12V wiring questions

[mmcpherson]

I recently purchased a 69 overlander which has had some rodent damage to wiring. When recently had wheel bearings repacked and new electric brakes and controller installed, the shop was able to get only the passenger side tail light/turnsignal to work. They installed a new wiring harness from front of trailer to back of my tow vehicle.
Any suggestions on how to get clearance, backup and other tail light working?

[goransons]

Confirm the wire from your tow vehicle for the drivers side is sending current to the rear.

If at the wires at the rear you're getting power, but no light:

1. Check to make sure bulb is good
2. Check to make sure (with power off) the terminals are clean on the socket
3. Make sure the trailer has a good ground to the frame AND the body. Water and/or rodents may have caused issues with the ground to the vehicle/trailer which can do really screwed up stuff with lights (some working sometimes, only one side, causing them to be dim, both blink, weird stuff).
4. make sure the contact point from the light socket side to the trailer is connected with a clean connection (again ground).

If none of those solve the problem (but you have what you need electrically in back), then you may need to run wires inside the rear compartment from wherever the shop ran back, over to the license light and drivers side and splice back in.

Also, under the front center window, there should be alittle cover about a foot off the floor, check with a test light that each terminal does what its supposed to (i.e. with left turn signal on, one terminal should cause the light to flash on one of the terminals).

Good luck, hang in there, you'll find it!

[mbmbstreamer]

We purchased a 69 Overlander last winter and it had a few issues with lights. I replaced the socket in the front wall and the umbilical cord. I used the owners manual and my truck wiring diagram to re-work the lights. Seems the 7-way round used in 69 had a different standard arrangement than today. When I re-connected and re-oriented the wires, I had power to all the lights.

I still had issues with bulbs and sockets in the back. Try a file or emery cloth and patience.

Good Luck!
Matt

[Jimcollins11]

I have a 71 Overlander and had a problem similar. I found the problem was with the connector going into the trailer. The pin in the connector had spread and didn't make contact. I took a tiny pick closed up the pin a little.

jim

[mbmbstreamer]

I had several ground wires connected to the back of my female connector. You may want to take the inspection cover off and take a look. They are very difficult to reach, as they are between the inner and outer walls.

Matt

[Applejack]

• I have been fighting rodents dinning on my wiring and tail light problems also. When I removed the inspection cover on the front wall I found my wiring chewed off by the ravenous rodents. My solution was to repull a new seven wire cable that I got from my local trailor hitch shop"$55. Ran it under the trailor to the back compartment. also found the tail lights on my 70 overlander were so bad that the only thing to do was replace them. I wanted to up date with sealed units. Found units designed for big trucks and trailors at NAPA regular stop/turn was less than $6 each and LED were $16 ea. they are a little bigger in dia. than the ones I pulled out. took a file and trimed them to fit used silicon to hold them in if they go bad you replace the hole light, no big deal cut the silicon and pull them out. Secound advandage of pulling the new cable is brings a new ground and 12v supply to the back of the unit to by pass other potental rodent damage.