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Salty Spuds
Member Since: 05 Dec 2009
Location: The Peoples Republic of South Yorkshire
Posts: 86
  
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| Trailer, how does it know? |
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Does anyone know what mechanism the D4 uses to detect when a trailer is plugged in? Is it the bulb monitoring pulse sent to the indicators or is something else at work?
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 23rd Mar 2010 7:41 pm |
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Discobailey
Member Since: 13 Jul 2010
Location: Leeds west yorkshire
Posts: 43
 
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I would say the D4 monitors/knows the power needed to supply the reversing lights on the Disco. When this is exceeded by adding further bulbs on a trailer, the black box knows a trailer is fitted and turns off the reversing bleepers!
Simple
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| 17th Aug 2010 8:59 am |
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mwestcrew
Member Since: 24 May 2005
Location: Warwickshire
Posts: 334
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Sorry but it's not connected to the reverse lights, a standard 7 pin connector doesn't have the reverse lights. On dual electrics the reverse light feed is in the grey connector.
Anyone here know the answer to the original question? I am interested to find out 2011 D4 Landmark, Mini Cooper SD Clubman, Range Rover Vogue SE
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| 17th Aug 2010 9:17 am |
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disco4x4au
Member Since: 19 Jan 2006
Location: Perth
Posts: 409
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I believe it monitors the load on the indicator circuits. Hence if you have LED indicators, it doesn't know that the trailer is there.
Cheers,
Gordon ex - 2006 D3 TDV6 SE, silver, with lots of stuff - R.I.P.
ex - 2009 D3 TDV6 SE, silver, had lots of stuff too!
Now - 2010 RRS 3.0 TDV6, rimini red, 18" rims + Cooper LTZ, rear eLocker, Spider tuning box, GOE protection plates and rock sliders, GOE 3way shortened rods.
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| 18th Aug 2010 12:05 am |
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Salty Spuds
Member Since: 05 Dec 2009
Location: The Peoples Republic of South Yorkshire
Posts: 86
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Yup, spot on. I had to fit some 21w ballast resistors across the LED indicators to get the toys to work. On the up side, the D4 doesn't have the "Strobing" indicator problem of the D3, I assume this is due the the LED rear clusters on the D4
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| 24th Aug 2010 7:34 pm |
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GraemeS
Member Since: 17 Mar 2008
Location: NSW
Posts: 706
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I wonder if the D4 also considers the brake light load due to strange behaviour of mine. The trailer blinker indicator doesn't ever work but the parking sensors are disabled most times the trailer is used. I also discovered that the parking sensors don't start working again until the ignition is cycled. There's a possibility that the trailer blinker gobes are only 18W so I'll try some 21W although the only slightly greater current draw is unlikely to make any difference.
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| 24th Aug 2010 8:41 pm |
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disco4x4au
Member Since: 19 Jan 2006
Location: Perth
Posts: 409
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Salty Spuds wrote:Yup, spot on. I had to fit some 21w ballast resistors across the LED indicators to get the toys to work. On the up side, the D4 doesn't have the "Strobing" indicator problem of the D3, I assume this is due the the LED rear clusters on the D4
What resistance did you use - 10 Ohm? ex - 2006 D3 TDV6 SE, silver, with lots of stuff - R.I.P.
ex - 2009 D3 TDV6 SE, silver, had lots of stuff too!
Now - 2010 RRS 3.0 TDV6, rimini red, 18" rims + Cooper LTZ, rear eLocker, Spider tuning box, GOE protection plates and rock sliders, GOE 3way shortened rods.
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| 25th Aug 2010 12:26 am |
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Salty Spuds
Member Since: 05 Dec 2009
Location: The Peoples Republic of South Yorkshire
Posts: 86
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If I recall, they are 6.8 Ohm wire wound with a heatsink case. I got them from RS for about £1.50 each.
PS just looked them up on RS http://uk.rs-online.com/web/search/searchB...6&y=11
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| 25th Aug 2010 9:09 am |
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GraemeS
Member Since: 17 Mar 2008
Location: NSW
Posts: 706
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You need to be careful with the heat from the resistors lest you melt other wiring or set fire to the vehicle. You wouldn't hang onto a blinker globe for too long whilst its working yet the globe produces light as well as heat compared with the resistor dissipating all its energy as heat only. Stop at a congested corner for a little while with the blinker going and you could be in trouble. A 20W resistor acting as a blinker globe will get too hot to touch in only a few seconds.
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| 25th Aug 2010 12:18 pm |
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Salty Spuds
Member Since: 05 Dec 2009
Location: The Peoples Republic of South Yorkshire
Posts: 86
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It does get warm, I made up 2 aluminium heat sinks to mount them on inside the trailer board, just had 3 weeks towing the boat, so far so good.
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| 25th Aug 2010 1:28 pm |
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Salty Spuds
Member Since: 05 Dec 2009
Location: The Peoples Republic of South Yorkshire
Posts: 86
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GraemeS wrote:I wonder if the D4 also considers the brake light load due to strange behaviour of mine. The trailer blinker indicator doesn't ever work but the parking sensors are disabled most times the trailer is used. I also discovered that the parking sensors don't start working again until the ignition is cycled. There's a possibility that the trailer blinker gobes are only 18W so I'll try some 21W although the only slightly greater current draw is unlikely to make any difference.
I don't think the brake lights make a difference. My trailer lamps are now fully LED including the brakes. The only mod I had to do to get everything to work was the aformentioned resistor across the indicators. Until I did that the indicators would work, but the car wouldn't recognise the trailer. Now I get the parking sensors disabled & the trailer light on the dash works. Have you had your towing electrics activated by the dealer? When I got mine in May, the dealer fitted & activated the electrics but the parking sensors wouldn't disable, there was a software update to fix this.
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| 25th Aug 2010 1:34 pm |
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GraemeS
Member Since: 17 Mar 2008
Location: NSW
Posts: 706
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Use of proper heat sinks is the way to go.
The dealer checked my vehicle with their trailer test lead and all was well, so I can only assume my globes are slightly lower wattage.
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| 25th Aug 2010 8:27 pm |
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