BRAKE CONTROLLERS, TRANSMISSION COOLER, FRONT SEAT CLEARANCE

Trailer brake controller
 
Has anyone come up with a good place to mount a trailer brake controller in a 2007 Tahoe?  For the time being I mounted my Tekonsha Prodigy at the bottom of the dashboard between the accelerator and brake pedals, making it very difficult to see or reach for emergency stops.  If GM doesn’t have the skill or courage to build brake controllers into trucks it seems like they should at least provide a convenient place in the dashboard to mount them.  Many GM dealers are unaware that 2007 models have bare wires under the dash for trailer brake controllers instead of the connectors provided in previous years.  Thanks to Tekonsha for the following information:    
General Motors quit offering the plug in type connectors on the 2007 model full size
trucks and S.U.V.s with a factory tow package. The 2007 models have four blunt cut
wires under the left side of the instrument panel. These wires are located above your left
shin as you are seated in the driver’s seat. The wires can be identified by a white label
and the color of the wires. The wire colors are (1) Red/Black wire, (1) White wire, (1)
Light Blue/White wire and (1) Dark Blue wire and possibly (1) Orange wire.

Connect the brake control to these wires as follows.

GM Wire                     to        Brake Control Wire                  Function

Red/Black                               Black                                       Battery Power

White                                     White                                        Ground

Light Blue/White                     Red                                           Brake Light Signal

Dark Blue                               Blue Brake                                Output to Trailer

Orange                                   N/A                                          (CHMSL)

 

There are two wires under the hood that have to be connected to make the tow package

functional, one is the power wire to the brake control and the other is the battery charge

line to the 7 way connector. These wires are both Red/Black with eyelets connected to

them. They are coiled up under the hood and will need to be connected to the under hood

fuse box. One of these wires can be found located between the fuse box and the left

(drivers) side fender. The other is located under the master cylinder/brake booster

assembly.

 

The battery charge wire and the brake control wire have different size eyelets on them

and will connect to the threaded studs under the Gray handle of the front of the fuse box.

The two studs are also different size.

Note: GM does not supply the nuts required to secure the wires to the studs. These can be

obtained locally.

Important: Raising the Gray handle more than 3/8 of an inch to gain access to the

studs, will result in the fuse box coming disconnected from the electrical connector.

If disconnection occurs you may have to see your local GM dealership for repairs.

 

Pictures attached.

 
Transmission cooler
 
I have a 2007 2WD Tahoe with a 3.73 rear end and plan on towing a 5,500 pound trailer.  The dealer says GM will not accept orders for a transmission cooler, what up.  Can anyone recommend a third party cooler?  The transmission temperature readout is a nice feature; so far I haven’t found a maximum temperature in the manual, any suggestions?
 
Front seat clearance.
 
I have a front bench seat but the clearance between the center section of the seat and the dashboard is less than 4”, not enough even for a child. So far I haven’t found any way to move the center section of the seat back, any suggestions?   


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Transmission Cooler:   You may be better off with a non-OE cooler anyway because you can add a larger unit with greater capacity.  Go to the Summitt Racing, Jegs and Earle's web sites.  They have a huge selection of various sizes.  Also check Setrab if you want to go first class.  You'll want to plumb the cooler in-line with the fluid line leaving the top of the radiator.  This is the output side of the factory arrangement.  Do a search on this forum and you'll find some how-to install suggestions.  I have a 70 square inch by 2" deep stacked plate cooler mounted on my '03 Tahoe with the 4L60E transmission and 3:42 gear.  I also added a gauge on the output side of the aux. cooler so that I could see exactly what the cooler was doing for me.  My primary gauge taps the fluid at the output side of the pump inside the transmission.
 
Concerning towing temps, the OE gauge and display message show fine up to 275 or 280 F I believe.  Too hot for me.  The fluid starts to coke inside the trans. at these temperatures.   I tow a 5,500 lb. open car hauler and usually run about 205 F....same as the engine oil temperature.  If I see 230 at the transmission, I'll take a break or slow down or shift to 3rd. gear and run 55 to 60 mph.   It's alot cheaper to slow down than it is to burn up a transmission.  Many will say running at 270 which is in the green on the gauge is ok but I'm pretty conservative on fluid temps.  However you do it, adding the aux. cooler will give you the cooling capacity to stay out of trouble.  Change your trans. fluid once a season too, regardless of the miles.  Use the new Dexron VI from the dealer which is the factory fill.  You'll have many miles of trouble-free towing.  Enjoy.

i wonder whats involved in adding the factory ebc. it mounts in the lower dash panel above the ebrake release. it would require a new lower trim. it also displays info in the dic. However i've only seen them in the 2500hd's so far. Have you tried mounting your ebc above the gas pedal on the right side of the steering wheel. We find most people actually have an easier time getting to the controller in this location compared to the center of the dash.

Thanks Steve, thats good information.  We had been using a small RV E350-460 cu/in and learned the expensive way about trying to climb grades too fast, cracked exhaust manifolds.  As the old desert rats say 'slow down so we can get there sooner'. 

I have the ebc on the right side near the gas pedal but it is difficult to see and in an emergency it would be very difficult to activate the trailer brakes using the ebc and still keep eyes on road.  I may end up cutting a hole in the dash trim some where to get a more convieneint location.  With all the electronic features the Tahoe has it is too bad they didn't integrate the controller. 

Thanks Steve, thats good information.  We had been using a small RV E350-460 cu/in and learned the expensive way about trying to climb grades too fast, cracked exhaust manifolds.  As the old desert rats say 'slow down so we can get there sooner'.    Sorry about the double, still learning.