13 pin towing socket

[Stripy]

I had a tow bar fitted at vw when I bought my t6 but it was fitted by an outside firm, I have now found that the pin no 10 (fridge ign live) is not working.

Would it be ok to put a link wire from pin 9 perm live across to pin 10 , I know that if the fridge is switched on 12v and left on without the engine running it will drain my battery

Cheers john

 

[Stigofthedub]

Just need to check fusing and wire size because the full load current for stuff connected to pins 9 and 10 will pass through your existing pin 9 wire only if you link the pins. And as you say pin 10 is not through your ignition switch.
A quick Google says caravan fridges take between 8 and 10 amps.
Personally I would run another wire then I would be covered whatever I might tow in the future, and would feel better about selling on.
Hope that helps.

 

[travelvolts]

That wire should be relay controlled. Have you checked the relay and associated fuse?

 

[Stripy]

Thanks for the replys, I have spoken to a local tow bar fitter and he seems to think it' wouldn't have been wired up.
As the lights ect are plug and play , where As the fridge needs to be wired in,he said he has seen this many times.
So perhaps vw had lazy tow bar fitters .

 

[Pauly]

The westfalia kits and VW supplied wiring looms do not have this cable in the loom so think most people will be in the same situation as you, unless people are going to a proper towbar business and specifically asking for it to be present then chances are it isnt

 

[Stripy]

I think you have hit the nail on the head pauly.

 

[mmi]

The factory installed tow bar with 13 pin socket seems to have all the wires (except pin 12) at the socket.


Would be interested to see the factory tow bar wiring diagram (in the downloads section) please?
I have a few questions in my mind:

1. PIN 9 permanent +12V supply – connected possibly/hopefully to van’s factory installed aux battery thus isolated from starter battery??
2. PIN 10 ignition/alternator controlled +12V supply – connected directly to IGN ON or even better activated only when engine is actually running, and as above which battery??

As there is a separate tow bar controller in the van I think even for simple measurements I need to have a proper breakout box to make van trailer aware. Well, permanent 12V is definitely there…but that’s pretty much all.
Thanks.

 

[mmi]

Surprisingly the questions were answered in the Owner's manual.

PS. PIN 9 is energized from aux battery.

 

[cy294]

Apologies for jumping onto this thread. I am in the same situation and will be towing a caravan and need the fridge to be on when travelling. What are my alternatives? Or has anyone overcome this problem.

Thanks all.

 

[cy294]

Another question. My local towbar fitter who I've used on many occasions confirmed that Pin 10 is not connected on my 13 pin socket on the T6.

However when I hooked up the caravan this morning, the fridge in the caravan which normally is posted from pin 10 powered up and the display on the fridge showed a steady light. Soon as I switched the engine off, the display light on the fridge began flashing.

I'm really confused, anybody got any ideas what could powering the fridge?

 

[cy294]

Took the 13 pin socket off and looked inside. There is a wire in pin 10. Does this mean it's live? I have a Bluemotion if that helps?

Which is the brown wire.

 

[mmi]

However when I hooked up the caravan this morning, the fridge in the caravan which normally is posted from pin 10 powered up and the display on the fridge showed a steady light. Soon as I switched the engine off, the display light on the fridge began flashing.

I'm really confused, anybody got any ideas what could powering the fridge?

Took the 13 pin socket off and looked inside. There is a wire in pin 10. Does this mean it's live? I have a Bluemotion if that helps?

Which is the brown wire.

Looks right to me = charging at pin 10. That's a factory installed towbar?
The brown (pin 11) is ground (-) for pin 10 charging.

 

[Timbot6]

Looks right to me = charging at pin 10. That's a factory installed towbar?
The brown (pin 11) is ground (-) for pin 10 charging.

The above is correct and remember that the caravan services = Pin 10 AND pin 13 are auxiliary circuits and so would be fused close to the power source I.E battery so worth checking the fuses

 

[rover220]

The westfalia kits and VW supplied wiring looms do not have this cable in the loom so think most people will be in the same situation as you, unless people are going to a proper towbar business and specifically asking for it to be present then chances are it isnt

My westfalia kit had a separate loom relay etc in addition to the standard kit. Came from pf Jones and was boxed separately with its own part number.

 

[dubboy]

Pin 10 is live with ignition and trailer connected. Fuse is 15A under passenger seat

 

[mike_h]

I have the same problem. I expected the fridge circuit to work but it doesn’t. I have the Westfalia kit fitted by VW. A bit of investigation shows that two cables that I assume are pin 10 and its ground appear to extend to the space under the driving seat where there is a plug that’s not connected to anything. If these are the fridge wires, there’s a part missing to connect them in to the vehicle’s electrical system.
(My fuses and such are under driving seat as my T6 is a camper and there’s a battery under passenger seat).
Clearly it’s not as simple as connecting through an old style split charge relay as the T6 has much more sophisticated electrics. The fitting of the missing components needs someone with professional knowledge and the ability to re-code if necessary or a kit with instructions.
Is there anyone on this forum who can shed light on this?

 

[mike_h]

Took the 13 pin socket off and looked inside. There is a wire in pin 10. Does this mean it's live? I have a Bluemotion if that helps?

Which is the brown wire.

View attachment 47823

The fridge wiring on mine is present at the trailer socket. As far as I can see, the cables to power the fridge extend as far as a plug near the the fuses under the front seats but the plug is not connected to anything. It looks like the wiring is done, it just needs the final gizmo that connects it all to the vehicle’s electrical system.

 

[rover220]

Send a pic of the plug. Sounds like you need the additional bit of loom but it's essentially a mini relay and some wiring that needs connecting to a perm live and a switched live to trigger the relay

 

[mike_h]

This is the plug. I have yet to put a multimeter on it to see if it’s connected to the appropriate pins at the back. I’m gathering that the BROWN is the GROUND on pin 11 and that the yellow will be the +v on pin 10. There is a frame under the seat with 5 plugs, each a different colour and then a box with two more multi-wired plugs.

 

[mike_h]

This is the box. My electrics may be more complex because my T6 is a camper and therefore already charges 2 extra batteries and powers a small fridge.