Community Forums

voltdoc · 06-25-2017, 01:21 PM

Also have a Toad charge and agree with Gary it is a nice product. Small, weatherproof and just works. While many will argue you don't really need it, it will eliminate any possibility of overcharging your toad battery and regulate the current consumed by the toad to no more than 10 amps.

You need only the toad kit which includes the toad side wiring and other parts $73: https://www.2checkout.com/checkout/p...&product_id=19

Or you can by just the module itself for $55; https://www.2checkout.com/checkout/p...&product_id=30

Also be sure to verify which pin on the toad side actually has the 12v. Some motorhome to toad cable assemblies swap the 12v and brake controller pins. For example, note on this Blue Ox cable the center pin on the 6pin toad side connector is the brake controller wire; https://www.etrailer.com/Accessories...x/BX88206.html

But on this similar roadmaster cable the center pin is 12v; https://www.etrailer.com/Accessories.../RM-146-7.html

ParkBy3 · 06-25-2017, 09:47 PM

I have a similar issue with my Cherokee toad. I have the 7 pin connector shown in the Blue Ox cable and it worked fine with the connector on the Discovery. When I moved to the CS I used the same electrical cable and the toad turn signals and hazard signal worked great.

I thought all was well until we left the toad connected for 3-4 days as we travelled cross country. When time came to disconnect and use the toad, the battery was dead. After a jumpstart and a charge all was well. This sequenced happened twice.

Is there something different on the CS electrical connector and my cable that is keeping my accessories hot and draining my toad battery as we travel?

I think the toad charger discussed above could solve the dead battery issue, but I am curious why this cable connector worked on the Discovery but not on the CS. I know the folks in this thread really know their stuff and hope someone will shed light on my situation. Thanks

Gary.Jones · 06-25-2017, 10:21 PM

Get out your digital multimeter and determine what each spade terminal is doing. I charted every pin (left, right, stop, etc) and found my +12 volt charge line. Now, make sure you don't have a blown fuse on that line. If you find the 12 VDC line in good shape, then move to the toad end of you cable and repeat the process. I diagram the power connections on each end. If you have 12 volts and your charge line is actually connected to the battery you should be charging.

Gary

waterboy10 · 06-26-2017, 09:11 AM

Most likely no charge witre running to your battery or if it fused it may have tripped.

Burq57 · 06-26-2017, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by buddy110

I installed a roadmaster tow hitch with even brake system in my cherokee. I also installed the power sterring modual which jeep recommended. Needless to say, both will tax the battery. How do you guys keep the charge up on your toads? I was thinking of mounting a trickle charger in the engine bay of the jeep and running an extension cord to the outlet in the coaches engine bay.

Any thoughts?

I use "Rvibreak Towed battery charger", TCB-12014.

It will allow you to charge your battery while towing without over charging. Easy to install and use.

Got mine on Amazon for around $60.000.

If you use just a wire to your battery, you take the chance of over charging your battery.

bfridge · 06-26-2017, 07:15 PM

Ditto on the RVI Brake TCB-12014
Works like a charm.

Trvl1 · 06-27-2017, 05:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brobox

Here you go. The first post is a photo of the 7 pin plug and which is the battery charge connection. The second post is step by step instructions.

http://www.irv2.com/forums/f281/tryi...ml#post2267865

Thanks

cathyv817 · 07-04-2017, 08:56 AM

We are getting our 2014 baseplate installed on Monday. In the meantime I checked the process for setting up our MKX for towing. Lights off, radio off, vent in circulation mode, and vehicle in accessory mode. Does your 'check engine' light stay on while towning? Perhaps I am putting it in accessory mode in an incorrect step? Any insight you could offer would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!

This is the product we use for our 13 MKX. It works great and like Gary we highly recommend it. Easy to install and now no toad battery issues. As I recall it was not very expensive.

waterboy10 · 07-04-2017, 03:18 PM

On our 13 MKX we run the car for at least 5 minutes. Put vehicle from park to R to D to S then to D then to N then to R then back to N. The manual says to always put in N from R. I shut the vehicle off then put in accessory mode with radio off and vent on circulate. Some dash lites will be on but will go off in about 2 minutes. We added a toad charger to make sure the battery stayed up. You need to run the vehicle for at least 5 minutes every 6 hours and go thru the same procedure I showed if you plan to go more than six hours. Speed limit is 65mph but we will run more than that for short periods when passing. We usually run right at 62mph. I always start the car before moving to park because before we had the charger I got stuck at a Pilot when the battery was dead and I had put the vehicle into park and could not get into N. That was a mess but I did not know the battery would go dead after a few days driving of towing with no charger.

ParkBy3 · 07-04-2017, 11:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by waterboy10

On our 13 MKX we run the car for at least 5 minutes. Put vehicle from park to R to D to S then to D then to N then to R then back to N. The manual says to always put in N from R. I shut the vehicle off then put in accessory mode with radio off and vent on circulate. Some dash lites will be on but will go off in about 2 minutes. We added a toad charger to make sure the battery stayed up. You need to run the vehicle for at least 5 minutes every 6 hours and go thru the same procedure I showed if you plan to go more than six hours. Speed limit is 65mph but we will run more than that for short periods when passing. We usually run right at 62mph. I always start the car before moving to park because before we had the charger I got stuck at a Pilot when the battery was dead and I had put the vehicle into park and could not get into N. That was a mess but I did not know the battery would go dead after a few days driving of towing with no charger.

My Jeep doesn't require the accessories to be active. I think my problem occurred when I had the battery changed and the tech did not restore the 12v charge line from the hitch to the battery.

There are a few references to continuous battery chargers that would probably work well for you if you have to leave on the accessories while you run.

Also, I bought a small lithium battery starter at O'Reilly's to jump the battery, just in case it was dead on arrival. Used it twice so far and works like a charm. I think Harbor Freight has the battery starter for about half the price of the O'Reilly model Running the battery to dead though is probably not a good idea, so I am getting my charge line traced before another long trip with the Jeep in tow.

Hope this helps, Chuck

cathyv817 · 07-05-2017, 04:41 AM

Thank you for the detailed process. I will try it and see if I no longer have the check engine lite on. When I tried it, I didn't go thru the motions of D,R,N,S,etc...I hope this is what I was missing that caused the check engine lite to remain on. Thanks again!