. I have a brand new 2022 GMC dually that is towing my 2020 Cyclone. During my trips, i am getting a random Trailer Wiring / Trailer Brakes Disconnected notification on my dash. This occurs very sporadically and will typically reconnect within a few seconds of the notification. But during that time, i am without trailer brakes.

All other lights and turn signals work on the trailer when this occurs as i had someone behind me when it happened and they confirmed.

I also had the same issued with this Cyclone on my old truck, so i am confident its not on the truck side of things

I have already replaced the 7 pin plug and that didn't fix anything.

Is there a brake controller somewhere on the Cyclone that i should check? Is there anything else that could be causing this issue? Its very frustrating.

Thank you for your help.
Brandon

you will find either a broken or shorted wire......

I just went thru this myself..... about a week after removing the drums on the trailer to service the wheel bearings and and checking/adjusting the brakes, which always worked well for the past year since they were all replaced with new "loaded" backing plates, I was certain a problem was in my tow vehicle.... so I bought the equipment to test the tow vehicle, to help locate the problem of it dropping the brake signal, but found it was working properly...

then, I went thru all the wiring access points as has been mentioned in previous posts, and then at the axles/brake backing plate, and found it all to be correct.... but the problem was still there.

the only thing left was to check and see what I messed up in the drums when I had them apart, so I had to remove them again, ALL 6 of them....

after an exhausting inspection and coil continuity testing (which found the coils to all be good and not shorting out inside), I was nearly at a loss as to what to do now that everything checked out as good, but the system still said the brakes werent connected

my next test was to energize the trailer brake coils themselves, with the tow vehicle disconnected, and then testing the coils for voltage in and voltage out, which I did each individual brake at the jct box over the axles where they all came together, and it wasnt long til the problem showed itself.......

I found that a brake coil wire had wore thru and was grounding out slightly at the retaining clip on the brake swing arm.... it didnt ground all the time, but just when the road conditions were right for it, it would disconnect the circuit in the tow vehicle, as designed.....

it was a hidden problem that was inevitable due to the way it was attached..... luckily for the sake of testing, it was slightly grounded at the time I decided to work on it, so that my tow vehicle could see a continuing problem, but when I put the higher amperage, full 12volt power to it, the short showed itself

the integrated brake controllers are sensitive to power draw, which prevents the trucks system from damaged if there is a short circuit somewhere.... and without a special test procedure, the system on the truck cant be tested without being connected to a trailer that is absolutely KNOWN to have good working brakes.....

 

[JohnDar]

this is what i am worried about. A small wiring issue that might be hard to spot. I almost feel like having it re-wired if the other solutions above don't fix it. Its one thing to deal with a turn signal not working, but when you are pulling an 18k trailer and the brakes don't work....white knuckles for sure!!!

That’s when being in Tow Haul mode and manually working the shift points and gingerly using the truck brakes comes into play. Had that experience running from northern Michigan to Elkhart for a rally when I lost the signal from the trailer. Contact corrosion on a two year old truck & trailer.
After that experience, I installed a 7-pin socket in the wall of the covered truck bed near the tailgate. Kept it out of the weather when not in use. Also made it possible to raise and lower the tailgate while still connected.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[DickO]

I hope this gets to everyone. I started having the check trailer wiring as we started cross country. Spent a fortune trying to get it fixed. There is a GM bulletin PITT5311F stating GM vehicles from2014 to 2020 need a 7 prong plug on the trailer made by Pollak. This makes NO sense since the manufacturers buy the cords by the hundreds. Plus I changed mine plus the whole cord and the plug on the truck and that did not solve the problem I have filed a complaint with the National Highway Traffic Safety Commission. Someone is going to get killed. I did talk to one guy who had to put his 5th wheel in the median during an emergency ahead of him just as the brakes went out

I filed a complaint with the National Highway Traffic Safety Commission today about GM vehicles getting the Check Trailer Wiring prompt. 1-888-327-4236 After spending almost $900 I have found this problem is in the truck. I feel someone is going to get hurt of killed when we lose our brakes.

 

[DickO]

I hope this gets to everyone. I started having the check trailer wiring as we started cross country. Spent a fortune trying to get it fixed. There is a GM bulletin PITT5311F stating GM vehicles from2014 to 2020 need a 7 prong plug on the trailer made by Pollak. This makes NO sense since the manufacturers buy the cords by the hundreds. Plus I changed mine plus the whole cord and the plug on the truck and that did not solve the problem I have filed a complaint with the National Highway Traffic Safety Commission. Someone is going to get killed. I did talk to one guy who had to put his 5th wheel in the median during an emergency ahead of him just as the brakes went out

I have filed a complaint with the National Highway Traffic Safety Commission. Hopefully some others will too before someone gets killed when not having brakes

 

[DickO]

Okay, I am hoping someone can help me. I have a brand new 2022 GMC dually that is towing my 2020 Cyclone. During my trips, i am getting a random Trailer Wiring / Trailer Brakes Disconnected notification on my dash. This occurs very sporadically and will typically reconnect within a few seconds of the notification. But during that time, i am without trailer brakes.

All other lights and turn signals work on the trailer when this occurs as i had someone behind me when it happened and they confirmed.

I also had the same issued with this Cyclone on my old truck, so i am confident its not on the truck side of things

I have already replaced the 7 pin plug and that didn't fix anything.

Is there a brake controller somewhere on the Cyclone that i should check? Is there anything else that could be causing this issue? Its very frustrating.

Thank you for your help.
Brandon

I have filed a complaint with the National Hwy. Traffic Safety Commission. This is a problem with General Motor's trucks starting in 2009. The problem is NOT in the trailer. GM has a CYA bulletin. The govt has opened a case on this. The majority of people do not know you have no brakes when the check trailer wiring comes on.

 

[centerline]

I have filed a complaint with the National Hwy. Traffic Safety Commission. This is a problem with General Motor's trucks starting in 2009. The problem is NOT in the trailer. GM has a CYA bulletin. The govt has opened a case on this. The majority of people do not know you have no brakes when the check trailer wiring comes on.

do you have anymore information on the case the govt has filed.... the problem isnt just GM trucks, but Ram has the same issue, and I dont know anyone who tows with a ford, so I cant say....

Respectively, there may be problems within the trucks themselves, but during my problems with it, it was found to be a brake coil wire that had the insulation cracked at a retaining clip, shorting out one SINGLE brake....

but the PROBLEM is STILL with the trucks..... when the trucks trailer brake system senses this tiny short in the trailer brakes, it DISCONNECTS the ENTIRE circuit, leaving absolutely NO trailer brakes... until its time for the circuit to test the system again, which if it sees what it believes to be a problem, it drops out again.......
the "old" systems were also prone to shorting out in the same way, but when it happened, only that single brake would drop out momentarily, leaving the others to continue helping with the braking...

hopefully the govt will force ALL manufactures who have used this faulty technology to remedy it, at THEIR cost...

 

[Dahillbilly]

the 2015 Silverado 3500HD we had would display that message at times WITHOUT a trailer connected to the truck. Once I started cleaning the 4-way flat connector in the bumper the issue happened less often if at all.