2016 Expedition Towing

Carolinaboy828 · Mar 21, 2018

I have a 16 XLT that has only towing prep. I have found the harness for brake controller and dug it out from rear part of "drivers side cubby hole". My question is Im going from a 4 way flat to 7 round and have gotten the Hopkins Multi tow adapter. I did see on vehicle that the blue brake line is underneath near 4 way connector that is capped. What would the purple and black hook up to from Hopkins Unit to Vehicle? Whiye would obviously screw to frame for ground. Am i missing anything here. I have ordered brake control harness and also the brake controller. What do I need to do for the 12v to charge trailer battery as well. Thanks for the help!

Carolinaboy828 · Mar 22, 2018

Anyone done this before?

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Lee Christensen · Mar 23, 2018

A couple suggestions..

Get rid of the butt splices that come with those kits and use a high quality one that is waterproof (typically use a heat gun or lighter on them and they shrink up and ooze out some sealant, the really good ones even have a low temp solder that helps bond the wires too).

Our GMC Acadia had a 4 pin tow harness like that and every time we went through the car wash the brake lights would quit working for a while because someone used those non waterproof butt splices and scotch locks. I tore it all out, sealed up the cuts in the wires and put in a plug and play t-harness style 4 pin connector.

Looks like maybe you already have a factory 4 pin to plug into this 7 pin so you shouldn't have the same issue I did, but I wouldn't risk water intrusion into the trailer brake power leads..

Here is the pinout for a 7 pin connector:

http://www.hopkinstowingsolutions.com/support/wiring-guides.html

Also consult your local dealer to be 100 percent sure on what those wires should go to (they should provide free answers over the phone). Or don't hesitate to call Hopkins customer support, they are there to help.

It looks like purple is sometimes the center pin for backup lights. Use a volt meter in beep mode to check which wire goes to which blade.

I hope this is helpful!

Black · Apr 25, 2018

Most 4 to 7 pin to Connectors include a lead for the trailer brake wire, 12v accessory lead, a battery lead, and a ground along with plugging in the factory 4 pin.

If adding factory trailer brake controller and activating through ForScan clearly you would plug the capped wire already there to the trailer brake wire but are the 12v and battery leads necessary as well?
I know 12 volt and battery leads are for things like battery chargers or power for dump trailers etc.

2016 Expedition Towing

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