Toad charge wire question

[flyinraptr]

Hi,

I have an '08 Monaco Diplomat PDQ ... just purchased a new toad - '10 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited 4x4 with automatic tranny. Trying to get it setup to tow flat. I have the Blue Ox Aventa II tow bar and Blue Ox faceplate - installed the Cool Tech Wiring Harness (haven't wired the four-pin connector yet). On order I have the Brake Buddy Vantage coming.

My understanding is with the '10 Wrangler's there is no steering column lock and hence no need to use the ignition key and subsequently no battery drain (no need to disconnect or pull fuses), however it appears looking at the Brake Buddy manual that the break-away utilizing the 12v cigarette lighter on the toad which will of course put a drain on the battery. It looks like the work-around is to run some type of charge wire to the MH .... trying to figure out the best way to do this? Any tips would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

Greg

[Pigman]

If you have a seven pin trailer connector on the back of the rig, you probably already have a charge line. The 12V+ pin, usually at 1o'clock looking into the plug, is all you need to connect. Run a 10 ga wire through a 15A fuse to the + side of your battery. A check with a meter will tell if the 12+ pin is hot when the coach ignition is off. Mine shuts down, so I get no back feed when we stop for the night.

John

[flyinraptr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pigman If you have a seven pin trailer connector on the back of the rig, you probably already have a charge line. The 12V+ pin, usually at 1o'clock looking into the plug, is all you need to connect. Run a 10 ga wire through a 15A fuse to the + side of your battery. A check with a meter will tell if the 12+ pin is hot when the coach ignition is off. Mine shuts down, so I get no back feed when we stop for the night. John

Thanks - I've also read where some folks have re-wired one of the cigarette lighters in the Jeep - wondering if there is a way to tie it into the existing Cool Tech Harness to reduce the number of connections going back and forth between the MH and toad?

[roscoesdad]

I towed my Miata from Ga. to Ca. and back 2 times in 2009. I use a BrakeBuddy and have never had it deplete the battery in my toad. Once the BrakeBuddy develops the proper pressure, it pulls very little current from the toad. I have no supplemental charging of the toad battery. I set mine up for emergency stops and it does not activate everytime I use the brakes.

[dc8cappie]

Here is the 7 pin diagram.

Webshots - Full Size Photo

[wa8yxm]

Break away uses exactly ZERO power unless it breaks away.

However the brake Buddy does

You may wish to consider a "Towed Charge" system
TOAD-CHARGE Dinghy Vehicle Battery Charger/Maintainer
(I happen to have that URL on my clipboard from another post in another forum family)

NOTE: I do not like the brake-in-a-box systems like the Brake Buddy.. And I will tell you why.

The claim is no installation, but the fact is you have to install them EVERY time you hook up. EVERY time.. Let's say you are just going to your dealer, "Oh, it's too much trouble to hook it up for this short drive"

Murphy says that's when you going to need it the most.

ON the other hand a M&G Air/Hydraulic, or a US-Gear, electric/hydraulic.

Once installed.. They remain installed,, Just plug in and go. Takes as long to hook up the brakes as it did to read this sentence.. Or less.

[hardy1000]

Your new Wrangler does not have steering lock. I tow my 09 Rubi Unlimited without the key with no problems and I also use Blue OX and cooltech but I use the US Gear Unified Tow Brake. Your Diplomat comes already wired from the factory for the Unified Tow Brake system which does have the charging wire for the Toad. SMI and M&G are also top braking systems. Congrats on the new Jeep

[flyinraptr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by roscoesdad I towed my Miata from Ga. to Ca. and back 2 times in 2009. I use a BrakeBuddy and have never had it deplete the battery in my toad. Once the BrakeBuddy develops the proper pressure, it pulls very little current from the toad. I have no supplemental charging of the toad battery. I set mine up for emergency stops and it does not activate everytime I use the brakes.

Good to know - with the weight difference of the Jeep vs the Miata - not sure if that would be a good setup pulling a Jeep though.

[flyinraptr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by wa8yxm Break away uses exactly ZERO power unless it breaks away. However the brake Buddy does You may wish to consider a "Towed Charge" system TOAD-CHARGE Dinghy Vehicle Battery Charger/Maintainer (I happen to have that URL on my clipboard from another post in another forum family) NOTE: I do not like the brake-in-a-box systems like the Brake Buddy.. And I will tell you why. The claim is no installation, but the fact is you have to install them EVERY time you hook up. EVERY time.. Let's say you are just going to your dealer, "Oh, it's too much trouble to hook it up for this short drive" Murphy says that's when you going to need it the most. ON the other hand a M&G Air/Hydraulic, or a US-Gear, electric/hydraulic. Once installed.. They remain installed,, Just plug in and go. Takes as long to hook up the brakes as it did to read this sentence.. Or less.

The Toad-Charge looks like it might be the ticket. I've already ordered the BrakeBuddy Vantage - so I'm already commited at this point.

[flyinraptr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by hardy1000 Your new Wrangler does not have steering lock. I tow my 09 Rubi Unlimited without the key with no problems and I also use Blue OX and cooltech but I use the US Gear Unified Tow Brake. Your Diplomat comes already wired from the factory for the Unified Tow Brake system which does have the charging wire for the Toad. SMI and M&G are also top braking systems. Congrats on the new Jeep

Thank you .... I had an FJ Cruiser with automatic tranny which can't be towed - so i traded it in for the Jeep. So far - I really love it and the dogs seem to enjoy it more as well. I did a test run today - after installing the Cool Tech and Blue Ox baseplate - without the key - had no problems. So now I'm just waiting on the BrakeBuddy and researching the 12v power options for the BrakeBuddy.

[flyinraptr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dc8cappie Here is the 7 pin diagram. Webshots - Full Size Photo

Thanks - so the umbillical cord from Blue Ox converts from the seven pin on the MH down to the four pin on the Toad. Wondering if splicing the 12v from one of the cigarette lighters into the Red wire on the Cool Tech Harness would work?

[dc8cappie]

Here is a better set of wire connections for several plugs. My blue ox toad connection has 6 wires. I can get 12V from pin "A".

Trailer Wiring Diagrams | etrailer.com

[flyinraptr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dc8cappie Here is a better set of wire connections for several plugs. My blue ox toad connection has 6 wires. I can get 12V from pin "A". Trailer Wiring Diagrams | etrailer.com

Comparing that diagram with the four pin - appears the red wire is what i would need to splice into.

Came up with another option - I may experiment with and that is a solar powered battery trickle charger - plugs into the cigarette lighter - i found one for around $30 - 4watts - sits up on the dashboard - might be enough to offset the drain from the BrakeBuddy and is simple/portable.

[donie]

Fwiw, we have a 08 Monarch and tow a 09 Wrangler auto.
We had a 6 pin plug installed on the MH. The installer put a circuit breaker at the MH battery and ran a wire to the 6 pin plug.
Another circuit breaker is on the Jeep.
All I do is plug in the cord on both, connect the Road Master tow system and connect the breakaway switch and we re on our way.
Im using a US Gear unified tow set up on the Jeep and it works great for us.
Hope this helps some.