Brake Controller Install on 2010 Toyota Highlander  

Question:

Expert Reply:

Installing a Brake Controller on your Highlander is certainly possible. As a first step, you will need to choose a brake controller. I would recommend the Tekonsha Prodigy P2, part # 90885. The P2 is our best selling brake controller, and is simple to use and set up.

To install the controller, we offer a Brake Controller Installation Kit, part # ETBC7. The kit contains everything necessary to complete the installation, including wire, circuit breakers, hardware and the adapter that will convert your existing 4-pole connector to a 7-way connector.

The adapter included in the kit is mounted to the rear of the vehicle, and plugged into your existing 4-pole. At this point, your lighting connections are complete. The adapter will have 4 additional wires that will need to be connected. The blue wire carries the output from the controller, and would be ran under the vehicle to the engine compartment, and ultimately through the firewall to the cab connecting to the blue wire on the controller. The white wire would be grounded to clean metal on the vehicle. The black wire is used to provide 12-volts for any trailer accessories requiring power. It would also be ran to the engine compartment and attach to the positive battery terminal via a 40 amp circuit breaker included in the install kit. The remaining purple wire is typically used for reverse lights if your trailer is equipped with them.

The controller itself would mount under the dash, typically to the right of the steering column within easy reach of the driver. The black wire would run through the firewall to the positive battery terminal via the 20 or 30 amp breaker included in the kit. If the trailer has 2-4 brake assemblies, use the 20 amp. If the trailer has 6-8 brake assemblies, the 30-amp breaker would be used. The blue wire would attach to the wire mentioned above that ran from the rear of the vehicle. The white wire attaches to the negative battery terminal, and the red wire connects to the the cold side of the brake stoplight switch located at the top of the brake pedal. To locate the correct circuit to tap this red wire into, first locate the stoplight switch. The switch will have several wires running out of it, use a circuit tester like part # PTW2993 to locate which of these wires goes hot only when the brake pedal is pressed, and tap the red wire into it.

I will include links below to some additional information about brake controllers that you might find helpful.

I will also link to a video showing an install on a 2008 FJ Cruiser. Although the install is on a different vehicle, the procedure would be very similar on your Highlander.

expert reply by: Mike L

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