'21 GMC Denali 2500 problems connecting to Furrion back up camera

[jbm2767]

Does anyone have a fix for the '21 model GM trucks not being able to provide a full 12v power to the running lights, which the Furrion back up camera requires?

I've read about some adapters, but some say they work and some say they don't??

Contacted Furrion days ago, still no response.

 

[geotex1]

You must have led clearance lights on your trailer. If that's correct, your truck's trailer lighting control module is not seeing the 5.5A threshold current. You will need to put a resistor inline on the trailer side parking light wire.

 

[mgresnick]

jbm -

Here is my response that I got from Furrion on the same issues that I am having.

"Hello.

The issue is not the camera system but it is the new model GMC/CHEVY.

The problem that you're having is that the new model Chevy/GMC trucks have a PWM power signal transmitted by the vehicle. This stands for pulse-width modulation, which is a method of reducing average power delivered by an electrical signal by effectively chopping it up into discrete parts which "fakes" an analog-like result by applying power in pulses, or short bursts of regulated voltage.

To explain that in plain English, this method of power distribution doesn't provide enough current for the transmitter to boost the image signal out to the monitor and the wave/pulse of electrical signal for the lights is just the right frequency that it causes resonating in the relay and doesn't close in order to route power from the coach battery to the camera.

mod edit to remove advertising of a product (not ready yet but taking orders is still advertising). Sorry, commercial posting not allowed per our rules (even for commercial members)

The immediate and recommended fix is to rewire the camera power to be supplied via a hard wire that is powered by the camper house battery instead of the system being powered by the running lights. This will also allow you to utilize the security functionality of the system while you are camping."

I have ordered a short extension cable for my 7 pin and plan on modifying the wiring to hook up the 12+ from vehicle to the running light side on the trailer(disconnecting the vehicle side of running lights). Not ideal as the running lights will be on whenever I am plugged into the trailer and the trailer light monitoring in the vehicle will be disabled. Don't think it will be a problem as I am rarely sitting with my tether attached. This should get me by until they come out with their "adapter".

If anyone else has any ideas I am all ears.

 

[efield]

I also have a 2021 GMC Denali and would like to hear how your solution works out.

 

[smrdc1974]

I had the exact same issue last year when hooking up my Imagine 21BHE with a new installed fusion to my BMW X5D. It would blow a fuse or something . Anyway, the dealer kept the rig overnight to fix the problem which was to hard wire the furion to the battery. They told me to not go far and not dry camp cause the camera would drain my battery. Fast forward to this year. Upgraded my TV to a GMC Sierra 1500 with the 3.0 diesel and I am scheduled for a service next week to have the camera wired correctly since our first two trips will be dry camping at state parks. I sure hope I don’t run into the same problem again!

 

[mgresnick]

Greg - I ordered a 7 pin extension cable (with non-molded end so I could modify it) from amazon along with a 12 volt relay. My plan was to trigger the relay on the power from the truck side running lights but sending the 12+ AUX down the running lights pim on the Trailer connector. This would allow the running lights to function with the headlight switch of the vehicle but supplying straight 12 volts.

I did not receive the relay and am leaving tomorrow so disconnected the running light feed on vehicle side and jumpered the 12+ aux to the trailer running light pin. cameras and lights came up like a champ. I agree with geotex1 that there may not be enough load from the relay to appear as connected to the vehicle trailer management system and inserting a load resistor would likely fix that.

For now things are working and will post again when the final test with relay is complete.

 

[efield]

Thank you and Happy Trails.

 

[BillinSC]

So...I got tired of waiting for Furrion to come out with a suitable adapter that will work with my 2021 Silverado 2500 and wired in a relay to control the power to the rear and side cameras from the battery to bypass the PWM funkiness that's keeping me from running them. I'm sure Furrion will work something out but we have a big trip coming up soon and decided to bite the bullet and make this modification instead (plus I couldn't stand watching $700 worth of cameras sitting on my work bench).

The mod was pretty straight forward and not technically hard, just time consuming.

Underneath where the trailer/truck 7 pin connector goes into a small junction box you can separate out the connections to the running lights that are normally powered by the truck through the green wire. I have a 2021 GD Imagine 2500RL but this should be pretty standard on most TT's. I had three separate wires going from the Main 7 pin (Green) to the TT. One went to the rear tail/stop lights (for running lights) and also two lower marker lights together. A second green wire went to the Upper Rear running lights and the Furrion camera housing and the third green wire went to the Front/Side marker lights.

Because my truck monitors the TT light connections I left the one green wire that connects to the Rear/Stop/Running lights connected to the main 7 pin connection. This way my truck will always see them and monitor the connection (otherwise I would have a constant fault/warning from the truck. These lights will be activated by the trucks headlights like normal.

The other two connections I wired to a 12V relay. This relay is activated manually from a ground triggered switch I installed in the passthrough storage area. The relay is mounted underneath near the junction box. I've never installed/wired a relay before but it was pretty straight forward. Running the wire for the switch was also pretty easy because the wiring from the main 7 pin connector come up behind the wet bay panel. Just had to fish the wire through but was pretty simple.

After all the wiring was completed and tested I installed the rear back up camera and it connected to the wireless monitor right way with no issues, strong signal and clear picture. Tomorrow I'll get the side cameras installed.

The only down side to this set up is that I have to manually turn on/off the camera/marker light circuit. Not a big deal really. You'll know if you've left them on 'cuz all your markers light will be on.

Technically you could also monitor the cameras from inside the TT when camping but again, your marker lights will be on at the same time.

Anyway, just thought I'd share my experience with anyone who might be in the same boat as I was with the PWM system keeping you from running your cameras.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me.

 

[Aussiejo63]

Furriion back up Camera

You must have led clearance lights on your trailer. If that's correct, your truck's trailer lighting control module is not seeing the 5.5A threshold current. You will need to put a resistor inline on the trailer side parking light wire.

It’s just not the new GMC or Chevy. My 2020 BMW X5 also has the same issue. Holiday world called furrion and they said to hopefully have the fix in 2 to 3 months ?** This is after summer for sure.

 

[BillinSC]

Yup, I'm sure they'll have something eventually but I was hoping for something before getting too deep into summer.
Anyway, I'm happy with the set up now and I can always reverse the changes later if the new adapter is an overall better alternative.

 

[jleonard]

jbm -

Here is my response that I got from Furrion on the same issues that I am having.

"Hello.

The issue is not the camera system but it is the new model GMC/CHEVY.

The problem that you're having is that the new model Chevy/GMC trucks have a PWM power signal transmitted by the vehicle. This stands for pulse-width modulation, which is a method of reducing average power delivered by an electrical signal by effectively chopping it up into discrete parts which "fakes" an analog-like result by applying power in pulses, or short bursts of regulated voltage.

To explain that in plain English, this method of power distribution doesn't provide enough current for the transmitter to boost the image signal out to the monitor and the wave/pulse of electrical signal for the lights is just the right frequency that it causes resonating in the relay and doesn't close in order to route power from the coach battery to the camera.

We have a product in development to correct this, but we don't have an ETA on when we can expect that to be through production and available to us. I can add you to a notification list to be contacted when we have that adapter product available.

.

Well, the gentleman that was behind me in the delivery lot at Lazy Days Tampa thanks you all for this post.
He bought a used Montana5th wheel and spent a good part the day working on trying to get his rear view camera working. I saw him taking the running light cover off, measuring voltage and whatever but didn't really know what he was doing, as I had my own stuff to look at.
Later in the day I was roaming around and being nosey I asked him how it was going. He said he couldn't get the monitor to pair with the camera. I didn't think much of it at the time, thought maybe the way he was doing it he had the 2 components to far apart.
Then the rain came down in buckets and I went back to our trailer.
Then it hit me, I remembered reading this thread. I didn't pay too much attention to it, but i did read about half of it a while ago.
So when the rain stopped and he was back outside with his multimeter, I mentioned this to him.
He was so thankful to know that it wasn't him or the camera.
Not sure what his solution was, but he talked about running 12volts to the camera from some source and going under the trailer short term so he could drive to New Jersey friday morning.

So thanks again

 

[rhbearusa]

For all you 2021 GM owners with a Furion camera that won't work because of low voltage issues there is a simple fix without buying an adapter that most likely won't work 0n 2021 Silverado anyway.
A simple solution is to find the parking light wire on the travel trailer side of the plug (on mine I have a 5th wheel front compartment and located it) and cut it and wired in a relay. The wire that powers from the 7way to the trailer you connect it to power up/trip the relay (85) and then ground the other side (86) to the trailer body. Run a fused hot wire (10 AMP) from the battery to the relay (30) and the other side of the relay wire (87) to your running lights that was cut and feeds the lights and camera. So basically, when your running lights are on it powers the relay to turn on your lights and camera and is feed from your trailer battery to fully power the circuit of which is being charged as well from your vehicle.
This is how I corrected my camera issue but I take no responsibility for improper understanding of wiring. Also you only need a 30amp relay with four legs, five legs can be used but don't wire into the center leg.

 

[LittleBill]

For all you 2021 GM owners with a Furion camera that won't work because of low voltage issues there is a simple fix without buying an adapter that most likely won't work 0n 2021 Silverado anyway.
A simple solution is to find the parking light wire on the travel trailer side of the plug (on mine I have a 5th wheel front compartment and located it) and cut it and wired in a relay. The wire that powers from the 7way to the trailer you connect it to power up/trip the relay (85) and then ground the other side (86) to the trailer body. Run a fused hot wire (10 AMP) from the battery to the relay (30) and the other side of the relay wire (87) to your running lights that was cut and feeds the lights and camera. So basically, when your running lights are on it powers the relay to turn on your lights and camera and is feed from your trailer battery to fully power the circuit of which is being charged as well from your vehicle.
This is how I corrected my camera issue but I take no responsibility for improper understanding of wiring. Also you only need a 30amp relay with four legs, five legs can be used but don't wire into the center leg.

rhbearusa
Your solution for powering trailer lights seem to be what I have been thinking about where you add a relay in a way to feed 12v to the trailer lights when you turn your headlights on. Your explanation is pretty good, but I would appreciate it if you were able to share some pictures or a diagram of it. I am thinking that the easiest way for me would be to create an adapter using something similar to this - https://www.amazon.com/MICTUNING-Tr...a0c83&pd_rd_wg=Iql3D&pd_rd_i=B07TWRW8F1&psc=1 where I would splice in a relay connecting it like you have described.

Any additional help would help.
Thanks and be safe.

 

[BillinSC]

Yup, I'm sure they'll have something eventually but I was hoping for something before getting too deep into summer.
Anyway, I'm happy with the set up now and I can always reverse the changes later if the new adapter is an overall better alternative.

I just received this email from Furrion. Apparently they're starting to get the new adapters in (for 2021 Silverado models etc.). I already have a solution that works for me so I won't be buying one. Just an FYI for others interested.

 

[Katy44]

Seems Furrion is having a tough time getting a suitable adapter to power their backup camera with 2020/21 GM heavy duty trucks like my Silverado 2500. So, I built a workaround using a Solid-State Relay circuit to power the rear camera from 12V battery power and not the lower voltage PWM that the Chevy is sending down the line for running lights. I have a 2021 Grand Design Reflection 297RSTS but this workaround should work for most travel trailers.
I didn’t want the truck to sense any power issues with the workaround AND I wanted a seamless fix that didn’t require manually switching the Relay on/off. To accomplish this, I used a solid-state relay (SSR) with a capacitor and diode to trigger the SSR input with the PWM voltage and send a full 12V to the camera and rear running lights.

Because the truck monitors the trailer running light connections, I left the front running lights on the original PWM green wire. These lights are turned on by the truck’s headlights like normal. The truck sees them on so no fault/warning on the truck infosystem.
I mounted the new SSR junction box near the existing junction box. In the box, the rear running lights and camera wire connects to the 12V SSR position #1 (full 12V). The PWM green wire connects to SSR #3 to active the SSR. The truck’s battery wire (full 12V) connects to SSR #2 and SSR #4 is ground. The capacitor is located in the SSR box, but the diode is outside the box as the box was getting a little crowded.
Finding a running light wire that feed only the rear of the trailer took investigation. Underneath the trailer on the front driver side, the truck side harness connects to the trailer harness in a small junction box (see pictures). I separated out the connections to the running lights (green wire). In my case, only one green wire exited the junction box to drive all running lights and camera. I tested different exposed green wires on the trailer to find one that only feed the rear running lights and the camera. I got lucky and the first wire I cut near the running light located underneath the hot water heater was a good one to split the running light circuit.

After all the wiring was installed and tested, I installed the rear back up camera and it connected to the wireless monitor right way with no issues, strong signal, and clear picture!

I’m happy this solution is “hands off”, no need to remember to flip a switch and no error messages.
Hopefully, the attached diagrams, parts list, and pictures will fill in the details for those dealing with a PWM system keeping you from powering your cameras.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

 

[traveldawg]

Can't you just wire in a 12v bulb into the 12v circuit that powers the camera thus drawing more current and tricking the truck?

That's pretty much geotex's solution but he suggested a resistor.

 

[Katy44]

Can't you just wire in a 12v bulb into the 12v circuit that powers the camera thus drawing more current and tricking the truck?

That's pretty much geotex's solution but he suggested a resistor.

That actually might work to keep the truck monitoring system happy. Would be easier than finding a way to split the trailer running light circuit into two parts like I did.

I don't think geotex's proposal would provide a full analog 12V to the camera instead of GM's PWM lower voltage which is the key issue. The solid state relay with capacitor and diode provide the full analog 12V to the camera when the truck's lights are on.

If I'm missing something, let me know.

 

[traveldawg]

That actually might work to keep the truck monitoring system happy. Would be easier than finding a way to split the trailer running light circuit into two parts like I did.

I don't think geotex's proposal would provide a full analog 12V to the camera instead of GM's PWM lower voltage which is the key issue. The solid state relay with capacitor and diode provide the full analog 12V to the camera when the truck's lights are on.

If I'm missing something, let me know.

I think @geotex meant a resistor from the 12v running light circuit to ground. But I am not sure.

This is the second time I've read about GM trucks and power for pulling trailers. The other issue seemed related to using disc brakes and the pump for the brakes; I think it required an adapter.

Anyway.... I'd try to find a 12v lamp with enough current draw to "fool" that whole PCM arrangement so it provided more power.

Let us know how it works out.

 

[Catfish Flanagan]

I know this reply is a few months old, but I just traded up to a 2022 Silverado with the PMW problem. Question, Why the capacitor and diode? Would connecting the green wire supplying the front trailer lights work. #3 from the tow vehicle and #4 to the front lights. Would this activate the relay? I found the relay on Amazon and the capacitor, but having trouble finding your part number diode.
Thanks.

 

[Captain Sarcasm]

This Furrion adapter fixed this issue for me: https://www.etrailer.com/s.aspx?qry=FR87PR&furl=-pg-Accessories_and_Parts