Wiring for trailer hitch 2004 mazda tribute

By top rear lights you are referring to the high mount stop light on the top of the rear hatch yes? If so and that brake light is operating then you can rule out the 15 amp F6 fuse in the smart junction block in center console as well as the brake switch being the problem. If either of the fuse or switch was faulty then that one brake light would not light up either. Ground point for the lower brake light bulbs is shared with the rear turn and tail light bulbs so if those are also operating then your ground is probably good as well. Power to the brake lights is provided directly by the smart junction block. Has a trailer tow harness been installed on the vehicle recently? If so and extra bulbs were added to the brake light system for the trailer it is very possible that the Smart Junction Box has been damaged due to the increased amperage draw thru the circuit. The non tow package Tribute was not designed to have tow added by U-Haul or other system.

you can add a receiver hitch made for that vehicle. for light towing you should be fine. it won't handle a car trailer or Large boat.

The 2006 Mazda Tribute w/o factory tow package can't accept a trailer wiring harness. If you install one you will probably burn out the central computer as I did. I had a top notch trailer hitch instaler try three different brand harnesses. I feel Mazda should reimburse me the cost of this car new, as I bought it to tow and was told that it could tow 3500 lbs. False representation!

If you adding a trailer light harness, you can buy a seperate harness from most auto parts stores that will plug right in. There should be a connector near the rear of the truck that you can unplug, and add the trailer harness. It's simple and fast and you don't end up making a mess of your wiring. I suggest puting some "dielectric grease" on the connections to prevent corrosion.
Flat 4 connector.
Brown is tail lights and marker lights.
Yellow and Green are turn and stop. I think yellow is left.
White is ground.

Assuming it is wired into your car properly, just turn on the lights or signals, and it is activated. Be sure your test light is properly grounded when checking.

You'll have to follow the BROWN wire from the factory connector(with the running lights on of course) to the trailer connector and make sure you are getting power all the way to the two lamp fixtures. If so you've probably got two burned out 1157 bulbs or an inline fuse in the factory harness/ trailer harness.Good Luck, Dana

Then the problem is either with your trailer plug in, or the plug in on the truck. Use a test light to figure out which it is.

Checked all fuses under hood for towing package etc. May not even be one in there yet if you've never used it before. Checked owners manual?

I had the sam problem with my '02 escape when I installed the hitch. I changed the turn signal relay under the dashboard on the drivers side of the dash with one from an escape that had a tow package(one was blue and the other was yellow...). worked fine for me after that. Don't know if it changed later...