Posted 2008-04-05 2:09 PM (#81264) Subject: Lights zapped my truck?
Member
Posts: 45 Location: Goreville, Illinois
OK, I realize how crazy this sounds, but here goes AND I am completely open to any comments on this....I bought an early 90s 3 horse BP, drove all they way from IL to AR to get it knowing that I wasnt gonna have lights, didnt really care, was just trying to make a quick trip there and back. So, the guy that I bought the trailer from insisted that he get one of his guys to hook me up for the ride home, I gave in. The feller worked on them for over an hour, finally getting everything going. (this is the important part, my truck was fine... UNTIL) He backed my truck up, hooked the lights up and well, when I put my truck into drive, it basically croaked. It would run at an idle, but any bit of gas given to it, it would cough, sputter, dog, whatever you want to call it. I took off with the trailer thinking that maybe it would quit. The truck wouldnt go over 40 mph without sounding like it was gonna blow, the RPMs. were outa sight and it wouldnt shift into O/D. The O/D light was flashing too. Needless to say, bad trip, truck got a ride back on a flatbed trailer, and trailer stayed in AR.
Took my truck to a mechanic he has had it for going on 6 weeks (we took it to a ford dealership yesterday). My mechanic said he has never seen anything like it and has never had a vehicle that he couldnt fix. If you look up a cylinder misfire on google it tells all of the symptoms of what my truck was doing. It continuously throws numerous (17) codes when hooked up to a analyzer.
My point is that, is it possible that somethin with that trailer's electrical fried my truck? Any ideas?
UPDATE: I just got a call from the ford dealer....... you all aint gonna believe this one!!! it was a fuse that had blown, they took it out, and never replaced it. A MISSING FUSE!!! $2.56 cent fuse, cost me 6 weeks without my truck!!!! of course what is a cowgirl without a truck. well my day is a happy day now, might even get to pull my new trailer for the first time.
Posted 2008-04-05 2:57 PM (#81267 - in reply to #81264) Subject: RE: Lights zapped my truck?
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 489 Location: CA
I'm no mechanic, but....When I got my truck (back in '01) I had it set up to pull my trailer by a reputable trailer place in town. On my first drive with the trailer, it just shut totally down! I mean nothing! It stopped! I was on the freeway and suddenly there was no power...no gas, steering, brakes, nothing that needed electricity. It scared the crappola out of me. After towing it to a local dealer we found out that the trailer wiring had been crossed somehow with my truck computer. When it shorted the truck shut down. Ended up costing me ~$4 for a new fuse. I took it back to the trailer place and they re-wired it for free...Claimed they didn't wire it wrong. Haven't been back to them since! So, in answer to your original question, it's probably something to do with the computer in your truck.
Posted 2008-04-06 8:23 PM (#81339 - in reply to #81264) Subject: RE: Lights zapped my truck?
Expert
Posts: 3853 Location: Vermont
My son's band had their rental truck's alternator was fried by a short in the trailer wiring...not once but twice......Pep Boys in Pittsburgh, PA replaced the first alternator and then hooked up the trailer again and 30 minutes later they were installing another alternator...
This was while they were traveling to perform at South By Southwest...
Lights zapped my truck?
and suddenly there was no power...no gas, steering, brakes, nothing that needed electricity. It scared the crappola out of me. After towing it to a local dealer we found out that the trailer wiring had been crossed somehow with my truck computer. When it shorted the truck shut down. Ended up costing me ~$4 for a new fuse. I took it back to the trailer place and they re-wired it for free...Claimed they didn't wire it wrong. Haven't been back to them since! So, in answer to your original question, it's probably something to do with the computer in your truck. 
...Pep Boys in Pittsburgh, PA replaced the first alternator and then hooked up the trailer again and 30 minutes later they were installing another alternator...
