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Official Trailer Wiring thread?

5K views 24 replies 13 participants last post by  adam_475 
#1 ·
poking around and you can find inexpensive wiring modules that mimick the $100+ honda part for $30-50 but they don't cover 05 and 06 models. they have an '03-'04 and '07-'10. I'm sure it's explained burried in some thread that is dated 3 or 4+ years ago rambler dan is going to find that's labeled something obscure and say i didn't search, but has this been explored?

thanks
-Zac
 
#2 ·
Everything I've seen brought the conclusion of: Buy the factory parts and save the head ache later when the aftermarket parts make your lights go haywire. I have no idea what specifically happened to bring that conclusion but I thought it also included my year as well, not just 05 & 06.
 
#3 · (Edited)
Everything I've seen brought the conclusion of: Buy the factory parts and save the head ache later when the aftermarket parts make your lights go haywire. ...
very close....but no cigar. :)

'03-'04 models can use the aftermarket self powered plug & play kits ($35-$45) or the Honda plug & play kit that costs about $100.

'05 & '06 should prolly use the Honda kit, unless someone who knows what they are doing installs a self powered converter kit. link w/ details (no plug & play available.)

'07 and up there is an aftermarket plug & play self powered kit (or 2) that seem to work fine, but I don't think they are especially inexpensive anyway.

In all cases a generic splice in type instalation should be avoided.

In many cases (especially '05 and newer) the Honda recomendation is probablly the best. In cases where a generic converter is used it is recomended that it be a self powered unit. (link w/ details)

Some people have had good luck with a simple wire tap when used with LED lights (very low current draw) on the trailer. This works best in cases when the E is only tows that specific trailer, as hooking it up to a buddy's loaner or a rental trailer is likely to cause problems.

I've been following the trailer wire saga since doing mine in '04. I'm not especially up to date on the '07 up situation. Those cars have painted panels and are evil anyway. ;-)

Most of the problems in the early cars were related to simple spliced in wire taps, especially by places like U-Haul. Some U-Haul places did a quality install with a proper converter box, but not all. Some of the early converter boxes went bad (U-Haul, Draw-Tite, Hoppy, other brands, and yes, Honda too! ) and caused weird tail light issues, but a simple converter box replacement solved the problem. It didn't cause any damage.

In many cases, a standard (non powered) converter was installed (as was the case for many '05 & '06 owners) and problems were encountered due to the vehicle's wiring not being up to the task of handling the extra current draw from the trailer lights. The "what-ever" brand converter or installer got blamed for the problem, when it was really just the wrong product for the application. However, I seem to remember at least a few members installing powered converter units with good results.


Yes, its all here somewhere, but like you say Spam16v, it is all broken up and confusing....especially the relevence of a statement to a particular model year.

Good luck w/ your search!

Will
 
#4 ·
#5 ·
we're a Uhaul dealer, LOL. shop where i'm at has been one for going on 17 years? rental commissions are LESS than 1/2 of 1% yes, <.05% of the business and well over 50% of our headache. if it weren't for the perks of abusing the privilege of the trucks, trailers and the blankets (omg the blankets are awesome for everything) we'd tell them to get their trucks off the lot and pound sand.

hitches are dirt cheap, i need to replace my Class .5 weak sauce hitch anyways. we put a class 3 Uhaul on my buddies new to him '06 EX-P in about 5 minutes, easiest install ever. no drilling, no fishing nut plates, nothing. cake...

he tore out both the tail lights with the 3 to 2 wire converter in hand and i told him to knock it off and just order an Ebay wiring harness. he makes fun of me for my wiring job, i put a cigarette lighter plug on a harness pigtail and just have working tail lights on my toy trailer.... it gets me by. he called a honda dealer with the vin and had them check the part # for a wiring kit, and it came up as the same for an '07+ so he ordered a $40 Eaby '07+ kit, so we shall see and once we try we'll report back heads or tails if it sucks or not.
 
#6 · (Edited)
we're a Uhaul dealer, LOL. shop where i'm at has been one for going on 17 years? rental commissions are LESS than 1/2 of 1% yes, <.05% of the business and well over 50% of our headache. if it weren't for the perks of abusing the privilege of the trucks, trailers and the blankets (omg the blankets are awesome for everything) we'd tell them to get their trucks off the lot and pound sand.

hitches are dirt cheap, i need to replace my Class .5 weak sauce hitch anyways. we put a class 3 Uhaul on my buddies new to him '06 EX-P in about 5 minutes, easiest install ever. no drilling, no fishing nut plates, nothing. cake...

he tore out both the tail lights with the 3 to 2 wire converter in hand and i told him to knock it off and just order an Ebay wiring harness. he makes fun of me for my wiring job, i put a cigarette lighter plug on a harness pigtail and just have working tail lights on my toy trailer.... it gets me by. he called a honda dealer with the vin and had them check the part # for a wiring kit, and it came up as the same for an '07+ so he ordered a $40 Eaby '07+ kit, so we shall see and once we try we'll report back heads or tails if it sucks or not.

If i were a betting man.....And i have been known to place a small wager now and them....I am betting your friend is going to be a little disappointed to find out that the harness he ordered will not work.
 
#9 · (Edited)
I'm sure it's explained burried in some thread that is dated 3 or 4+ years ago rambler dan is going to find that's labeled something obscure and say i didn't search
LOL, too true. So how about writing up a trailer-wiring compendium? Since we don't have a wiki, I'll paste the info into the first post of this thread when it's ready, and add it to the FAQ.
 
#13 ·
Find me a place to host a ESXi-compatible VM and we could have a wiki of our own in no time at all...:roll: :-D
 
#11 ·
Like ApriliaGuy, I say if it's not plug and play, Stay away!

The isolation box is a must, for ALL newer cars. The older cars did not have the computerized electrical systems that are in all newer cars. That goes double for Honda! The Electrical systems are engineered to do a specific task. There is no over Engineering, as in days gone by. The wire is thinner, and sized to do ONLY what it has to do. That is do to weight considerations.
I'm not going to say that the aftermarket boxes are junk. I will say that all the experience I have had with them has been somewhat less than satisfactory. I have seen Honda's come in with Burned Electrical systems/Harnesses, that Honda would not cover under Warranty. One Element that came in wile I was at the Honda dealer, had a fire on the drivers side. When I asked what happened, they told me, " Wrong trailer wiring harness " ....

I'll stay with what I know works.

Then you must consider, I don't have Spam's expertise with this.

Dom

P.S. I have used lighter plugs for temporary connections also !
 
#14 ·
Honda Trailer Wiring

I ordered the wiring harness assembly from H And A Accessories - $120. I had the local Honda dealer install the harness - 3+ hours (some interior parts must be removed) @ $310. It all works and I don't have to worry about it ever again.
 
#16 ·
I'll second that!! The one I installed is very similar to the Honda harness and took me all of 10 minutes - and most of that was getting my head turned the right way under the dash!
 
#17 ·
I put a Valley Trailer electronic relay box in my 2005 element and my 2007 accord. In both cases I picked up power directly from the battery (fused at the battery) and tapped into the tail light, brake and turn signal lights by cutting the wires and making soldered connections in each case. The draws from those lights are insignificant and all power to light the trailer lights comes from the line I ran to the battery.

Both cars work fine and the Valley Trailer boxes cost about $40 each.
 
#19 ·
Sorry about posting a simple question.

I have a 2010 EX

I've read the threads about the wiring harness kits but I have a question regarding the "isolation" or "converter" box that goes under the dash.

I see in the photo of the aftermarket isolation box from etrailer that it comes with three connections (I'm only talking about the isolation box that goes in front). Are all three of these plugged in?
 
#20 ·
Hitch and Wiring for 2009

I have a 2009 Element and installed the hitch and wiring myself. I got it from www.etrailer.com and was PN 75659 Draw-Tite Class III Trailer Hitch Receiver and PN 118465 T-One Vehicle Wiring Harness.

A lot of threads are out there with pictures and lots of help. I really appreciate all that information!! A few things I might be able to add are:
It really helps to have ramps to get the rear wheels up a little bit for room to work.
The directions call for 75 ft lbs on the 4 nuts at the ends of the hitch (to the frame) and 30 ft lbs on the U-Bolt at the middle. Find yourself a torque wrench. These are 3/4" nuts. Since many torque wrenches are 1/2" drive, you may have an impact socket around for changing tires which will fit.
The wiring is so simple. Plug in a box under the dash, and plug in an extension cord in the spare tire well with the 4pin connector on it. But finding the mating plug under the dash wasn't as simple as I thought. I was looking in the wrong spot. Here's the simple way to find it. If you were to remove the coin tilt box, you could easily touch the connector right through that hole. Mine had a wrap of blue tape around the wires to secure it to another wire bundle.

Glad I did the job myself and saved a few dollars. Thanks to everyone who has posted their observations and photos.
 
#22 ·
But finding the mating plug under the dash wasn't as simple as I thought. I was looking in the wrong spot. Here's the simple way to find it. If you were to remove the coin tilt box, you could easily touch the connector right through that hole. Mine had a wrap of blue tape around the wires to secure it to another wire bundle.
Yup that's what took most of the time on my install, the box isn't where you think it is. Once I got cramped around in the right position it was inherently obvious.



 
#24 ·
My Element is a 2004. Inside the right rear panel is a 2-pin connector and a 6-pin connector for the Honda trailer harness. The available aftermarket T-connector harnesses seem to use the 6 pin connector but do nothing with the 2-pin connector. Does anyone know what these manufacturers are leaving out of their circuitry? Is there any risk to not using the 2-pin connector? Why did Honda put it there?

Anyone would buy the OEM harness from Honda were it not for the price difference. Does anyone know which aftermarket harness is correctly designed to work with the 2004 Element and where it is available online?
 
#25 ·
So I had the one that was supposed to be only for 03 and '04. The common brand that everyone gets. I found though that it does plug in on my '05 under the dash The only problem is the wires aren't long enough So if you're handy enough with wiring you can extend the wires run it all along in the trim by the door and then through the spare tire access. Super easy and it looks OEM.
 
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