larry0801

I used RVi Brake 2 on my 2013 CMax Hybrid. Worked great. Had to install +12vdc from coach to keep battery charged. Also needed dedicated 12 vdc from battery to RVi Brake. Car turns off all power to outlets after about 15 minutes when car is in off position. Just used direct line with fuses on +/- sides. No dead battery since. Followed Ford OM for towing, straight forward easy. I have moved my RVi Brake 2 to my 2017 Ford Edge. Nice to be able to move it without a lot of effort.

Ok, here’s what I found out and did to my 2017 Edge SEL.: 1) Contacted Ford, they stated disconnect the negative terminal from battery per OM. Don’t worry about other factory installed grounds (they are tied to the negative wire bundle). In otherwords you disconnect the negative terminal you have removed power to the car. 2) Had Blue Ox BX2657 baseplate and the new Blue Ox wiring harness (BX88334) for lights installed. Wiring harness gets ground through car (connected at rear of car near lights per installer) and coach wiring via 6 pin connector (it’s ground is tied to the car near the connector. Also car is technically grounded to coach via the tow bar assembly. +12vdc for tail lights is provided from coach via 6 pin connector not the +12vdc from car battery. New wiring harness works perfectly with LEDs. 3) Had a negative battery terminal disconnect installed between battery ground wire and terminal post. It’s one of those screw knob type. The only issue is that the negative terminal is kind of far back under the hood and it’s al little tight to get my hand on it. I may install an on/off switch type later. That will require getting an extention negative battery wire to mount the switch in a more accessible location. 4) Installed dedicated 12vdc plug to run power from car battery to RVi Brake. Called RViBrake and asked about battery drain and if I needed a charge line to battery from coach. I informed the tech that I needed that on my 2013 Ford CMax. The tech said no need to run charge line. The battery is of sufficent size to not drain dead while towing (RVi Brake uses minimal voltage draw on battery). CMax required charge line because the starter battery was very small, as in most hybrids, it is only used to start the car then hybrid batteries take over. RVi Brake has a charger, it has only one line in (+12 vdc from coach) and 2 lines out (+/-12 vdc to battery posts). The reason for only one line in it that it takes ground from the car (as noted earlier) ground is also tied to the coach. (It assumes the car ground is still connected to the battery). In this instance you would be required to disconnect positive terminal from the battery instead of the negative terminal. Now here’s where it gets “gotcha”: Ford says disconnect the negative terminal ( in OM). Technically you are removing power from the car by removing the positive terminal instead. Both methods will work according to Ford and RVi Brake, but it is not per the OM (warranty issue?). Also, it has been stated to me that removing the negative terminal versus the positive terminal is safer for people (no accidental shorting yourself to ground). For now I plan to run with my negative battery terminal disconnected per OM. If battery drain becomes an issue then I will explore installing a battery disconnect on the positive side of battery and leaving the negative side connected. Edited to add: Hooked up car to RV, setup car per OM, drove around block a few times to set up RVi Brake sensivity, ALL AOK. No memory loss of electronics in car. Did have to push Sirius XM button on radio, because it defaulted to FM. Did not lose any channel memory. I hope this information helps.

I just purchased a 2017 Ford Edge SEL. I am looking at the Blue Ox and Roadmaster base plate assemblies for my new car. I have a Blue Ox tow bar on coach. I am leaning towards the Blue Ox because it appears to have more attach points to the frame, but the Roadmaster appears to be of simpler installation. (In either case I will have a shop install the equipment). Would like opinions/recommendations/experiences on both systems. Thanks, Larry Valdez 2016 Tiffin Allegro 37AP 2017 Ford Edge SEL

I just purchased a 2017 Ford Edge SEL. In reading this thread I noticed that Wayne states, "...Be very careful how you do this as there are three ground points off the negative battery cable. The one on the fender well stud, for jump starting, one on the engine, and one goes to the electronics. All in a single piece bundled wiring harness. This is not for the faint hearted to trace, I worked with my local Ford dealer for several hours figuring this one out!... A couple of questions: 1. Didn't the dealer just remove the negative wire bundle off the negative terminal and connect that to one side of the cutoff switch and the other side to the negative battery terminal? Or was it more involved that? 2. What effect on electronics memory does this disconnection have, (i.e,., radio programming, etc.). Or do all of the electronics maintain their memory? 3. Any other gotchas? BTW: I plan on installing an accessory 12vdc connector directly to the battery for my RVi Brake. Also a 12vdc line from the coach to the battery to keep it charged while towing. I will be using power from the coach to via the six pin connector for the tail lights. This is what I did on our 2013 Ford CMax that we traded in for the Edge. If anyone else has recommendations/information regarding flat towing the Edge I would like to here those also. Larry Valdez 2016 Tiffin Allegro 37AP 2017 Ford Edge SEL

We're planning a trip down the California coast starting in Half Moon Bay heading towards Hearst Castle in a 35ft Class A with a toad. How is the road during this stretch of Highway 1? Any info would be of great help. Thanks in Advance, Larry