Towing equipment questions

[AVguy2]

Found a copy of the Ford installation instructions for the North American style hitch receiver. It can be saved as a PDF.

 

Here is the link:

 

http://www.fordservicecontent.com/ford_content/catalog/accessory_files/SKDT1J_19D520_BA_Transit_Hitch.pdf

 

SKDT1J_19D520_BA_Transit_Hitch.pdf

 

EDIT: Also found this interesting item:

 

https://app.box.com/s/uq6ok5es67du6y9typhruwc3nmuv8uc7

Edited September 30, 2017 by AVguy2

[williaty]

3 minutes ago, AVguy2 said:

Found a copy of the Ford installation instructions for the North American style hitch receiver. It can be saved as a PDF.

 

Here is the link:

 

http://www.fordservicecontent.com/ford_content/catalog/accessory_files/SKDT1J_19D520_BA_Transit_Hitch.pdf

 

 

SKDT1J_19D520_BA_Transit_Hitch.pdf

Thanks! That's going to be extremely helpful here shortly.

 

I hope you manage to get the CAN controller for the lighting worked out as well as having to run wiring from the battery all the way to the back and then splice wires is just not my idea of a good time.

[G B L]

Thanks for the links, The second link is really great and will be very useful

[AVguy2]

So I was able to get the Ford hitch installed today between rain showers and it went pretty well. Probably the hardest things were actually removing the bumper cover and cutting the required notch in the bumper cover. Our TC has both the rear parking sensors and the blind spot sensors and there is a multi pin connector that need to be separated and unclipped from under vehicle.  Our TC has the mud flaps which have three attachments - two clips and one expanding plastic anchor with a center pin. The upper clip is fairly easy as is the one with the pin. The lower clip can stay in place and it keeps the mud flap attached to bumper cover after cover is off vehicle. There are several molded tabs the snap into the upper plastic cover between the tail light and bumper cover. There are also seven T25 Torx screws that secure the cover along the top edge of cover, remove those before the next step. I started at the mud flap on driver side once it was friend using a plastic pry tool slowly worked each tab out till I had them all out. Just work carefully and they will come out OK. I did have one discovery that the tab on the right side at the corner where cover attaches the tab was not installed correctly at the factory and was bent down at a 90 degree angle and not engaged into its slot at all. It had a crack in it (see photo) and I was concerned it would fail without being repaired. I used a Harbor Freight plastic welding kit along with some PP plastic rod to repair the damage. It hopefully will hold up OK. 

The bumper cover is marked as to where to cut the notch. The instructions have a template as well and they are very similar in size. The marks molded into cover are slightly smaller and a slightly different shape so I used that as my guide figuring if it did not work for some reason I could always make the notch larger. I used a Dremel with a rotary cutting bit and that worked pretty well. Instructions say to use a jig saw but I could not really see how that would not have sawed off the tab that the wiring harness for sensor attach to. 

Original steel bumper part removes easily and hitch itself went right in with zero issues. The four bolts on each side flat plate get torqued to 25Nm (18.5 Ft Lbs.) and the single bolt underneath on each side get torqued to 64Nm (48 Ft Lbs). Bumper cover reinstalls fairly easily just take your time and make sure all the tabs line up.

[AVguy2]

So I have still not figured out the CanBus Module for our TC but I had to do a towing job before the weather was likely to be less than ideal.

My wife's sister had a bunch of yard equipment and a utility trailer that she no longer needed and offer it all up to our daughter who just bought a house.

Had to move all of it from Northern VA to North Eastern CT - about 450 miles. Had to service trailer wheel bearings, put new radial trailer tires/wheels on and replace the lights on the trailer. For the lighting interface I used a Tekonsha kit from amazon.com (about $40)  and just hooked it up very temporarily so I could pull the trailer legally. Trailer has a permanent VA plate but will be re-registered in CT. Trailer is a 5X8 Carry-All with mesh floor about 7 years old.

 

Items on trailer:

24 inch snow blower

48 inch ride on mower

Utility trailer for mower

Backpack leaf blower

 

I figure load was about 1100 lbs with a 125lb tongue weight. Had zero issues towing with the TC.

Edited October 16, 2017 by AVguy2

[mrtn]

That's a nice trailer.

[AVguy2]

Been a bit since I updated this thread. I noticed that the rear fuse panel has a 40A fuse in the correct location for the Canbus towing module which to me says that the wiring harness should be there for it to plug into the module.That fuse (#26) should not be used for anything else afaik. I went ahead and ordered the following parts that seem to be the correct ones needed for my model.

 

List of parts:

Items Ordered:
1.    DT1Z13A576B    
WIRING ASY - TRAILER CONNECTION
2.    DT1Z15436E    
WIRE ASY    
3.    DT1Z19H332G    
MODULE - TRAILER BRAKE
4.    W505253S450L    
SCREW
5.    W712900S300    
NUT - EXPANSION
 

I ordered them through fordparts.com and routed through a local dealer. The local dealer kind of sat on the order for over a week but I should have them by mid next week. At that point I will attempt to install. I will need to remove the large plastic interior rear panel on passenger side along with the rear seat on same side. I hope I do it with out damaging it. Next update with photos etc.

[AVguy2]

So all of the parts for the trailer wiring have arrived:

 

 

Grounding screw

 

Tow Harness Part 2

 

Tow Harness Part 1

 

Can bus towing module

 

I hope to work on installing tomorrow if weather is OK.

[mrtn]

Note that there’s an individual bag of a single screw.

[williaty]

I am very interested to see how this turns out for you. It's a much more elegant solution than a lot of splicing.

[AVguy2]

I can happily report that this solution is a GO!, at least in my case. My TC wagon has a fuse pre populated into the AJC (rear fuse box) #26. If that fuse is not present the solution may not work. Commercial vans have the fuse in the front fuse box under the hood and the harness may be different.

 

Some basic steps:

Rear seat on right side need to be unbolted and moved to get clearance to remove trim panel

Trim panel needs to be removed - Gaskets for sliding door and hatch need to be moved where they contact this panel - easy

Use a trim panel tool to pry clips to minimize any possibility of damage to panel - some are hard to access.

 

So here are some photos:

 

Fuse Box

 

Location of connectors for CanBus towing module (Circled in red)

Connectors wrapped in factory tape

Connectors unwrapped from harness

Connectors plugged into module

 

 

Module mounted - It uses 3M mounting tape (basically heavy duty velcro strips with adhesive)

Harness to underside of car - it includes the grommet 

Under car section - there are two clips with no apparent mounting points - perhaps someone with factory installed wiring can clue me in.

 

[williaty]

What was your total cost on the parts?

[AVguy2]

There is actually one more step needed I believe: Programming via a VCM 2 interface. I got a quote at the dealer I purchased parts through for a 1 hour appointment needed at $135/hr. I need to plug a trailer in to see if it is already active somehow - technically it is possible that it is but I doubt that it is. I'll be up at my daughters on Saturday so I will try it out as she has the trailer I used earlier in the thread.

 

I have been thinking about a clone VCM 2 or similar interface as a purchase since it would be around the same cost as the dealer programming.

 

As for the cost it certainly is more expensive than the crappy Ford aftermarket module which requires soldering ( Really it does - Ford has to rethink this in general) or a plug in harness from Curt, Tekonsha or others.

 

WIRING ASY - TRAILER CONNECTIO Part #: DT1Z13A576B	$20.94	1	$20.94
WIRE ASY Part #: DT1Z15436E	$27.88	1	$27.88
MODULE - TRAILER BRAKE Part #: DT1Z19H332G	$98.70	1	$98.70
SCREW Part #: W505253S450L $4.48 1 $4.48 NUT - EXPANSION Part #: W712900S300 $3.60 1 $3.6

With the same hitch as supplied from the factory which was this: 

KIT - TRAILER HITCH BAR Part #: DT1Z19D520A

$212.14

1

$212.14

The hitch has pre drilled attachment points for the wiring harness clips.

 

An aftermarket hitch could certainly be used for some cost savings - I just preferred to use the factory unit.

 

The screw and the plastic expansion nuts were not needed for my setup but they were cheap and I was not sure so I got them to be sure I had them if needed.

 

So the total without programming was $359.66 

Add the screw at $4.48 if needed.

 

So it costs from a hardware perspective about what the hitch setup would cost as a factory option which I am fine with as it will give me the Sway control function and the auto magic shut off of the rear parking sensors etc. Just have to get it activated - probably. 

Edited November 16, 2017 by AVguy2

[williaty]

1 minute ago, AVguy2 said:

There is actually one more step needed I believe: Programming via a VCM 2 interface. I got a quote at the dealer I purchased parts through for a 1 hour appointment needed at $135/hr. I need to plug a trailer in to see if it is already active somehow - technically it is possible that it is but I doubt that it is. I'll be up at my daughters on Saturday so I will try it out as she has the trailer I used earlier in the thread.

 

I have been thinking about a clone VCM 2 or similar interface as a purchase since it would be around the same cost as the dealer programming.

 

I looked into a VCM2 box last week or the week before. The knock-off version of the hardware are affordable but they aren't capable of doing anything by themselves. To get the laptop to authenticate the connection to the modules in the car, you have to have an IDS software subscription. The subscription is obscenely expensive. As far as I could find from googling, you can't reprogram any of the in-car modules without an IDS subscription because each module is individually cryptographically signed and can only be authenticated through the Ford mothership. It's one of the many, many consumer-hostile things Ford loves doing.

 

The US needs to get off its butt and pass a national Right to Repair law to stop this stupidity.

[williaty]

AVguy, did the trailer lights work when you tested them at your daughter's over the weekend?

[AVguy2]

My plans changed slightly and I did not get up there. I will be there over the holiday so I will definitely be testing. There is also a Ford dealer very close by that according to the reviews I can find online has a sterling service reputation so maybe if needed I can get them to do the programming. Hopefully for less than the $135/hr my local dealer wants to charge.

 

Will update when I know.

Edited November 21, 2017 by AVguy2

[williaty]

Just now, AVguy2 said:

My plans changed slightly and I did not get up there. I will be there over the holiday so I will definitely be testing. There is also a Ford dealer very close by that according to the reviews I can find online has a sterling service reputation so maybe if needed I can get them to do the programming if needed. Hopefully for less than the $135/hr my local dealer wants to charge.

 

Will update when I know.

Damn, that's too bad. I'm waiting on your results before I start this myself.

[AVguy2]

2 minutes ago, williaty said:

Damn, that's too bad. I'm waiting on your results before I start this myself.

I will be up there tomorrow night and will be testing on Wednesday - so not too much longer.

[AVguy2]

OK so the final results are in on this. I am up at my daughters house where I have a utility trailer to actually test with.  On Wednesday I made an appointment for "programming" if I needed it at the dealer near my daughters house for today. It was raining heavily on Wednesday so I did not get to test the install until this morning. Before I went to the dealer I plugged the trailer in to the car and everything works - Tail lights, Brake lights, Directionals. I also get a message showing that parking/blindspot sensors are not available due to trailer being attached to car. I assume that also means the sway control function is also activated. So in the end programming was NOT required to get the module functioning which I think is a bit strange but I'll take it. I did drive to the dealer to let them know that I did not need the programming as they were only five minute away. If I ever get a programming tool to mess around with I will experiment with looking at these settings.

 

I am pleased with the end result even though it took a lot longer to accomplish then I first thought it would. There are a couple of things that I am still curious about though:

 

1. I have a passenger wagon with the rear fuse box (AJB). My wagon had a fuse in the required location (F26) for the trailer module. If the fuse box is present but the F26 fuse is not will the connectors be on the harness? I don't know the answer to that. It would take some one who has that situation to look for the connectors.

2. My TC was built in March 2017. I ordered the later version of the module as I assumed it would be the correct one based on such a recent production date. Earlier TC's might require the earlier version of the module and possibly slightly different harnesses. It might not matter either way as sometimes part numbers change for unrelated reasons. Anyway the module I used is Part Number DT1Z19H332G. The "earlier" version is DT1Z19H332E - not sure what the real difference is between them.

3. There appears to be a slight change in the wiring diagrams between 2014 and 2015+ models after a certain chassis number sometime in 2015. I will they to post diagrams later showing the change

4. Vans have the fuse for the trailer module in the "High Current Battery Junction Box" (BJB) under the hood near the main fusebox/battery. Fuse is F7 and is also 40A just as the wagon version uses in the AJB at F26. I would be curious to know if that fuse is present on "all" vans as well as if the harness connectors are in the correct locations at the rear of vehicle. It would take someone else to go look for them.

 

So there you have pretty much all that I know and have done with this addition.

[AVguy2]

Did forget to note that all of my work is related to a US spec TC with a 4 pin trailer connector. Euro spec models use a 13 pin trailer connector and everything could be different including the module itself.

[G B L]

Very Nice report. 

I hope  the Sway control function never gets to be tested..

[windguy]

I'll second that - great job with this project and sharing your notes with the forum.

You did a lot of homework that will greatly help someone down the road.

 

So now that you have a factory hitch, you need to save your shins some skin, cause that bare metal sticking out is going to bite you a few times.

Consider adding a hitch cover like I did. I was more prone to bang into the hitch in the beginning, but have adapted to it for the most part, but protection helps.

Link below is the one I got because it was available at a local auto parts store chain. I like it and it helps to create a buffer.

https://www.pepboys.com/product/details/9133444/00739?quantity=1

[zalienz]

Nice, I just ordered one of those hitch covers. $12 from Manny, Moe and Jack. Amazon wanted $30.....

[PhotoAl]

Very nice, I have the factory trailer hitch but when looking for a TC considered a couple without it and thought I could go aftermarket.  I really like what you have done.  It's a great installation.  This is a big help to other out there.

 

I recognize the lawn mower and leaf blower but confused as to what the ret thin in the right front corner is.  :-)  Seriously I do recognize it but would only need one about every 15 or 20 years.

 

 

[jrm223]

For what it's worth, I can provide these pictures of my 2015 TC LWB cargo model. As you can clearly see, there's no fuse panel and no extra harnesses that would plug into a trailer module. I'm not really sure what the module is on the passenger side by the sliding door, probably an inertia fuel cut-off in case of serious accident? I never have paid much attention to it.