Troubleshooting Ground Wires Getting Hot On Tilting Snowmobile Trailer

Published 01/25/2017

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Question:

When the two plugs are put together the ground pins are getting hot. The wires on both sides of the plug are cool. This a tilt snowmobile trailer with a cover. I ran a new wire harness with a new ground thinking this was the issue but the ground is still getting hot?

asked by: Greg

Expert Reply:

If the ground wires and pins are getting hot, it sounds like either they are not a ground or there is probably a short somewhere in the wiring you will need to find.

First you want to check the trailer wiring to make sure the wire coming from the ground pin is attached to a clean bare metal surface.

Check the vehicle plug with a circuit tester like part # PTW2993 and make sure it is not getting a feed from the vehicle. Check for corrosion on any of the pins and make sure there are no breaks or signs of wires pinched which could cause the short.

You may find all you need to do is attach a piece of # 12-1-1 wire to the trailer on each side of the tilt. Use ring terminals like part # DW05741-1 and attach them with some self tapping screws. You want to leave enough length of wire so the trailer can be tilted without stressing the wire.

You may want to check the trailer with another vehicle to see if everything is working properly on the trailer.