1985 trailer brake controller

[Thewespaul]

Those hydraulic controllers are junk. Rip all the old po wiring out and start new with a good controller when you got time. Chances are even if you get the wiring fixed the controller doesn’t work

 

[chillman88]

The resistor under the hood is... rusty... wondering if I should just hook those two wires together?

For what it's worth, I don't have the resistor on mine and it works fine.

If the headlight won't change brightness while manually moving the controller either you're using the wrong wire or your controller isn't functioning properly. The light IS coming on, so you will have brakes, but if it's dim they'll only be partially applied. Better than nothing though.

EDIT: That could mean the resistor is working though. If you bypass it your headlight test might yeild different results.

 

[BrianX128]

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I hauled something heavy! At least for what I've towed. Brakes worked sorta. I could feel them when I slid the lever manually.

With 3.55s on windy back roads and hills due to the road I wanted to take being closed I had to leave lenny in third but he did good. All kinds of smoke but I could have got in 4th many times just didnt want to. 2400 rpm and 45 was good. Went 17 miles and never went above 210.

Then my turn signals quit working entirely and when I turn my 4 ways on they just stay lit and dont flash. Fuse is fine. Dead flasher relay? And are the turn signals and 4 ways the same flasher on the bullnoses?

 

[Thewespaul]

They have seperate flashers

 

[BrianX128]

It just seems weird that both would quit functioning properly at the same time. The turn signals worked fine until we parked the truck and left the 4 ways on.

I pulled the flasher from the fuse box where is there another one? I don't see one anywhere else.

 

[Thewespaul]

It will be under the dash/behind kick panel on passenger side. Kinda a pita to get to and not always in the same place

 

[chillman88]

Not sure which fuses you checked but check the brake light fuse as well. I had a similar issue when I got my truck but it WAS blowing fuses. Mine must have been something in the column because in my case changing the flasher didn't do anything but since I've swapped my steering column I haven't had it happen again.

Stuff your hand up under the dash behind the glove box near the door. That's where the hazard flasher is on a bricknose, although I thought they were on the back of the fuse box on the bullnose trucks.

 

[snicklas]

On a bull, I think the hazard flasher is on the back side of the fuse panel.

The 4 ways staying on could be a bad flasher, or the circuit thinks the brake lights are on..... could be from the wiring you fiddled with.

 

[nostrokes]

My brick it's behind the kick panel on the passenger side. IIRC my brothers bull it was actually on top of the heater core

 

[BrianX128]

My heater core is in the engine bay since I'm non ac so I hope it's not there lol. I'll take a look at all this tonight when I get home from work.

 

[rempfer]

The Kelsey Hayes brake controller works beautifully, contrary to what some others have experienced. The previous owner had powered it with/off the brake light switch which was ridiculous, but once I wired the controller's power source properly it immediately worked just fine.