Prodigy RF Remote Not Installed By Dealer

[davidahn]

We just got our very first RV, a 2015 International Signature 19. We're currently camped at Lake Cuyamaca, on the return leg of our maiden voyage to Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta. As usual, several issues have arisen on this voyage. The one that belongs in this thread is my braking controller isn'tt working properly.

I paid $895 for the dealer to install this when I could have gotten it on Amazon for $300 because I wanted it done right. But I have noticed that while towing is effortless for my TV (2014 Mercedes-Benz GL350 BlueTEC w/ 455 lb-ft torque), braking seems to require considerable pedal effort, and I'm concerned that should I encounter an emergency situation, my GL will have to do most of the braking for the AS as well.

They never installed the RF remote in the cabin of the TV; they left it in the AS with a manual. So it was not paired, and that's something for $600 they should have done. But I believe the braking force was not adjusted, and that's a real problem - excessive brake wear on my TV, and unsafe braking if we need to brake hard. Am I missing something here?

I tried pairing it using the manual's procedure, but I wasn't sure what they were telling me to unplug; I've watched their video and now I'm clear on what to do. So I'm going to try pairing it tomorrow to see if I can adjust it myself, but I find myself upset at doing something very simple that I paid the dealer LOTS of money to do.

Thanks in advance for your help.

David

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by davidahn

I tried pairing it using the manual's procedure, but I wasn't sure what they were telling me to unplug; I've watched their video and now I'm clear on what to do. So I'm going to try pairing it tomorrow to see if I can adjust it myself, but I find myself upset at doing something very simple that I paid the dealer LOTS of money to do.

If you paid the dealer to do it, take it back to the dealer and make them do it. If you do it yourself, that wastes the money you paid because once you've done it yourself, you can never prove that the dealer didn't do it.

If going back to the dealer isn't practical due to distance, take it to a reputable repair shop in your area, and pay to have it done. Then bill the Airstream dealer for the cost of having a third party do what the dealer should have done, because you'll have the receipt to prove that it wasn't done the first time.

[Tincampers]

Protagonist - are you native to Louisiana? I am. Parents, grandparents, greatgandparents. We were raised to take no crap, just wondering if it is a Louisiana thing or not.

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by mrprez

Protagonist - are you native to Louisiana? I am. Parents, grandparents, greatgandparents. We were raised to take no crap, just wondering if it is a Louisiana thing or not.

I was born in Lake Charles, back when Chenault Air Force Base was still open, but I grew up in Maine and Oklahoma before moving back to Louisiana after college. But it doesn't take a native-born Louisianian to be cynical about dealing with contractual requirements.

[Tincampers]

No, it doesn't. Doesn't hurt though! I was born in Baton Rouge and lived right outside the gates of the LSU campus.

Anyway, back to the OPs question....

[Greg@AirLA]

The Prodigy is most likely not paired, but also you'll need to install a dummy load on the marker light and turn signal circuits in the trailer, we us 3 -1 watt 100 ohm resistors installed on those 3 circuits to simulate the same load as an incandescent bulb, this is what the Mercedes needs to recognize a "trailer" and power up the brake activation circuit.
We find we have to do this on all European tow vehicles.

Greg

[davidahn]

@Protagonist, we've returned today and left the AS with the dealer. They tried to pair it, but they couldn't do it; they said they needed to pair it using their shop truck, then would try plugging it into my TV.

@Greg, thank you! That sounds promising. My service manager did mention having to add an incandescent bulb or something because I complained that my marker lights constantly blink when plugged into the vehicle or shore power, but if this is also the problem with my braking issue, that would be awesome! I'll ask him to add resistors on those circuits. Thanks!

David