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Configuring the body control module for towing using IITool
I purchased the standard plug-n-play towing harness from Atlantic British for my 2006 LR3 HSE and was about to install it this morning, but for once in my life I decided to read the instructions all the way to the end before beginning. Crazy idea, huh? The last line says the following: "21. If your vehicle was not already configured for towing, you must have the body control module re-configured for trailer ball at a Land Rover dealer or Land Rover capable shop or someone who can access the module with a diagnostic scan tool." OK, no problem I think, I've got my trusty IIDTool ready to rock and roll when I get to that step. But then in another example of uncharacteristic behavior for me, I decided to look at my IIDTool instruction PDF and figure out what I'm going to do before I actually do it. But after trying all kinds of search terms ("tow", "towing", "harness", "wiring", "hitch", "trailer", "configure", "configuring", etc.) in the instructions, I can't seem to find any reference to this procedure. Am I just missing something in the IIDTool instructions or am I going to need to take my rig to someone with better gizmos than I possess?
Im just going to toss this out there to get you moving in the right direction hopefully, but I am not certain if this will work. But I am pretty sure you have to edit the CCF. Car Configuration File. Been a while and, frankly, you can mess things up so dont go playing in there too much. But I am thinking you just have to load up the CCF, find the item in the list for towing and change it.
In the Body Control ECU, Car Config Function All 2010 and up
– Tow bar -> Yes
– Trailer module -> select the correct one
– Trailer stability assist -> Yes (will only work if surround cameras are fitted)
– Trailer towing ball -> Fitted
In the Body Control ECU, Car Config Function All 2004-2009 except Range Rover L322 – Tow bar -> Yes
So I guess that for my 2006 LR3 all I have to do is set "Tow bar" to yes in Body Control\Car Configuration File... I guess. Seems like an odd choice of words ("tow bar" in my mind is the thing you attach to the front of a vehicle's bumper so that the vehicle can be towed), so I think I'm going to wait until I hear from others to see what they did after installing their Atlantic British LR3 Trailer Wiring Kit YWJ500220. I'm leaning heavily towards the notion that when the Car Config Function says "tow bar" it actually means tow bar, so if you set the BCM to that value, the vehicle expects to be pulled along the highway with four wheels on the ground. If so, that's not a setting I'd want to change to. In addition, none of the product reviews on the AB website for this model mention the process for resetting the configuration. That's very curious. Human nature being what it is, you'd expect at least one of the 48 reviews to say something like "These bozos advertised the harness as 'plug and play' but while the physical install was a breeze, you can't really play until you go to a dealer and pay more for the BCM setting than you did for the harness". Something like that. My assumption from the silence is that nobody with an LR3 who adds a harness messes with the BCM or needs to. Look at Gap's instructions for 2010 and up. Lots of settings that you'd use to tell the system you're towing with different configurations, but only the tow bar setting for 2009 and earlier. So maybe LR3s really are plug and play (i.e., connect all the wires and you're good to go for a trailer) while LR4s and later require a configuration file change.
Forum member experiences with the AB harness here would be helpful...
Just noticed something: Atlantic British instructions say to change configuration on vehicle to "trailer ball", not "tow bar", If Gap's instructions are correct, the LR3 has no
trailer ball" or "tow ball" setting, just "tow bar" (according to Gap, LR4s do have a "Trailer towing ball" fitted setting as well as "tow bar"). But maybe Gap is wrong. A reviewer of the harness kit on Amazon entitled "Excellent Upgrade to my LR3!" wrote "I used a Gap Diagnostic IIDTool to enable the trailer ball. It is a must have as well." On the other hand, a different reviewer pronouncing the harness as a perfect "fit for the land rover lr3!" wrote that "you do not need to go into land rover for it to get it programmed! just need to reset the computer by disconnecting the battery for 10 minutes. That's what I did and it worked perfectly!".
In the absence of any conflicting info, I plan to install the harness and then fire up my IIDTool and dig into the Car Configuration File, resisting any impulse to monkey around with any bright shiny objects I encounter as DakotaTravler has warned me. If I see an option for "trailer ball" or "tow ball" or "Trailer towing ball", I'll make the change, but if "tow bar" is the closest option I find I'll do nothing and try the ten minute battery disconnection workaround. I'll report back on results if I don't see any definitive advice on this subject here.
I'm hoping "auto-turns" means the revised settings are activated when there when the trailer's lights are connected to the LR harness, and deactivated when the plug is pulled. We'll see..
Yes, thats how it works. In fact you will get a green trailer indicator to come up when connected on the cluster. I think right of the info display. And I believe it will flash when the blinker is used to indicate that it, at least, thinks the tailer blinker is operating correctly. Like all things LR, its a bit more complex than your average vehicle but it works.
Configuring the body control module for towing using IITool
