Having just changed my car, i thought it prudent to convert to the 13 pin plug set up.
I had read on this forum, how wonderful the new system was, and also new vans, in the main we fitted with the new plug.
So i had my new tow bar fitted with the 13pin socket. It looks quite tidy, i must say.
And that's about all i can say for it!
Originally the plan was to use an adapter, which i got in with the tow bar deal, i wasn't happy with it, extra plugs and sockets, and quite weighty.
So i set about replacing the van plugs with with a 13pin socket.
That was the first problem, i was going to use the adaptor plug as this had a black and grey cable already fitted with a unique rubber bush in the end.
Unfortunately i found the diameter of the black flex on the adaptor to be smaller in diameter, not that you would notice, but it would not go through the grommet hole.
That was the first hiccup, of i went and bought a new 13pin plug, the two cables would not fit through the hole, so i had to remove the flex gland and grommet, wired it up and used silicon to water proof the end, and electricians tape to add extra waterproofing and security.
The problem is the two cables together are not very flexible, as opposed to two single flexes.
But there is more bad news, the plug pins 1234, are very close to the outer connections, much easier to get a couple of cores shorting, to add to that the connection diameters are smaller, were before you could double over the common white cores to ensure a good connection, well now you can't.
Also if you look at the contact area of the plug and socket it is reduced, so i can't see how the old burning problem that the old white cores were prone to has been eliminated, i think the chances have been increased.
Also i have noticed that some plugs and sockets have what looks like galvanised pins, some have brass (looks like), but all have the plated screws, that we all know rust, unless you give them a good smearing of silicon grease/ vasline.
As i always carry spares, i have now spent on two plugs and one socket, in the region of £30.
To conclude. I would not rush to convert to the new system, i wish i had stayed with the old, until a change of van forced the change.
It is not a improvement from an electrical view point.
The design is flaw, the pins are too close together, the contact surfaces too small, the cable connections too small, the method used to secure the cable to the plug relies only on a rubber grommet, a backward step from some of the old 12s.n plugs that had both a metal cable grip, and a rubber grommet.
I had read on this forum, how wonderful the new system was, and also new vans, in the main we fitted with the new plug.
So i had my new tow bar fitted with the 13pin socket. It looks quite tidy, i must say.
And that's about all i can say for it!
Originally the plan was to use an adapter, which i got in with the tow bar deal, i wasn't happy with it, extra plugs and sockets, and quite weighty.
So i set about replacing the van plugs with with a 13pin socket.
That was the first problem, i was going to use the adaptor plug as this had a black and grey cable already fitted with a unique rubber bush in the end.
Unfortunately i found the diameter of the black flex on the adaptor to be smaller in diameter, not that you would notice, but it would not go through the grommet hole.
That was the first hiccup, of i went and bought a new 13pin plug, the two cables would not fit through the hole, so i had to remove the flex gland and grommet, wired it up and used silicon to water proof the end, and electricians tape to add extra waterproofing and security.
The problem is the two cables together are not very flexible, as opposed to two single flexes.
But there is more bad news, the plug pins 1234, are very close to the outer connections, much easier to get a couple of cores shorting, to add to that the connection diameters are smaller, were before you could double over the common white cores to ensure a good connection, well now you can't.
Also if you look at the contact area of the plug and socket it is reduced, so i can't see how the old burning problem that the old white cores were prone to has been eliminated, i think the chances have been increased.
Also i have noticed that some plugs and sockets have what looks like galvanised pins, some have brass (looks like), but all have the plated screws, that we all know rust, unless you give them a good smearing of silicon grease/ vasline.
As i always carry spares, i have now spent on two plugs and one socket, in the region of £30.
To conclude. I would not rush to convert to the new system, i wish i had stayed with the old, until a change of van forced the change.
It is not a improvement from an electrical view point.
The design is flaw, the pins are too close together, the contact surfaces too small, the cable connections too small, the method used to secure the cable to the plug relies only on a rubber grommet, a backward step from some of the old 12s.n plugs that had both a metal cable grip, and a rubber grommet.