Troubleshooting Brake Controller with SC Error

Updated 07/03/2020 | Published 07/01/2020

Question:

My controller says SC and s the brakes off, then It’ll come back on and short out again, only going down hill, and the red light on the indicator stays on for quite a long time after the pick up is turned off.

asked by: Leonard

Expert Reply:

The SC error you're seeing on your brake controller like the Tekonsha # 90885 is caused by a short circuit, which could be caused by a damaged brake controller wire or a bad ground. I would start by checking the ground wires on both the controller and the trailer itself. It sounds like this is motion induced, so it's likely just loosing contact periodically down the road.

If the ground wires are firmly connected to a rust and paint free surface, you'll want to check the blue brake control wire at the back of the controller and trace it back to the 7 way connector on your 2007 Ram to make sure that it has not been damaged in any way; if it's cut at all is contacting the frame of the vehicle, it would create this situation as well.

If you can run through these troubleshooting steps and still got get your controller working properly, please let me know and I can give you a few other things to check out.

expert reply by: Erik B