Flat towing wiring

[Fftoddster]

I'm in process of setting up for flat towing. Was just about to purchase a Curt wiring harness #58964. From what I understand this takes the power from RV and uses it to use the brake, tail, turn lights on your Jeep. Where I get confused is if you use a supplemental braking system to activate the brakes on the Jeep what happens? Does it seamlessly work or is there something you have to do in addition to this kit?

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[jjvincent]

That harness does not take 12V power source power from the RV to the Jeep. It only operates the rear lights. I have that harness but don't use supplemental braking.

 

[Fftoddster]

That harness does not take 12V power source power from the RV to the Jeep. It only operates the rear lights. I have that harness but don't use supplemental braking.

I get that to make subliminal braking operate, it will need things to push the brake pedal. Will that require additional diodes wired in or will the taillights, turn signals, brake lights work no broblem with the curt wiring harnes.

 

[Cllowe]

My harness came with diodes that I had to install right where my harness tied in to my lights. I have a pigtail that plugs in to my Rv trailer plug and plugs in to my front bumper. Then I ran the wires down the frame ra to the tail lights.

 

[Cycle11111]

I use a BLue Ox tow setup and a Patriot 3 brake controller. The wiring from my Sprinter van to the Jeep uses a 7pin to 6pin cable. I also have a power line that comes into the Jeep for barker controller power.

 

[Charger68]

The blue ox patriot brake system is stand alone. It is a surge brake so it senses the inertia when you apply your rv brakes. It is powered by a live plug inside the towed vehicle. The only thing additional would be a charge line from the rv to the toad so you don't kill the battery

 

[RubiBlueJLU]

So, the Curt wiring kit lets the rv lighting (running, brake and blinkers) run through to the tail lights on the Jeep. It does not feed back into the Jeeps system. ONLY controls the brake/tail/blinkers.

Supplemental braking systems (the part that actually puts the brakes on) do not take care of the rear lights. The Jeep's brakes are applied and the brake lights come on. The JL will "go to sleep" after about 5 minutes. After that, the tail lights will NOT activate...

With that being said, if you have the LED lighting package, the Jeep will "wake up" any time the brake, blinker or tail lights are activated by the rv. This is caused by the extra sensor wire for the LED tail lights. The awakening of the JL is what causes the dead battery issues (there are threads about it). The LED sensor causes the Jeep to wake up. Disconnecting the sensor wire stops the dead batteries. There are fixes (switches), or you can disconnect the sensor wires.

If you want a light in the rv to come on and let you know when the brakes are activated, you have to install a separate switch in the Jeep, at the brake pedal, to send a signal. Then a light on the RV dash. I ran one and used power from the RV to power it. No drain on the Jeep batteries.

I used:
Curt 58964 wiring kit. (no power draw) Runs front to rear, plug and play.
Roadmaster 751490 Brake Light Switch Kit, and disconnected the sensor wires in the tail lights. Brake light LED mounted in RV on dash.
RockJock base plate.
Blue Ox tow bar (older model) with a built in Patriot Brake style braking system that is completely mechanical, cable/surge style. (no power draw) It is also one of the few braking systems that will work with the diesel engine. Used this same bar/brake system on my 2001 TJ. Took it off the TJ and installed in on the new JLU.

Works flawlessly for me on my 2011 JLURD.
NO charge line to the Jeep.
NO dead batteries (even with multiple day/night tows).
5 minute hook up and disconnect.
All cables, wires, pins fit into small bag.
Tow bar stays on the RV.

2000 miles of tows on the 2021 JLURD.
Over 10,000 miles of tows on the 2001 TJ.
ZERO issues.

1998 Overland Larado 42' Diesel Pusher with 1 super slide.
Cummins 8.3L 6CTA engine, Allison 6-spd auto trans.
2021 JLU Rubicon, 3.0 diesel, 8-spd auto.

Hope this helps!

 

[Fftoddster]

Yes it does. Thanks

 

[snapper692]

I use a BLue Ox tow setup and a Patriot 3 brake controller. The wiring from my Sprinter van to the Jeep uses a 7pin to 6pin cable. I also have a power line that comes into the Jeep for barker controller power.

How do you have your max force/force settings configured on your patriot?

 

[19 JLUR Bright Whit3]

Cooltech makes a nice wiring kit for flat towing. I used it for a few years without issue before I sold the motorhome this year. They have a few videos on YT. I believe there is a live wire for a battery tender too. I cant remember the name of the battery tender I used. It was something like I battery or I RV Battery.

 

[Cycle11111]

How do you have your max force/force settings configured on your patriot?

How do you have your max force/force settings configured on your patriot?

I have them set pretty high - I think they are at 8.

 

[snapper692]

I have them set pretty high - I think they are at 8.

Thanks! Im pretty much setup the same way.

 

[kosst]

@RubiBlueJLU
Did you need to add diodes in front of the curt wiring harness?

My brake lights were feeding back into my aux brake controller and causing it to push the brake.

 

[RubiBlueJLU]

@RubiBlueJLU
Did you need to add diodes in front of the curt wiring harness?

My brake lights were feeding back into my aux brake controller and causing it to push the brake.

I did not add diodes. My only feedback was from the LED sensor wires. Unhooking those stopped that.

 

[kosst]

I did see that the description of the Curt 58964 harness said it had integrated block diodes and was hoping that would make a difference. I do not have LED lights on the JL so that may be the key difference. It caused feedback to the aux brake controller because the controller would come on shortly after I pushed the brake manually to hold down a number of seconds longer after I let go. This obviously freaked me out. I contacted the Roadmaster and they were aware of the problem with the Curt harness and suggested installing diodes. I installed 4 roadmaster brand diodes on each of the 4 wires, unfortunately they don't have amp ratings (they have heatsinks). The flow direction points towards the rear lights.

A separate problem I heard about was that the diodes could fail/short out if installed in a location accessible to water/rain. I tucked them up behind the rear lights with zip ties, but its not completely sealed off to the elements. I'm going to install a switch inline to turn the system off since its relatively easy (saw a youtuber do this). Another option would be to pull the aux brake controller fuse during daily driving so it can never come on accidentally.

An off the wall guess for why it doesn't seem to affect the LED folks, is maybe since an LED is technically a diode its helping the the situation?

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