Towing Help (1 Viewer)

[Sharon F]

We purchased a new Autotrail Apache 634 in March of this year and have so far towed our Peugeot 107 twice on the 'A' frame, towing is fine however when we take the car off we are getting a warning light on the dashboard (a different one each time), which only goes away by plugging into the computer at our local Peugeot garage at a cost of circa £40 each time. We previously towed the same car with our Autotrail Apache 700 (2010 model) and did not get this problem. Our local Peugeot garage believes the computer on the motorhome is overriding the car which is causing the problem. Has anyone any ideas please ?

 

[Johnnyb]

That's a strange one. Is the ignition on both the motorhome and car turned off when you are plugging and unplugging the electrics?

 

[Sharon F]

Apologies for slow response, yes both ignitions are turned off when plugging in electrics. I have sent a request to Autotrail to see if they can help.

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[mjltigger]

I'm bemused.. does the electric connection for the tow carry any signals at all from the ECU? If not, then the computers aren't talking to each other so can't confuse each other.

I would suggest the A frame fitters need to be responsible for this and my guess is that there is an earth leak somewhere when the towing electrics are connected.. that is a laymans view by the way so don't take it to the bank..

 

[eddie]

Try plugging in another trailer or a light board from a trailer and see if you get the same problem.

If you do, its on the Autotrail and it is pretty certain to be the interface that sits between the CAN chassis system for the rear lights and the signals produced to flash "left" and "right" indicators for example.

 

[mjltigger]

Try plugging in another trailer or a light board from a trailer and see if you get the same problem.

If you do, its on the Autotrail and it is pretty certain to be the interface that sits between the CAN chassis system for the rear lights and the signals produced to flash "left" and "right" indicators for example.

Ah.. I think I had it the other way round as in it is the car that gets the warning light not the van.. also your answer suggests there is a data link somewhere between the two ECUs that controls the lighting.. wow these things are complicated.. whatever happened to bimetallic strips

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[Sharon F]

Thanks for all your suggestions, have now gone back to Autotrail and the people who fitted the tow bar, both have responded but not sure we are getting anywhere - early days !!!

 

[DanielFord]

It would be more helpful if Peugeot actually told you what fault code they are clearing when they hook it up. You can do this yourself very cheaply, purchase an OBDII interface off of ebay, and plug into a laptop. I got a bluetooth one for £15! You can then at least read the code before clearing it.

 

[pappajohn]

Agreed with danielford's above post.
My car has thrown up many random fault codes, of which only two were genuine, they dont reappear once erased using my own OBD11 tool.

I assume the lighting is using the cars original wiring, if so try a lighting board.

If that cures the fault you could run a 7 core trailer wire through the car to a dedicated 7 pin 12N socket at the back and the plug at the front as it is now.
Simply plug in the lighting board, or do as i did...a pair of multi function magnetic lights and reflectors on the tailgate.

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