Mopar Trailer Brake Controller for Jeep Gladiator Officially Released (Part # 82215652AB)

[Jaxmax]

harold 0819, when you drive around at night the controller will light up white, watch when you turn Jeep off, mine stays lit for a bit of time, maybe five-ten minutes befor going out. Sounds like you are one of the lucky ones, if you are not getting the flashing lights yet, I've towed two trailers a couple times one for a long time and it works great.

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[Harold0819]

Trying to do video but I've chopped a video from 50 seconds down to less than 20 and it still won't load

 

[ShadowsPapa]

harold 0819, when you drive around at night the controlle rwill light up white,

Only with a trailer attached. My suspicion is that it has a light that gets ground by going through the trailer brake solenoids - the same way a controller knows if a trailer is connected.

Otherwise it's dark like any other.

 

[Harold0819]

Only with a trailer attached. My suspicion is that it has a light that gets ground by going through the trailer brake solenoids - the same way a controller knows if a trailer is connected.

Otherwise it's dark like any other.

Mine was dark when the trailer wasn't attached

 

[Jaxmax]

It will light when trailer is attached and it is dark out with lights on. I also though “damn lights don’t work ” relax, your lucky!....Jack

 

[Jaxmax]

Shadowspaw, it would be a great idea to send a working one to you swap yours out and see if it is a conttoller issue not wiring, just don’t feel like ripping mine out. Be nice of Jeep to repkace your controller and see. I just still can’t see it being a wiring issue as it looks like build dates don’t matter.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Shadowspaw, it would be a great idea to send a working one to you swap yours out and see if it is a conttoller issue not wiring, just don’t feel like ripping mine out. Be nice of Jeep to repkace your controller and see. I just still can’t see it being a wiring issue as it looks like build dates don’t matter.

Testing wouldn't be too hard to do - I could simply (HAHAHAHA - simply) unplug and plug into a known working one, and try it.
Yes, I'd be willing to spend time doing that.

Time is fleeting, though. Our nice temps are about done.
70s until next Tuesday then the bottom drops out.

I'd love to know - is it the controller itself, the truck (such as BCM or ABS controllers) or what........
If it's a difference in something on the truck itself - Jeep will sure have their hands full.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Mine was dark when the trailer wasn't attached

And that makes sense.
Brake controllers know when a trailer is connected by sensing ground through the brake solenoids on the trailer.

 

[Jaxmax]

I’m going to see what I can do.

 

[jwilson2899]

Good news! I confirmed the Tekonsha 3073-P will fix the issues. Verified all the pin outs are the same and the resistor is there. Did the same test as before when I had the issues and no dash lights or warning this time. This is the fix for now if you have issues.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Luckily I won't have to tow - at least I don't think so - for a while so IMO, and for me - this is still on Jeep to fix a defective product.
Spending as much as we spend, it's a matter of principal to not spend more to fix their problem.
Even the dealership tech said it's a warranty issue.

And there's STILL the question - why do SOME work and others NOT work correctly?
I find it odd that some work without kicking errors or codes with the stock wiring, while others don't.
It's a Jeep issue, Jeep problem to fix their controller kits.
So I'll continue to work that direction. They can't sell us something with complete wiring and then say - oops, you need to buy MORE wiring from someone else to make it work.

Think about it - there's a 36" wiring harness in that box we already paid for.

I'm not surprised in the slightest to hear that the Tekonsha harness with diode prevents the codes and lights - we found the same band-aid resolved it with the Redarc controller.

 

[jwilson2899]

Luckily I won't have to tow - at least I don't think so - for a while so IMO, and for me - this is still on Jeep to fix a defective product.
Spending as much as we spend, it's a matter of principal to not spend more to fix their problem.
Even the dealership tech said it's a warranty issue.

And there's STILL the question - why do SOME work and others NOT work correctly?
I find it odd that some work without kicking errors or codes with the stock wiring, while others don't.
It's a Jeep issue, Jeep problem to fix their controller kits.
So I'll continue to work that direction. They can't sell us something with complete wiring and then say - oops, you need to buy MORE wiring from someone else to make it work.

Think about it - there's a 36" wiring harness in that box we already paid for.

I'm not surprised in the slightest to hear that the Tekonsha harness with diode prevents the codes and lights - we found the same band-aid resolved it with the Redarc controller.

I was just reporting back my results for everyone. I understand Jeep owes a real fix, but if someone wants it working now, this is a work around.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

I was just reporting back my results for everyone. I understand Jeep owes a real fix, but if someone wants it working now, this is a work around.

True. It was expected that it would work - and your pics of the connector and such pretty much showed it's a Tekonsha unit.

Still - people need to take the issue to Jeep.
The more people who report it and deal with it as a warranty issue, the fewer will have to pay for a fix, and the fewer units will go out with problems for future buyers.

Here's a good question - what about those Jeep Gladiators being built in Ohio right now -with tow packages and a controller installed as an option at the factory?
I wonder what happens if you order a JT with max tow, the controller........ likely they'll never ever test anything at the factory. They simply plug in wires, that's it. You know no one will ever push that button.

 

[unixxx]

How does it read deceleration?
Trailer brake controller's absolutely used to be directional. They had a pendulum inside.

It depends on whether the controller has the internal sensors to read acceleration in all 3 axises. The Redarc does, so it can calculate the vector for the vehicle's direction after some brake and acceleration cycles. It has a learning period after initial installation. Others don't and must be mounted facing forward.

It's possible that even if the controller is a Mopar-badged Redarc, that the vector for the vehicle's direction was pre-programmed to eliminate the learning mode, since the controller is always expected to be mounted in the same orientation. In this case changing the orientation could prevent it from functioning properly.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

It depends on whether the controller has the internal sensors to read acceleration in all 3 axises. The Redarc does, so it can calculate the vector for the vehicle's direction after some brake and acceleration cycles. It has a learning period after initial installation. Others don't and must be mounted facing forward.

It's possible that even if the controller is a Mopar-badged Redarc, that the vector for the vehicle's direction was pre-programmed to eliminate the learning mode, since the controller is always expected to be mounted in the same orientation. In this case changing the orientation could prevent it from functioning properly.

It's a Tekonsha according to the connector used.

Those who have installed it as it came said it worked.

It comes shipped on the mounting plate opposite what the book shows but then the book is full of crap in other areas, too.

I had a tekonsha in my Chevy and it was mounted almost vertically and worked fine.

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