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Topic: Tow Bar Electrics

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Simon Thomson

30/7/2019 at 8:41am
Location: High Wycombe
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Hi All

Going to but our 1st caravan next year so will probably be asking all sorts of questions.

For the tow bar should I get 1 or 2 electric points on it?
Why?

Thanks.

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tango55

30/7/2019 at 11:15am
Location: Lichfield
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Firstly, the 1 electric point (black socket) is for the caravan road lights and the other (grey socket) is for charging the caravan battery and running the fridge on 12 volt power whilst the caravan is in tow. If you don't need the latter then the black socket is all you need. However, if it's a modern vehicle with can-bus elecronics built in then the best advice is to opt for the single 13 pin socket which incorporates both functions of the black and grey 7 pin sockets which is then dedicated to the system and will relay messages to the vehicle dashboard as an alert if a problem arrises during towing.

Simon Thomson

30/7/2019 at 1:45pm
Location: High Wycombe
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Thanks and a perfect answer that I can understand.

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We only have 1 life so live it.

dimbles

30/7/2019 at 2:23pm
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It will not make any difference as to whether you have the 13 pin socket or the black and grey sockets ,the connections to the car electrics will be exactly the same either way, they will be made via a can bus control box if need be, which is another name for a bank of relays, We opted for single sockets because I sometimes hire trailers that are fitted with 7pin plugs, Our Pathfinder has a 13 pin plug when towing we use a conversion plug.

Post last edited on 30/07/2019 14:33:39

fatscoleymo

30/7/2019 at 4:05pm
Location: Charente Maritime France
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Dimbles -have you checked that the converter actually allows the caravan battery to charge? Depending on the make it may r may not....and the age of car...and the age of caravan....ask me how I know....

tango55

30/7/2019 at 5:00pm
Location: Lichfield
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I knew nothing abiut towbar electrics when I first started caravanning 13 years ago (the same as the OP) and had the twin towing sockets fitted to my Volvo. I broke down three time to which the AA advised to have the car looked at by a Volvo dealer. I had a genuine Volvo wiring loom fitted which was programmed into the onboard electrics and got the problem finally sorted.
Some people may have the twin sockets fitted without any issues but what they DON'T know is that when the caravan battery is being charge from the towing vehicle the alternator has to provide more charge in respect of charging the vehicle battery and the caravan battery simultaneously. The can-bus relay will detect when this is active but if it doesn't reset once the caravan towing plug has been detached then the alternator will still produce an inceased amount of charge which in theory will severely overheat the vehicle battery and likely to cause a fire. Due to this being the case, the can-bus relay circuit will deliver a message to the dashboard... 'Brake Failure' which cuts out everything on the vehicle which is a critical emergency reaction to avoid the vehicle battery catching fire.
These are the facts but because Volvo have invested in the technology and put safety first, they are always a world leader in road safety and will beat other car manufacturers hands down.
Just because caravanners say they don't have a problem with twin electics, it may just be an accident waiting to happen, but at the end of the day it's up to people to either take the good advice or not as many drivers don't understand the logics of modern technology.

dimbles

30/7/2019 at 5:23pm
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It is for the above reason that I will never not ever connect either my caravan battery or fridge to a Can Bus system on any vehicle that I own, Because it can over load the Can Bus and cause mega problems and damage, If others are prepared to take a chance and have a fridge and leasure battery connected to a Can Bus system that's great, But I will not be joining them.

tango55

30/7/2019 at 5:31pm
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Quote: Originally posted by dimbles on 30/7/2019
It is for the above reason that I will never not ever connect either my caravan battery or fridge to a Can Bus system on any vehicle that I own, Because it can over load the Can Bus and cause mega problems and damage, If others are prepared to take a chance and have a fridge and leasure battery connected to a Can Bus system that's great, But I will not be joining them.

All the mod cons on a caravan are provided for use to make things easier so if you are simply not going to use them by not keeping up with the technolgy then it's rather a primitive attitude to take.
The Days of struggling with old camping techniques went out with the Ark.

dimbles

30/7/2019 at 5:51pm
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Quote: Originally posted by tango55 on 30/7/2019

Quote: Originally posted by dimbles on 30/7/2019
It is for the above reason that I will never not ever connect either my caravan battery or fridge to a Can Bus system on any vehicle that I own, Because it can over load the Can Bus and cause mega problems and damage, If others are prepared to take a chance and have a fridge and leasure battery connected to a Can Bus system that's great, But I will not be joining them.

All the mod cons on a caravan are provided for use to make things easier so if you are simply not going to use them by not keeping up with the technolgy then it's rather a primitive attitude to take.
The Days of struggling with old camping techniques went out with the Ark.

That has nothing whatsoever to do with it, Because I know and understand how modern electrics work is the reason I will not be doing it. If in a situation where the large caravan battery is starting to lose its capacity the vehicles charging system will be going flat out trying to charge it.That together with the large fridges on modern vans drawing a lot of amps is a disaster waiting to happen.

towedyears

30/7/2019 at 7:17pm
Location: Cannock Chase Staffordshire
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I fully agree Volvo wiring harness factory fitted with 13 pin plug better connection far superior to the old 7 pin sockets which were prone to all manner of issues.

navver

30/7/2019 at 7:49pm
Location: West country
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I'd say go for 13 pin as it is a more reliable and better designed socket than the 7 pins.

Some old caravans are still fitted with 7 pin plug so you may need to get an adaptor for these.

I have a 13 pin caravan and car but also have two trailers for which I use a simple adaptor.

Colin21

30/7/2019 at 10:51pm
Location: East Herts
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My car is 12 years old and my caravan is 27 years old. I have a single 7 pin black plug which powers the caravan's road lights, and that is all I need. My previous car was 18 years old and my previous caravan 28 years old. Both outfits worked just fine with only the one 7 pin plug for the road lights. My motto is "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". If my current set-up gave me any problems, I would do something about it.

If you have a more modern car and/or caravan it may be worth considering going 13 pin, but if you don't really need it, don't bother. Whether or not you need it may depend on the type of caravanning you intend to do. I very rarely go to a site without EHU, and I always make sure my battery is charged before I go away, so I simply don't need to charge it on the move. My fridge is always chilled down overnight before I leave, and stocked up with frozen stuff. When I get on site it is still cold and I plug in the electrics straight away.

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Colin

Dr Zhivago

31/7/2019 at 7:43pm
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Some fascinating insights in the above posts, but cutting a long story short, the black 7-pin is an old system, the grey 7-pin alongside it is a sticking plaster to cover the things that the black 7-pin does not, and the single 13-pin is the modern system that covers all the functions.

If you are starting from a clean sheet you might as well install the modern 13-pin system.

dimbles

31/7/2019 at 9:07pm
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Some of the replies make it sound as if the introduction of 13 pin plugs is some kind of great revelation, The reality is that they both do exactly the same thing in either case when hooked up the caravan side lights will come on, the brake lights will light up the indicators will still flash, what difference can there be. What ever is chosen its not going to make any difference, so why pretend there are great benefits over one or the other.
Like Colin I almost always use site hook ups and don't have need to charge the battery from the car electrics. we do likewise with our fridge and never needed that to be connected to the car. And not having them connected to our car takes away any risk of damage to the cars electric system.

Colin21

31/7/2019 at 10:44pm
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Yes the black and grey plugs are an old system, but in reality all the 13 pin plug does is combines the two into one plug. So, maybe if you are buying a new caravan and a new car it makes sense to have the new system, but if like the majority you have neither a new car or caravan, I can't see any point in converting. It won't work any better and it won't do anything more, it just saves you putting in two plugs. If your caravanning is anything like mine you don't even need any more than the one 7 pin plug, which is all I have. Never had a problem.

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Colin

queensmessenger

via mobile 01/8/2019 at 3:39pm
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Getting a new car soon to tow my old van. Do these responses mean that I can wire my lights/flashers/stop lights direct to harness without the need for the expensive dedicated wiring harness and the need to reprogram the car provided I do not use the battery charging and fridge wires? My old black plug should be all that I need.

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Doug

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