1nolaguy

This may be way odd base but are you sure they are screws? I ha a couple of "screw" failures on my awning and learned they were actually stainless steel rivets. These were often used in fiberglass bodies in the 2000's. Had to drill them out and replace. Required a larger than regular rivet gun to install.

I know this is a very late reply. Somehow this post was emailed to me today. If anyone is still following I am curious how the OP was able to keep the old penguin II thermostat alive to control the LP heat. Both our Penguin II units died about 3 years ago, while we were in Florida. I replaced both units with Haughton/Recpro A/C-Heat Pumps, which have their own internal thermostats that are also controlled by a remote. While I left the Penguin II "brains" inside the ceiling install the OEM 5 button controller no longer functioned and the LP furnaces no longer work. I do not think it is a furnace issue but that they are not getting signal from the 5 button control. In your situation how did you address this?

Last year I replaced the OEM water pump in our 2005 Safari Cheetah with a PowerMax's Shurflo 4008 |101-A65/E65 |12V 3 Gallon RV replacement water pump ($64 from Amazon). While I do not have a accumulator the design of this pump should not be effected by that extra equipment. Also, if you have an accumulator you would not want a high volume pump. Most pumps in general do not like to be short cycled.

Can you PM me the details on this installation?

UPDATE: Well, I replaced the old 4/7 pin connector and all worked and then it did not. I purchased the tester linked by Myron Truex above and it showed the new 4/7 pin adapter to be installed correctly. I hired a local mobile tech to double check the wiring and lights and all were determined by him to be correct. At this point we checked all the lights twice and the seemed to work properly.

We hooked up and towed about 20 miles. Stopped to check and discovered the front right wheel hub on fire (presumably unrelated to the light issue). The coach is now back in storage. The toad is at the dealers with the brake system being rebuilt, and we have decided to make this trip via car and staying in hotels. I am beginning to think this is Providence telling us to not travel or give up RV'ing. That decision is still to be made. With two significant negative towing incidence( first the hub sheered off our dolly when dolly towing and now the fire) in the last two years my wife says towing anything, at least for now , is off the table. Such is life.

8 hours ago, FishAR said:

Wife watches my tst tpms for me when I drive the motorhome.  She told me my silverado toad front passenger side tire was getting very hot. Pulled over at Tampa and looked things over, it cooled off, couldn't find anything wrong so we proceeded to our winter location.

That was 3 winters ago. I put new brakes on the truck, still had a brake sticking. New calipers. Still had a brake sticking. Did all this myself. Ended up being the brake line.

My neighbor told me that the inside of the brake line can deteriorate, fluid goes to the brake under pressure and pushes through but can't release and bleed pressure so the brake sticks. Changed the brake line and all was good.

Mike this is very interesting. The repairing dealership did say they had to replace the brake lines as well as all the rotors, calipers and pads (all 4). The more I hear the more I am thinking it has to do with the car's braking system rather then the installation of the tow package. This car is only 8 months old (less than 6K miles) and the electronic emergency brake has always been a bit of a concern.

2 hours ago, Martinvz said:

The cause is not the same as our experience but may help understand some causes.
About 4 years ago we left Assateague Island MD after setting up the CR-V for towing. After driving a few (maybe 5) miles I commented that something is holding the coach back and would not drive the way it should. We stopped and found the brakes were cooking and really hot. End result, the brakes on all 4 wheels had to be replaced.

The cause? The Patriot brake system presses against the seat and the unit determines in its setup the distance for it to operate effectively. At the end of the setup process the seat was moved a little forward to remove some if the slack. Lesson learned, leave it where it is !!

I do not recall if the TPMS reported high temps but that could have been the case. 

Thanks for sharing your experience. I had forgotten but our ezee TPMS did not sound a heat alarm but since the car was being driven behind instead of towed it might have been out of range.

2 hours ago, Tom Cherry said:

YES..... This is a bit "broad" in perspective.  BUT, to piggy back on the SAFETY ASPECT of a TOWED vehicle.  It is to MOST OF US, imperative to run a TPMS that has sensors on the TOAD.  We have had many instances of failed TOAD brakes (as in this case...I presume) or bad wheel bearings or punctures.

A GOOD TPMS on the toad will alert you when the pressure drop (Leaking air) or SPIKES (Supplemental braking system is malfunctioning, wheel bearing has failed, brakes have LOCKED up, etc.).

SO, add this to the list of why a complete "all wheels down" TPMS and having the alarms set properly and also WATCHING the monitor is an "IMPORTANT SAFETY MATTER"

Yes Tom. I forgot to include in my OP that our Eezee TPMS heat alarm did not go off and I do have sensors on all 4 toad wheels, however because the car was being driven behind and not towed at the time it is likely the sensors were out of range.

This post should probably be split up and posted under several headings but I do not have it in me to deal with that now. While it deals with towing 4 down it also has to do with fire safety and reality when traveling.

Last year we decided to replace out 2005 Mazda for a car that could be towed 4 down. Dealing with a dolly at 70 was becoming too much of a hassle. After much research and evaluation we bought a 2023 Chevy Equinox RS FWD. I had it outfitted with a Roadmaster tow plate and an NSA Elite Brute II tow bar. From the git go we had issues getting the lights to work but that was eventually solved. ( I know, so far this looks like a toad discussion). Two days ago we left on a bucket list trip from Louisiana to Washington State where we plan a cruise to Alaska. We drove the first 100 miles or so disconnected as we felt uncomfortable towing in Baton Rouge traffic

After crossing the Atchafalya Basin, a raised roadway about 20 miles long, my wife notified me on the walki talki that the brakes were making a grinding noise. When we got off the bridge we pulled over and my wife got out to check the wheels. She yelled to me the wheel was on fire. The rotor on the front passenger side was in flames. I grabbed an extinguisher we keep at the door next to the passenger seat and emptied it low and directly on the flames. The whole canister. The flames went out but then started again a few seconds later. While my wife called 911 I ran back to the RV and grabbed the two canisters of liquid/gas fire suppressant I had purchased two years ago at the Monacoer's rally Tampa FL. I emptied the first and extinguished the flames only to have them return a minute later. I emptied the second can laying on the ground so I could reach behind the wheel so as to spray suppressant on the back side of the hub. The flames went out again. I pulled the coach forward a safe distance of about 75 feet and ran back to the car just as the police were arriving. About that time the flames reappeared and I ran back to the coach and into the bedroom where I kept a 4th extinguisher. I again emptied it, laying on the ground to spray behind the wheel.

Now, covered with yellow powder, the flame appeared finally not to re-ignite, just as the fire truck arrived. While it seemed like an hour the whole time from when we stopped until the fire department arrived was probably less than 10 min. Quick action protected the coach and most of the car. We had it towed to a Chevy dealership who advised that apparently the brakes locked. The wheel hub, break rotors, pads and brake lines all need to be replaced all around. The cause is yet to be determined and our trip is now going to be without the RV.

The purpose for this posting is to point out that often we think if we have one or two fire extinguishers on board that is plenty. We have been traveling since 2018 and I always thought of them as a bit over kill having more than one or two and frankly thought if I ever used one it would be as a good Samaritan putting someone else's fire out. Had I not had four it is likely our new car and its contents would have been up in flames by the time the FD arrived. Had we been hooked up it is possible we could have lot the car and the motor coach. It can happen that quickly. I can not stress enough how grateful I was to have multiple extinguishers and to know where all of them were located, in a spot that was easily accessible.

Great project. How much weight (net) do you think you have added? Not so much an issue for DP but might add a strain on the slide motor. Just curious.

UPDATE: OK been working g on this since noon. I checked the strip on another truck with 4 pin an it worked fine. Using a VOM set for continuity I first checked all the wires from the strip to the end of the 4pin plug. The electrical whip on the strip was to short so I used a matching  (color code) extension and hardwired them together using a solder joint and covering with shrink wrap.

I pulled the 4/7 adapter (discovered OEM was Hopkins also) and checked continuity of 4pin to 7 pin and also from connection where wip from adapter connects to wire harness leading up front. All good.

While apart I cleaned all connections with electronic cleaner and treated with NALOX. Put it all back together. Everything works on coach. Everything works on strip except left turn signal. At this point I am thinking it must be a bad connection where the 4 pin plug goes into the 4 pin socket. The fit is very easy so maybe it is worn?

56 minutes ago, Tom Cherry said:

A little confused.   A loose ground, theoretically, would impact all 3 circuits.  Oxidation is what I consider as corrosion in a connection.  There is, memory, a multipin connector for your 7/4 Block or the rear connection.  I have “fixed” many 7 and 4 and also “chassis” harnesses by cleaning.

My technique is simple. There is a product or compound called NoAlox (sp?) Amazon has it.  Lowes used to sell a similar one.  Gardner Bender anti corrosion for Aluminum.  It is the consistency of tooth paste.  It has ground up aluminum fines in it.  You also need a 17 caliber rifle brass cleaning brush.  You put a drop or so, with a toothpick, inside each female pin orifice.  Use the brush to clean.  Same drill on the male pins…a small brass parts cleaning brush.  Then a drop in each female and a drop or smear each male.  Plug together and then unplug a few time.  There IS a copper equivalent, but harder to find. Most electrical supply shops have the aluminum style.  I clean my 50 Amp pins about every few years.  You can also clean the contacts on the flat blades in the 7 pin.

I have found issues in just about every “joint” over the years on the towing as well as the towed vehicle.  A 7 - 4 “coiled” adapter has a better chance of no corrosion issues as the 7 is covered.  You CAN spray with contact cleaner, but the abrasive cleaning technique works best..

 

 

Tom, sorry for the confusion. The RV has a double adapter similar to the one linked by Scotty above. Although these have coverings on the connector side and I have sprayed them, I have found no clear way to sand or abraid the inside of the tubes on the female connection. I will try today to pull the existing adapter and clean all connection (those coming in and those going out. I will use NoAlox (have some) before replacing wires. If that does not work I will replace adapter unit.

1 hour ago, Scotty Hutto said:

I have used Hopkins as replacement parts for the 7 & 4 pin connectors on my coach with good results. That was in 2017 and all still work well (well, except when I crushed it leaving @pwhittle’s driveway — but that was my fault).  Here’s what I used…

https://amzn.to/43t3jFu

 

1. Thanks Scotty, that is the same one I was looking at.

3 hours ago, BradHend said:

When you upgraded the coach lights to LED, did you have to switch around the wiring to make them work? I did.  
Have you taken any measures with a volt meter at your trailer plug?

What I’m getting at is you might have your ground/light wires backwards as a result…polarity sensitive. 
 

Re-read your reply….missed that coach was still incandescent.  
Have you bench tested that strip light? If it’s a cheap Amazon one, they do some weird things and some you need that special adapter for signal/brake lights. 

Still curious what voltage readings you get at trailer plug for brake/signal/running. 

Bench tested strip (cheap o e from Amazon) and found loose ground wire at fuse. After fixing it I tested it in my truck and all worked. Not sure if this will be a fix or not, so tomorrow it's back to the rv. I want to pick up a new adapter just in case as the rv is not near anything convenient.  Does anyone have experience with Hopkins Towing Solutions products?

19 minutes ago, Tom Cherry said:

KEEP IT SIMPLE.  Order a 7 pin to 4 pin adapter from Amazon.  Try that.  The connection point for the lights, I THINK, change.  These adapters have a coiled 4 Wire flat plug.  They are cheap…less than $15.  Order one….try it.  If it works….great….

Otherwise, you are going to have to start tracing the wires from the 7/4 pin harness back up….

Tom, I am having issues with both the 4 pin and 7 pin adapter. Since it is OEM from 2005 I am thinking oxidation my be playing a part.

10 minutes ago, BradHend said:

Did you change over to LED?

Yes. That is the two lights(magnetic), strip light, and tail lights on new toad are all led. The Original signal lights and brake lights on the rv are incandescent.

I gave been fighting with a hook up issue since last fall and it is about to have me put a for sale sign on this rv. Don't laugh you know you have been there.

Long story short, after replacing all the tail light sockets and bulbs and reading all the ground lines, it appears that the issue is with the 4 pin/7 pin combo connector.

I have cleaned it with electronic cleaner, worked it with a fine brush and still with issues.

The tail light / brake light and signal lights on the coach, as well as the running lights, all seem to work OK. When I plug in 4 pin auxiliary lights (tow, truck light strip or magnetic base tow lights) the running lights work but nothing else.

Before I replace the 4pin/7 pin combo connector is there any thing else to check?

Update: this continues to be a conundrum and I am running out of time.

I replaced the tail light strip(led) that plug into the 4 pin connector. I've checked all connections, redid ground, and still having issue. Left signal does not com on, and brake and running lights work when head lights are off but not when head lights are on. Help!

I made  similar error and it cost me a tow and shop time. While I have a different engine (CAT C7) i too have two filters, a 10 micron pre-filter/water separator filter and a smaller secondary 2 micron filter. The threaded posts for each are a different diameter so you can only thread the correct filter on the correct post. 

Before you remove either filter check on the secondary filter housing for a manual priming pump. This may not be on all but if it is you need to make sure to prime the new filters, pulling diesel through both until they are full. Trying to start the engine without first fully priming the filters and fuel line can result in air being pushed into the line and eventually into the cylinder resulting in lost compression and then the engine will not start until the lines are bled, most likely in a shop.

Interesting.

That does works if you are going through the (in our case rear bath closet) inside hatch. In my case emptying the closet is a massive challange and bringing oil in where the cloths are is a non-starter. I value my privates! lol

11 hours ago, rvtips said:

Can you shoe us a picture of your project ?

will post a pic next week.

I know every DP engine configuration is differed but if you do your own oil changes you know adding fresh oil can be a PITA (Pain in the A--). For my 2005 Safari Cheetah, adding oil is do via a 1-1/2" tube opening about 6 feet off the ground on the passenger side of the rear access door to the tail lights etc. The distance between the top of the tube opening and the bottom of the door opening is about 3" making it almost impossible to use a flex funnel or other standard method of pouring in the oil. In the past I had to rig up a 1/2" tubing to the end of a funnel and stand on a ladder to slowly pour oil in the funnel. This often took up to 15 min per gal and usually two people, one ot hold the funnel and one on a ladder or step stool to hold the gallon of oil. This was tedious and often messy.

A national auto part place sold me a device with a length of 1/2" clear tube and fitting that were suppose to screw directly on to the gallon bottle but it was too small for either Rotella, Mobile, Castrol or Chevron gallon bottles of 15W40 for diesel engines.   I looked everywhere for a solution (Autozone, O'Reily's, Advanced, NAPA, Amazon but no luck. Then I had an idea. I ordered from Home Depot (not in store) a 24" length of PVC 3/4" ID flexible tubing and a 3/4" tubing to 3/4" MIP PVC water tight adapter. Together it was less than $8 delivered. I took a cap from one gallon of oil and drilled out a 1-1/8" hole in the center. I used a heat gun to soften the tube end and fitted it to the adapter then tightened down the holding nut. I them passed the MIP threaded end with O-ring through the hole in the cap and locked it in place with the provided nut. This made a water/oil tight seal.

I screwed the modified cap on a new bottle and sliding the 3/4"ID flex tube several inches down the fill tube and lifted the gallon upside down above it. THe first one took about 5 minutes to empty it and it created quite a suction in the bottle. On the subsequent bottles, once inverted, I made a small hole in the bottom of the bottle. That one emptied in about 1-1/2 minutes. The whole process for 5 gallons of oil too less than 15 minutes start to finish and a clean and easy job from where I stood on the ground.

I you change the oil in your own DP this might be a hack to make the job much easier. Here are descriptions and part numbers for the two parts from HD.:

So in keeping with this subject, today I replaced the heating element and was surprised at the amount of rust. The old element itself was covered in rust particles that did not adhere to the element. That is they could be brushed off with my finger from the element which was still wet. IN addition the base of the element was rusted and rust particles could be felt around the threads and the point where the nipple penetrates the tank. There were no signs of calcification. We do run a softener in line for all water coming into the coach.

I removed as much rust as possible, covered the new element threads and rubber seal with a coat of silicone grease and reinstall it. Since I do not have a source of water where the rig is currently I did not test it out but will do so in the next week when the coach is moved from storage to a nearby park. I plan to flush the tank thoroughly with fresh water before testing to try to remove as much loose rust as possible.

The BFP appears to be screwed directly into the back of the tank and a T is directly attached to that following by Pex. I order to change the BFP I will have to remove the Pex. One more PITA.

The flex hose is what stood out to me. Also the "outlet" fitting, where there should be a a BFP, looks somewhat like a thermostat. Note what looks like a grey knob with hash marks. Not saying that is what it is just what it looks like.

Not sure if you are the original owner or not. Based on your photo I do not think this is a Factory install. Looks like at some point a repair was made and some "non-standard" parts were used.

Interesting. I am having a similar issue with my 2005 Safari Cheetah. Our coach has three on each side -  a clear back up, yellow turn signal and red for running and brake. I use to tow with a dolly and magnetic light set plugged into the 4-pin connector. We had no issues. I replaced the dolly last fall with a new Equinox that could be towed 4 down. The lights connect with a 7-6 pin umbilical. Unfortunately the light on the coach and the car will not work when connected. I have tested out the umbilical (all good) and the car (all good) so not I am working on the coach. The passenger side light sockets all appear to have proper voltage and I last year re-did the ground for all three because I had a separate issue. The only way to access the left side tail lights is to remove them from the outside by removing the screws and then pulling out each fixture. When I removed the brake/running light it appeared to be good but on close inspection I found one wire loose in its crimp, so loose I could easily pull it out and the contact were scorched and the ground damaged. Tomorrow I will be replacing the socket and checking the ground on that side.

With these rolling beasts it seems the potential for things to come loose never ends. If this solves my problem I will post again here with an update.

John, you hyperlink noted above lead back to Monacoers website. Somethings not correct?