Whether you need to move house, go on holiday with a caravan, get rid of of green waste, or have a hitch is fairly handy. In this post, we will explain the electrical connection of a trailer hitch of a Ford Explorer . In truth, even if the set up procedure is not complex, it is required to describe some details to consider this task without any problem. First of all, we will see what the electrical wiring harness of your motor vehicle hitch involves, then, in a second step, how to make the electrical connection of the hitch of a Ford Explorer .

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What’s the wiring harness for a Ford Explorer hitch trailer?

Why do we have to connect a wiring harness with the hitch trailer of a Ford Explorer?

So we will start our content by explaining the fundamentals of a wiring harness of a Ford Explorer. In order to figure out how it functions, you must already figure out its necessity. If you have a trailer or a caravan to tow, it is necessary and earlier all mandatory by the highway code to respect certain rules, here they are:

  • A solid chassis for the trailer…
  • Wheels that fit.
  • An electrical connection.
  • A license plate in plain sight.
  • A stoplight repeater.
  • A traffic light repeater.
  • A blinker repeater.
  • License plate illumination.
  • A fog light repeater.

In order to satisfy all the electrical requirements, you will need to install a wiring harness connection on the hitch trailer of your Ford Explorer . We will focus on this in this article, if you want to discover how to install the hitch of a Ford Explorer, please see our content on this subject.

What is the electrical connection of the trailer hitch of a Ford Explorer?

We will now quickly explain how the electrical connection of your hitch functions. The connection uses the 12-volt current from your motor vehicle to power the hitch lights on your Ford Explorer. There are two different systems of electrical connection for a hitch, here they are:

  • The 7-pin electric plug for a Ford Explorer trailer, 7 pins : This is the classic plug that will be determined on all Ford Explorer hitches. This electrical connection will allow you to transmit all the lighting functions necessary for the rear signalling of your trailer, you will locate a plug for each objective (left and right indicators, ground, fog light, left and right position light, left and right brake light).
  • Electrical connection for caravan with 13-pin plug for Ford Explorer: This plug system is principally used for caravans that necessitate 12 volts inside to supply the various electrical equipment in the cabin. This sort of connection needs the use of an adapter. The extra pins will bring the 12 volt power permanently (to recharge a battery in the caravan) and the 12 volt power in use (to use the 12 volt equipment when the car is switched on).

How do I hook up the wiring harness of a Ford Explorer?

To finish this content, we will quickly explain you how to make the connection of the wiring harness of your Ford Explorer .

How to make the connection of the wiring harness of an old Ford Explorer?

To install the wiring harness of an old Ford Explorer, you will have to go and get all the required cables in the rear lights of this one. We recommend you to call in a motor vehicle electrician to do this intervention because it is complex, but we will nevertheless summarize the main steps to be carried out:

  • Remove the trunk lining from your Ford Explorer to access the rear light unit.
  • Identify the wires that correspond to each of the taillight functions.
  • Connect them to the lugs on the wiring harness on your hitch.
  • Close the whole thing down.

How do you connect the wiring harness of a recent Ford Explorer?

For new Ford Explorers, the wiring harness is much less complicated to connect:

  • You can use a multiplexable box, you will locate particular ones for your Ford Explorer and universal models. It’s up to you to choose according to your budget, know that a universal version costs between 30 and 60 euros.
  • Remove the trunk lining from your Ford Explorer so that you can route the cables from your box to the front of your Ford Explorer and connect them to your fuse box.
  • Install the circumstance in the trunk effectively.
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  • You don’t have to retrieve your cables from the trunk and connect them to your outlet.

How do you hook up the power to a trailer on Ford Explorer?

Finally, to finish this content we will quickly explain you how to make the electrical connection of a caravan on your Ford Explorer . To do this you will inevitably have to go through one of the previous steps, it’s up to you to choose the one that means your model and your budget. After you have done this, the last step will be to buy an adapter that goes from a 7-pin plug to a 13-pin plug so that you can benefit from the 12 volt current in your caravan. These adapters come at different prices, you will need to count between 15 and 40 euros. All you have to do is plug it into your 7-pin plug.

If you need more tutorials on the Ford Explorer, go to our Ford Explorer category.