electrical and ignition Blinker, Running Light Issue

[beast02er]

I'm trying to troubleshoot I have with my front blinkers. Here is the situation:

 

Headlights off: Both front blinkers work fine

Headlights on (or just running lights): Driver side running light does not come on, but blinker works

                                                      Passenger side running light comes on (bright, like it's the blinker fillament)   and the blinker does not.

 

 

So.........just trying to figure out where to start and what to look for. The rears are fine the whole time.

 

 

Thanks,

 

Bryan

[ray_]

Grounds grounds grounds grounds grounds grounds grounds grounds grounds grounds grounds.

 

Also check the grounds.

 

:-)

[Mike Self]

" Passenger side running light comes on (bright, like it's the blinker fillament)   and the blinker does not."

 

Wires to parking light and turn signal are connected backwards.  With it wired this way, you will hardly be able to see the flasher when it's blinking the 3 watt filament instead of the 15 watt one.  

 

Also check your fuses:  they corrode and actually wear out, so don't just wiggle 'em in their holder, but remove the fuse, examine the fuse ends for wear and clean the brass contacts.  It's not a bad idea to actually replace the fuses every few years as they corrode.

 

cheers

mike

 

PS--both front parking lights/turn signals ground through the unit's mounting screws; replace screws with stainless steel ones so they'll ground properly.  

[bnam]

 

Wires to parking light and turn signal are connected backwards.  With it wired this way, you will hardly be able to see the flasher when it's blinking the 3 watt filament instead of the 15 watt one.  

 

+1

[ray_]

Okl, maybe not grounds. But clean them anyway!

 

[beast02er]

Mike, where would this "backwards wiring" be, at the turn indicator stalk? Or? Is the flasher relay the roundish relay with about 6 connections under it? That it?

 

Also, by grounding at the mount screws, you mean what holds the actual turn signal to the body right?

 

Thanks.

[Napes]

beast02er:  I think what Mike is refering to about the reversed wiring is in the turn signal itself.  That is where the wires are probably "reversed".

 

And, he's refering to the two screws that hold the turn signals to the body of the car.  That is where the grounding takes place.  Replace them with stainless screws, as Mike suggested, or, at the very least, brush them with a toothbrush-sized metal wire brush to make sure the threads are clean.

 

Bob Napier

[choptop]

I'm also have problem with my rear blinkers. They work but do not get

Very bright. Checked the volts going to them and they are getting 4 volts.

They should be getting more around 10-12 volts right?

[Mike Self]

Rear flashers with low voltage:  are your tail lights and brake lights also getting low voltage?  If so, check the brown ground wires.  All the lamps in each tail light cluster ground at a common point, so if grounding is the problem, all the lamps will be dim.  Easy way to check is to run a jumper wire from the metal tail light housing to a clean ground on the body.  If everything brightens, trace the brown ground wires to the point where they ground to the body and clean that grounding point.  

 

If it's just the turn signals that are weak/dim, check the bulb sockets to make sure the bulb bases (and the sockets themselves) are clean and the bulbs are tight in their sockets.  If that doesn't help, check where the wiring harness plugs into the housing to make sure that's clean and tight.  Hope that's it, as beyond that it may be a problem in the wiring itself.  But it's usually corrosion on sockets, bulbs or connectors.

 

mike

[choptop]

I'm waiting on free time and work so I can really trace down the problem.

Thanks for your input. Will post the results. Also waiting on parts to come in

So I can drive it more than a few miles.