Ranger tralier brakes locking up in reverse.

[Casey V.]

So I have a 1993 Ranger trail tandom that locks up when I put the truck in reverse which makes it a little tough to back it up anywhere. I have heard this might be a problem with my wiring in my truck, but it is happening with two different trucks I have trailed with. So is there a problem with my why wiring harness on my trailer or could something else be the problem? Anyone else out there had this same issue, and what was the fix,or how do I find out what the issue is?

Thanks

[Ranger 188]

in my answer to find out if the senolide is working you have to put the truck in reverse ,then follow my other dirrection

[Casey V.]

in my answer to find out if the senolide is working you have to put the truck in reverse ,then follow my other dirrection

Huh? Whoa... I dont know if anyone can follow those "dirrections"?

Thanks though.

[CatFan]

You have a blue wire on your trailer harness that comes from the backup lights on the truck. It energizes a solenoid on the back of the actuator when the truck is in reverse so the brakes don't activate.

Some vehicles don't have the backup lights wired and you need to add a fuse under the hood, the fuse could be blown or the solenoid could have failed. Start by having someone shift in and out of reverse while you listen at the tongue for a buzz/click of the solenoid activating. If you can't hear the solenoid, check the blue wire with a meter or test light while the truck is in reverse and go from there.

[Casey V.]

CatFan, thank you for your suggestions and I will give that a shot. My guess is the solenoid must have failed, either that or it has blown fuses on both my tow vehicles?

[haveme1]

A "c" clamp or lock out pin to keep the tounge from compressing will get you backing until you find the problem.

[Gambler Bob]

What kind of plug do you have on the tow vehicles for the wiring harness? Is it just a flat 4 prong plug? On the flat 4 prong plugs i am pretty sure that it will not disengage your trailer brakes when backing up. If you only have a flat 4 prong plug change it out to a flat 5 prong plug on your tow vehicle the 5th prong on the flat 5s disengage the trailer brakes when backing up, assuming that the wiring is working on the tow vehicle. The C clamp will also work.

[R.A. Davis]

So I have a 1993 Ranger trail tandom that locks up when I put the truck in reverse which makes it a little tough to back it up anywhere. I have heard this might be a problem with my wiring in my truck, but it is happening with two different trucks I have trailed with. So is there a problem with my why wiring harness on my trailer or could something else be the problem? Anyone else out there had this same issue, and what was the fix,or how do I find out what the issue is?

Thanks

After vchecking to make sure I has 12 volts on the blue wire going to the solenoid with truck hooked up and in reverse, I gave solenoid some hard taps with side cutters. This fixed my problem. The solenoid was stuck,

[dabassking]

Glad you got this figured out. You can get a trailer brake lockout key for $10-$20 just in case this happens again and you can’t get the solinoid working

[billnorman1]

After vchecking to make sure I has 12 volts on the blue wire going to the solenoid with truck hooked up and in reverse, I gave solenoid some hard taps with side cutters. This fixed my problem. The solenoid was stuck,

If it works after you smack it, it could be defective. Sometimes they forget what they are supposed to do, and if you smack them around, they wise up. It just might forget again, you should hope you have a wiring issue, because wiring issues are easier to fix than changing the solenoid and bleeding the brakes.

[Whiteboat]

Check the solenoid contacts for good connection

[Gambler Bob]

It has been 9 years since the OP originally posted this. Hopefully he has figured the issue out by now.