Troubleshooting Tekonsha Voyager LED Goes Orange but not Red with Brake Pedal and Override Lever

Published 05/20/2014

Question:

I have installed a tekonsha voyager, all wiring seems fine. I hook up the trailer get the green light, but when I use the manual slider it goes only to orange, not red, and it is not activating the brakes. I tried increasing power but no effect. I can hear the brakes, but there is no braking effect. I tried the trailer on another vehicle with the same controller and it is fine. I tested the controller by putting a 50 watt DC bulb at the brake connection, it lights up fine and the I will get the Red light on the controller when using the manual slide. I checked the ground at the rear of the vehicle. The only thing I can think of is I grounded the unit under the dash, is this OK or should I run it to the battery?

asked by: John B

Expert Reply:

You need to switch the ground on the Tekonsha Voyager brake controller part # 39510 to the negative side of your vehicle battery. It sounds like your controller isn't grounded sufficiently and it can't activate fully.

The only other issue you can look into is making sure the controller is withing the acceptable level range. This controller can do 70 degrees up and -20 degrees down.

I also attached an FAQ article on troubleshooting brake controller installations for you to check out also.

expert reply by: Jameson C