Charging line to F150 toed

[colmbarry]

I have just discovered that the 12volt charging line to my 2019 Ford F150 battery is not working. Turn signals, stop lights and portable brake system all work fine but I am not getting 12volts to the battery, the problem is between the connector and the battery.

So my question, is the charging line to this vehicle necessary? If the battery charge on this vehicle gets to low will it cause a problem with the 4 down towing feature?

Thanks in advance.
Colm

[Y-Guy]

Kudos! It's fixed that's what matters!

[colmbarry]

OK, took my F150 back to the install shop this morning. According to the installer, Blue Ox ( all of my tow equipment is Blue Ox ) changed the coiled cable wiring configuration a couple of years ago and my cable is the old configuration. He swapped a few wires around on the cord end, really just swapped the hot wire with the brake controller wire ( which I don't use ) and bam, I now a battery charging line.

Not sure I buy the Blue Ox story but I don't care because now I have a properly working charge line.

Thanks for all of the responses.
Colm

[Alan_Hepburn]

You say you've got +12V at the end of the umbilical - do you have the same +12V at the back end of the connector on the toad? Did the installer wire it up to the wrong contact on the connector?

[Grit_dog]

Well, everything will probably go dead if the vehicle goes into battery saver mode.
Can you not tow it with the toad idling if you need to charge the battery?
(Quick fix to get you out the door, if you can't find where or how the 12V+ lead is wired into the truck.)

However none of us know how it was wired in, and the way newer vehicles do a lot of things "on their own." Like shut off the engine after idling for so long or shut off accessory mode in a similar fashion, the right answer is tough.

[Horsedoc]

Run a fused line battery to battery, that way you KNOW

[shum02]

There is a relay that is not always installed at the factory for battery RV charging. Take a look and see if it's there. Dead easy to install.

[JoeH]

I've towed my 2015 F150 for about 70k miles with no charge line. Just traveled from Maine to South Dakota without unhooking or running the F150. No issue. Now, if you have a plug in brake system ( e.g. Brake Buddy) you may need to have a charge line, but otherwise, there is no need.

[theoldwizard1]

The important question is what electrical things are running inside the "toad" and how much current are they drawing. If it is less than 500mA (1/2A) your probably okay it you run the truck for 5-10 minutes every time you stop.

[CA_Traveler]

Since you know the wiring another option is to run an extra wire from the MH to Ford for the trip. Use whatever wire routing is easy. Not as convienient but you are on the way...

I did that once for lights due to a bad ground.

[colmbarry]

I am towing with a Forest River FR3 gas MH. I have 13.4 volts at the MH plug and thru the coiled cable. I just bought this vehicle in April and had it set up for towing in May. Before this vehicle I was towing a Dodge Dakota truck so I am familiar with the process. I have not towed this Ford anywhere yet except for home from the install shop. We are leaving for a trip on Wednesday so I thought I would give the MH and F150 a good look-over and found this problem. No fuse is blown and there is no power to or thru the fuse. I have continuity from the cord connector plug to the ground wire on the battery but no continuity or voltage on the hot wire to the battery. It looks like the installer either smashed a wire or did not make a good connection at the plug which I cannot get to without removing alot of plastic trim. I will be taking it back to the installer but getting it fixed before Wednesday might be a issue.

So, the question is, if the battery drains down far enough that the battery save system kicks in, will that affect my ability to tow 4 wheels down? Does any component, such as the transfer case etc. need power to stay locked out. Thanks

[Y-Guy]

What are you towing with, knowing that can help us give you some advice.

Did you have power or never had power?

[CA_Traveler]

Fuse? Bad connectord? Ask Ford about towing, but battery drains are increasing with all of the newer gagets.