Bobbo
Memphis, TN
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Joined: 09/16/2007
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I am currently shopping for a 4 down toad. I am planning to put a trailer hitch on the toad. I will bolt a crossbar on the ball bar instead of a ball. Then I will mount trailer lights on the crossbar. When I am towing, I put the "lightbar" in the trailer hitch and use a 5 pin flat connector to connect them to the wire coming from the 7 pin connector on the MH. The fifth pin will just be left open. It will be a 5 pin to distinguish it from the 4 pin flat connector that is tied into the toad's wiring system.
Bobbo, Linda and the furry kid (German Shepherd)
'07 Winnebago Outlook 31C on a Ford E450 Super Duty Chassis
NRA Life Member
Near N35 12 17 W89 50 57
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ramzfam
Appomattox, Va
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Joined: 01/08/2007
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I bought a bulb kit and installed separate lights. A Jeep's taillights design make that very easy to do. A different vehical's taillights might not accept the extra bulbs as easily in which case one of the other options would be more attractive.
Have RV....Will Travel  
2007 Forest River Sunseeker 2860 LTD
2000 Jeep Wrangler Sahara
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4gone
Mass
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Joined: 12/07/2006
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I did the extra bulb and socket in the tail lights. Doesn't mess with the towed vehicles system and in case of some sort of malfunction won't do harm to the other vehicle. Also can tow my car with any vehicle with a four prong connector and have working lights.
The potential damage is done on vehicles where the toad brake lights work when the toad ignition is in accessory and the brake pedal is pressed as with portable supplemental brake units. They also receive power from the MH and it overloads they system. I thought it best to avoid the issue. I was able to get away with not installing the diodes and brake lite relay with my Even Brake.
* This post was
edited 06/17/08 01:50pm by 4gone *
Me (39)Growing older but not up.
The Wife (38)The voice of reason.
The Girl (41/2)The Princess.
The Boy (23 Mo)Little Man
2007 Damon Daybreak 3276
2002 Suzuki XL7
Even Brake
XM Radio
Direct TV crank up dish.
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bacollins
Lawrenceburg, IN
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Joined: 11/21/2004
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4gone wrote:I did the extra bulb and socket in the tail lights. Doesn't mess with the towed vehicles system and in case of some sort of malfunction won't do harm to the other vehicle. Also can tow my car with any vehicle with a four prong connector and have working lights.
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I did the same for much the same reasons. Cheap, easy, foolproof.
'92 Itasca Sunflyer P series Chevy
'99 Wrangler Toad
'99 Cherokee Toad
'00 Yamaha WR 400
'05 KTM 450 EXC
'92 Honda 750 Nighthawk
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b ubblerboy64
946 Ashton Shippensburg Pa 17257
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Joined: 10/18/2004
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I also did the extra bulbs in the lens housings. I think the thing to consider is how much room you have. If you have the room for the bulbs I see no reason to do it any other way. I just finished a complete instillation of the ready brut, brake, system and I was able to complete the job with no hands on help. I did have a problem with the electrics because I didn't realize that I needed a brake wiring converter (diode box) due to the nature of the way my old bus is wired to its tail lights. I had to ask the RV dealer for a little advice and of course I bought the converter from him. I am impressed with the ready brake system and I like the fact that is is all mechanical with no electronic (talking about the brake system) . Check it out. The people at Night Force Auto are helpful as well.
John Heckman
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jeffnkelly
St. Louis MO
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Joined: 02/15/2006
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magnetic lights are the trick..
I did the whole diode and bulb and socket thing on my first toad. It takes no additonal time. While I connect Toad to Tow bar and chains, DW puts the Mag lights in place.
Easy Peasy... (My favorite two words)
Smooth Roads!!!
2006 Damon Challenger 372F Triton V10
2007 Ford Edge
JeffnKelly
St. Louis MO
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Jeffe
El Paso, TX
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Joined: 06/18/2004
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I have had my four toads all wired by professionals...my first three toads, a Grand Vitara, followed by two Silverados were all wired direct with diodes...this toad, a Grand Cherokee was wired with seperate bulbs.
The Jeep dealer who wired the Grand Cherokee Limited told me that the Jeep lenses housings are designed with a place to add the seperate bulb.
Both systems worked OK and were transparent to me...so, I guess I don't really care.
2002 Winnebago Journey DL - 39QD
330 Cat with 6 Speed Allison
Toad: 2006 Grand Cherokee Limited 4x4 Hemi
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N7UMS
Enumclaw, WA, USA
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Joined: 06/08/2001
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Since our Jeep Wrangler does not have metal for magnetic lights I used the diode method, no problems in over 10 years of towing it. I also set up our Liberty the same way, never an issue. Just set up two more Wranglers in the last two days with diodes. I just don't like all the hassle of making new holes in a perfectly good light housing. I use 6amp 400piv diodes available at Radio Shack for about $2.50/4 Same diodes the local tow shop uses to wire up toads. I would suppose if diode failure was such an issue they would have stopped using them long ago in the face of mad customers. If you use the correct diodes I don't see that you should have any problems. Use the wires/bulbs that are already there.
Ed/N7UMS
31' Fleetwood Flair, Georgetown 378TS on order
'98 Jeep Wrangler Toad
www.nwjeepn.com
The Trail Starts Here!
"I can fix it, and if I can't fix it, I can fix it so nobody can fix it!"
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offthewall
New Jersey
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Joined: 08/19/2007
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BearcatBully wrote:What is the best way to do this? There are 2 options as I understand it, using the toads existing wiring or running a separate circuit and installing it in toads existing light housing. I am planning to use Blue Ox baseplate and Alladdin tow bar.
The problems with the separate bulb method are that: 1) the second bulb is not placed in the "sweet spot" of the taillight lens and therefor not as bright. 2) You have no tag light or running lights.
Magnetic lights have the same issue as 2) above plus the mess of attaching them and the wires.
With my 08 Jeep Wrangler, I used the cool tech wiring harness. With this setup, there is no need for diodes. I have stock looking turn, stop, running and tag lights. Nothing to hook up, bang around or fall off.
2008 Gulfstream B Touring Cruiser
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kjames90755
Signal Hill, CA
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Joined: 01/27/2008
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We had the diodes installed with the cable attachment to the Toad from the MH...now we're going to rewire the 12v circuit feed so that the Even-Brake can receive 12v from the MH rather than from the toad battery.
2008 Itasca Meridian 37H, All. 3000MH (6-auto), Freightliner XC Chass., Cummins 6.7L Turbo, (Sweet! Delivery 03/12/08). Tow: '07 Dodge Gr. Caravan, Me, Him; Sugarbear, Apr. Toy Poodle; Pepe, Blk Toy Poodle; Hero, fat Siam.-mix polydactyl cat/Alarm Clock.
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