[FastEddy]

I just got my OEM factory wiring kit from the dealer. It is specific for the 05 (They Say)

Isn't the 05 Pre-Wired?

I thought I would get a "Pigtail" to plug into the existing wiring. What I got was an entire kit including the wiring to the tail lights, what seems to be a relay box of some sort and a bunch of other hardware for mounting etc.....

I just need to plug the "Pigtail" into the matching plug in the rear of my tire well and route it to the hitch.. Right?

The rest of the wiring in the box is redundant and is already installed on the 05?

 

[mgthe3]

I don't have an 05 but I betcha the wiring is the same. No, the tiny wires is not what you would want to plug into trailer lights. You need something to carry voltage from your battery (the TOW wire) to your lights (the relay box). You use the existing tail light wires to merely switch the relays.

perstanzie?

 

[FastEddy]

I guess I was unclear in my question.

Do I need to install everything that was included in the kit, or is the the relay and the wires to the tail lights already installed on the 05?

 

[Nissmo]

Unless your 05 is different than mine you need to tap into each wire per the instructions. In the end it works fine. Are you using a Hoppy kit?

 

[FastEddy]

Im not sure what a Hoppy Kit is.

I am using the kit that the Nissan parts department gave me when I went in and asked for a trailer wiring kit for the 05 Murano. $99.00

I was being lazy. Ill start to tear down the trim and see for myself what needs to be installed.

For some reason I was under the impression that the 05 was pre-wired and just needed a pigtail to get it up and going. Im just getting out of the office and will be a lot smarter in an hour or so.

-Ed

 

[Nissmo]

OK sorry. My experience is with aftermarket universal style ($15) wiring kits.

 

[HuskyFan]

Im not sure what a Hoppy Kit is.

I am using the kit that the Nissan parts department gave me when I went in and asked for a trailer wiring kit for the 05 Murano. $99.00

I was being lazy. Ill start to tear down the trim and see for myself what needs to be installed.

For some reason I was under the impression that the 05 was pre-wired and just needed a pigtail to get it up and going. Im just getting out of the office and will be a lot smarter in an hour or so.

-Ed

The 2005 is not prewired for a trailer hitch. It is prewired for satellite radio.

 

[FastEddy]

The 2005 is not prewired for a trailer hitch. It is prewired for satellite radio.

Think I can wire it up to the SAT and operate it from the steering wheel?

HuskyFan is correct, Everything in the kit must be used. Nothing except the power wire is pre-wired.

Got it all done now. The directions in the box were well written. Even I could understand them. Everything was exactly as they noted.


Took about an hour and 15 minutes. I still need to mount the outer receiver to the hitch. My bud at the muffler shop is going to hit it with a few tack welds.

I took the opportunity while everything was out of the back to place some sound mat in the rear. I don't think it will do much but I had the mat and figured it wouldn't hurt..

Thanks for the help.

-Ed

 

[Krzydmnd]

so the OEM harness allows for an 'outside the vehicle' connection so I can mount a plug on the hitch?

Unlike the aftermarket wiring kit where most people tap on the inside of the spare tire carrier and 'dangle' it out the back door when towing?

My hitch will be here this week so I need to decide if I want to get the OEM harness or an 3rd party DIY kit.

 

[mgthe3]

sometimes I wonder why I even answer posts.....

(not U krzydmnd) Shine on, you crazy diamond.

The OEM kit is more refined but almost twice as expensive.
To me, storing the plug in your tire well is cleaner. I dont trailer often enough to justify it hangin out there forever.

Drawtite makes a modulite you can find for under $50 shipped.

 

[Nissmo]

The Hoppy aftermarket kit is the typical crimp on setup and costs<$20 at Walmart.
The connector is easily led out to the receiver and taped or tie wrapped to hitch. I used a receiver cover that is made to hold wiring plug.

 

[FastEddy]

I went through the same dilemma on deciding if on an after market or OEM wiring kit and hitch. Here are my thoughts.

The hitch:
$157 delivered for a Drawtight. that bolts into the same holes as the OEM, covers the muffler, and has a 2" receiver rather then a smaller one. This wasn't a difficult decision for me.

Wiring:
I have many strong points but auto wiring is not one of them. I just paid well over 30k for the MO. With the last two facts in hand figured that the folks at Nissan designed the kit with the proper plug ends wire lengths and all the additional parts needed to utilize the electrical system exactly as they intended for it to be used. I ass-u-me Nissan knows a lot more about their electronic system then I do and perhaps the good people at an after market company.

In the past I have run into issues with taping into wires with external connectors. They can weaken the wires they are attached to over time and can come off leaving the possibility of a short. As we all know if this is going to happen it WILL happen at the worse possible time. Closing the hatch with wires dangling, well, thats not for me. Closing the hatch on the wires will over time weaken them and possible cause it to fail.

As far as the work involved I cant see that the aftermarket kit will save much time on installation. All the same parts will need to be removed from the rear to do the job properly.

FOR ME, I choose to do it once and do it right. Again Im not a wiring person and the OEM seemed to be a better choice in my case,

 

[ekaxel]

Any time I modify wiring (and I do it frequently, and have been for years), I always solder the connections. I learned (painfully) years ago that crimp and tap connections are bad news.

 

[HuskyFan]

I The hitch:
$157 delivered for a Drawtight. that bolts into the same holes as the OEM, covers the muffler, and has a 2" receiver rather then a smaller one. This wasn't a difficult decision for me.

Wiring:

Closing the hatch with wires dangling, well, thats not for me. Closing the hatch on the wires will over time weaken them and possible cause it to fail.

The OEM hitch has a 2" receiver also. I dont think closing the hatch on the wire harness is going to cause any problem but having the harness out in the weather all the time might.

 

[FastEddy]

Two schools of thought.
The OEM wiring is "Tight". Its well molded and they use good quality wire. The end has a well made rubber cap *should stay on. A quality after market unit *should have good wires that wont brake after having the hatch closed on them.

Its a toss up on what method is best. I guess as long as its done properly either way will be just fine.

 

[FastEddy]

The OEM wiring could be routed inside. The end comes off the mounting bracket and the wires should be long enough to keep it hidden until needed.

Hmmm. I may have to think about this before I have the bracket tack welded to the hitch.

 

[biggun]

I bought the OEM Hitch and Wire harness. After reviewing the install on the wiring I decided to let the dealer do it because of its complexity. You wil need to remove all of the interior rear trim as identified in the instructions. Than most of it is plug and play with the rerouting of original wiring. You should have a fuse that comes with the kit.

My feeling is with the complexity of this car's electronic, it is not worth it to splice and screw up the OEM wiring.

PS

The install instructions on the wiring say one hour. You will need more like 2-3 hours depending on your abilities.

Good Luck.

 

[ekaxel]

Splicing into the taillight wiring in the back of the vehicle is relatively painless. There is no computer stuff back there. Have an accurate wiring diagram before starting....

 

[FastEddy]

Again with my silly questions but if its as easy as just splicing into the existing tail light wires, what in the heck is the mysterious black box that comes with the OEM kit?

 

[JMcDonald]

I suspect that there is protective circuitry in the "mysterious black box" with the Nissan factory trailer lighting kit.

I had a trailer hookup that had the lead to one of the taillights shorted to ground. When I connected the harness plug, and with the lights "on", I heard a faint "pop". I disconnected the harness plug and checked for voltage with meter - found no voltage on that particular tail light pinout. When I turned the lights off, and then back on, I had voltage at the tail light pinout.

It appeared to me that there is some "short" or "overload" protection that tripped with the shorted wire, and reset with the power cycling.