E450 trailer brake connector

[Jarhead_Rider1]

Hi All,
Just purchased a Fleetwood Tioga on a Ford E450 clip chassis and I'm unable to locate the electric trailer brake control connector that should be under the driver dash area. If anyone has knowledge in locating this connector could you please enlighten me. There is a lot of upfitter wiring in this area it looks like to me and I'm afraid they (Fleetwood) may have used this connector for something else.

Keith

[subford]

If you do not have the factory dash controller then the plug location is in the photos below.

The Ford Van specific adapter has one end that plugs into the back of the brake controller, while the other end plugs into the port behind the center dashboard access panel on the passenger's side.







Note: If your Ford Van has a factory-installed trailer hitch and 7-way connector, then all the wires for the brake controller have already been run. If not, additional parts will be required to complete the installation of the brake controller./

[Rmblaster]

On our 2008 E450 The connector was located under the dash over by the emergency brake pedal it has 4 wires

[Jarhead_Rider1]

but I'm still unable to locate the connector. I've removed the the panel under the steering wheel and the dog house. Unless the connector was removed for some reason, as there are a lot of new wires and even a few unmarked inline fuses that look to be added on by Fleetwood.
Anybody with a 2011 that has either an electric brake controller or a towed car brake controller that can take a look at their installation and give me some new clues I would be very thankful.

[subford]

Then do you have the factory brake controller on the dash as below?

From your 2011 E450 owners manual:

Trailer brakes
Electric brakes and manual, automatic or surge-type trailer brakes are safe if installed properly and adjusted to the manufacturer’s specifications. The trailer brakes must meet local and Federal regulations.

WARNING: Do not connect a trailer’s hydraulic brake system directly to your vehicle’s brake system. Your vehicle may not have enough braking power and your chances of having a collision greatly increase.

The braking system of the tow vehicle is rated for operation at the GVWR not GCWR.

Integrated trailer brake controller (if equipped) Your vehicle may be equipped with a fully integrated electronic trailer brake controller (TBC). When used properly, the TBC helps ensure smooth and effective trailer braking by powering the trailer’s electric brakes with a proportional output based on the towing vehicle’s brake pressure.

WARNING: The Ford TBC has only been verified to be compatible with trailers having electric-actuated drum brakes (one to four axles) and not hydraulic surge or electric-over-hydraulic types. It is the responsibility of the customer to ensure that the trailer brakes are adjusted appropriately, functioning normally and all electric connections are properly made. Failure to do so may result in loss of vehicle control, crash or serious injury.

The TBC user interface consists of the following:
1. +/- (GAIN adjustment buttons) Pressing these buttons adjusts the TBC’s power output to the trailer brakes (in 0.5 increments). The GAIN setting can be increased to a maximum of 10.0 or decreased to a minimum of 0 (no trailer braking). Pressing and holding a button raises or lowers the setting continuously. The gain setting displays in the message center as follows: TBC GAIN = XX.X.


2. Manual control lever: Slide the control lever to the left to activate power to the trailer’s electric brakes independent of the tow vehicle’s brakes (see the following Procedure for adjusting GAIN section for instructions on proper use of this feature). If the manual control is activated while the brake is also applied, the greater of the two inputs determines the power sent to the trailer brakes.

• Stop lamps: Activating the TBC manual control lever illuminates both the trailer brake lamps and the tow vehicle brake lamps except the center high-mount stop lamp (presuming proper trailer electrical connection). Pressing the vehicle brake pedal also illuminates both trailer and vehicle brake lamps./

[Jarhead_Rider1]

My E450 is not equipped with factory TBC. There are a couple of phony looking small inserts located in the center right portion of the dash above the engine cover that might be replaced with a TBC I suppose. I got into it again last evening but was still unable to locate any connector that is taped up to any wire bundle or support frame work. There are 4 solid color wires (no connector) coming up from the floor by the E brake and going all the way over to the center of the dash panel (blue,green,brown and ?) that I will ohm out back to the trailer connector at the back bumper this weekend.

[Jarhead_Rider1]

Ok i finally found the connector. On the '11 e450s there is a blank at the top center of the dash, it's behind this blank. The blank is a small coin holder and cavity combination which would be replaced by the factory brake controller if you had that option. Pry it out carefully and the connector is right there.

[Campingman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jarhead_Rider1 Ok i finally found the connector. On the '11 e450s there is a blank at the top center of the dash, it's behind this blank. The blank is a small coin holder and cavity combination which would be replaced by the factory brake controller if you had that option. Pry it out carefully and the connector is right there.

Good find thank you I was wondering where it was also.

Mark

[SJGasman]

I just purchased a 2012 Winnie Aspect. I wanted to install a trailer brake controller, but found a lot of frustration online trying to locate the Ford connector. I also tried my local Ford dealer, Camping World and Lazy Days. I heard over and over that it was "in front of the emergency brake". No, it wasn't. I emailed Ford and Winnebago and after numerous emails with a variety of people, I found the following:

Ford offers an option of having a factory installed trailer brake controller on the 2009-2012 E450 chassis. It is located in the top center of the dash, above the radio. Some manufacturers do not remove the "coin box" that Ford places in this spot if the controller is not installed, but Winnebago installs a plate there that holds two or three switches to route house battery power to the starter and to the radio. That plate is extremely difficult to remove, but behind it is the connector. While trying to get that plate out of my dash, the dash fascia popped loose on my Winnie. Feeling that that was an omen, I used a nylon trim removal tool (available at auto supply stores) to pry the entire fascia loose. I moved it away from the dash about 6 inches and found the connector lying on top of the radio. I hooked in the wiring adapter pigtail I bought with my Tekonsha Prodigy P2 and fished the end of it down to the driver's footwell. I then popped the fascia back onto the dash.

Believe me, it is far easier to pop off the fascia than to try to get that plate off. If your coach does not have anything in that location but the coin box, then it apparently pops out itself very easily, if you're careful. But, that would not give you much room for manuvering the connector around. Popping off the fascia gives you access to the entire area behind the dash.