I was driving down the road today and all of a sudden, my right turn signal indicator lights up and stays lit. I tried turning on the right turn signal, but it wouldn't blink. So I pulled over and checked the lights, and the front turn signal indicators (the side marker and the one in the bumper) were not lit up at all, and wouldn't blink. All other lights were working normally. So I continue driving and just before I get to the store, the indicator turns off, and it starts working normally again. I get out, and check the lights again, and both of the front lights are working normally, as well as all the other lights on the car.
Seems like a wiring problem, but what could cause this?
I replaced both of the front bulbs (2057 in the right front turn signal, and 194 in the sidemarker light) and now the turn signal kind of works, but it stays lit for about two seconds before blinking. Left turn signal still works normally. Also, when I turn on the parking lights or headlights, the right turn signal indicator on the dash stays lit up constantly.
I doubt it's related, but my power trunk release just stopped working, too. Looking at the wiring diagram for this system, it looks like I can narrow it down in a few minutes with a multimeter. The above is driving me NUTS.
On the lights you still have a problem on that side. Blinker speed is a function of resistance, the higher it is the slower the blink rate (which is why a blown bulb doesn't blink at all). You need to inspect the sockets carefully, scrape out any corrosion you find. It's also likely that a socket has gone bad, you'll have to splice in a new one to fix that problem.
Replaced the mechanical flashers with electronic EL12 flashers, and now they both blink at the same faster rate, so at least it's safe. I turned on the hazards, and noticed the driver's side front blinker is significantly brighter than the passenger side, the side markers SEEM to be the same brightness. Probably a bad socket then? I took some sandpaper to the ground next to the passenger side headlight, and the body where it contacts to, didn't make a difference.
The right turn signal indicator still stays on with the parking lights or headlights on.
Trunk release: there is 12V at the pink/black wire, and the switch shows continuity between the pink and black wires when pressed. So I put it back together, and tried it for the hell of it, and it worked, twice, then stopped working again. Solenoid going bad?
[This message has been edited by RWDPLZ (edited 02-28-2008).]
I don't have the a wiring diagram in front of me but i'm gonna bet that you dropped a ground on one of the front bulbs. That could cause it to wander back through all sorts of other parts of the circuit and eat up voltage. If you've got a meter do a voltage drop on that bulb when its acting up and see if its at or near running voltage. As for the solenoid, do a voltage drop across it when you hit the switch and its not working. If you get running voltage and its not working then its bad.
If you need any clarification feel free to ask. I'm going through auto electronics at school right now so I'm pretty up on all this.
[This message has been edited by kzelisko (edited 02-28-2008).]
IP: Logged
07:53 PM
tjm4fun Member
Posts: 3781 From: Long Island, NY USA Registered: Feb 2006
I just had that problem, dirver side a few weeks ago. was the ground on the front turn signal bulb. the socket was kinda not connecting to the case of the bulb socket. too much goop in there as far as I can tell. I cleaned it all uplightly gooped it, and all is well again. I can;t for the life of me figur out how the PO got that much goop in the socket.
Went out to the car today and the battery was drained down to 0.8 volts, used my new battery jump box and it barely started, so I let it run while I began work. Unplugged the trunk light and headlight motors just in case. When power was applied to the car, the door chime "beeeeeeeeeeeeeep" was on constantly, usually does this if the keys are left in the ignition, but they weren't. Maybe this drained it?
Started with the trunk release problem. I put a dremel sanding accessory in the end of my cordless drill (nowhere to plug in the dremel in a parking lot) and sanded the latch at the trunk and the contact area on the latch, and the point where the solenoid body attaches to the latch mechanism. All shiny new metal, now works every time, even after a couple trips. Problem apparently solved.
The light problem: Took out the passenger headlight assembly and made SURE I had shiny metal contact between the wire and body at the ground point, G102. No change. Removed the sidemarker AND front turn signal bulbs, and now the dash turn indicator doesn't turn on when the parking lights or headlights are on.
Went out and bought new 2057 and 194 bulb sockets. But there's a bad blizzard outside right now so I had to stop work. By the time I finished the trunk problem the toolbox already had a couple inches of snow on it, and it's only getting worse right now. Hopefully it warms back up again this weekend, we just had our first snow melt since October-ish
Went out to the car today about 1:00 PM and the battery was at 12.80 volts, down from 12.95 volts last night at 11:00 PM, and 12.98 volts at 6:00 PM, so there's a slower drain somewhere. Meaning one of the things I unplugged was causing the big drain (trunk light, or one of the headlight motors) unless it WAS the car thinking the key was in the ignition. Plugged the trunk light in and I'll check it again tonight and tomorrow.
On to the turn signal problem: Pulled out the right headlight assembly so I could have some room to work. Took out the right hand front turn signal and pushed the socket into the area the headlight assembly used to be. Found the ground wire had come out of the socket. Tested for continuity between the end of the wire and G102, and it was fine, so the rest of the wire was good. Did the same for the brown and blue wires with the sidemarker light, and the wires were fine. Interestingly, both the blue and brown wires were exposed at the base of the socket, so the socket needed to be replaced anyway.
The socket I got from Auto Value, Handypack HP4110, looks almost identical to the old one, and secured to the turn lense exactly the same a sthe old one. I added some black silicone to the areas where the wires come out of the socket since it looked like water could probably collect in there.
I used butt connectors to connect the wires (black to black, brown to brown, blue to yellow). Normally I'd solder them but there was nowhere to plug in a soldering iron. Also used heatshrink tubing on both ends of the connectors to seal them.
Tested all the lights, and they all work fine, and no more constantly on right turn signal on the dash.
Thanks for all the help!
IP: Logged
04:04 PM
86V8fiero Member
Posts: 127 From: Watertown NY USA Registered: Sep 2006
Just a piece of advise and I am not tring to be a smarta$$. Build or borrow a garage! I live in northern NY and fix cars for a living. Working outside on cars and snowmobiles will give you anthritius in your fingers later in life. Plus its not very fun. I am tempted to go into a long story regarding working outside but will spare all of you from it. Good luck!!
I would, but I live in the dorms on campus 7 hours from home, and they frown upon building large structures in the parking lot. Last spring I parked the car in front of my dorm room window on the grass while I was cleaning and washing it, since there's a hose attachment on the wall there too, maybe run an extension cord out the window and get some other work done, and the campus rent-a-cops were NOT amused! No sense of humor at all! Nobody I know up here has a garage, either.
