| Author |
Message |
dclaxon
Samba Member
Joined: April 01, 2012
Posts: 37
Location: Illinois
|
 Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2021 12:02 am Post subject: Bizarre Turn Signal Behavior |
 |
|
To the best of my knowledge everything was working when I pulled my '70 Vert into the garage for the final time last fall, but when I pulled it out this spring (or at least the first time I actually went more than down the block) the right rear turn signal is being screwy. Left turn signal works OK, but right signal flashes the front turn signal, and both brake lights and the license plate lights, but not the actual turn signal bulb. I swapped the bulbs, both work on the left side but neither works on the right. Usually when electrical stuff gets this crazy the first suspect is a bad ground, but the ohmmeter says I have good ground at the bulb socket, and I pulled the tar board out so I could get to the terminals and cleaned them all up and made sure, but still no change. The relay must be OK because left turn is working, right?
In the process of checking this out, I found that the 4-way flashers are also flashing the brake and license plate lights, along with the left rear and both front flashers, but still not the right rear. And it appears that there is also no tail light on the right side, but both filaments seem to be lit with the brakes on. Does that give anyone a clue?
It seems to me that something must be screwed up either in the light housing itself, (not inexpensive to replace) or possibly the turn switch in the steering column. Any recommendations for what to check next?
Thanks,
Dave |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
runamoc 
Samba Member
Joined: June 19, 2006
Posts: 5601
Location: 37.5N 77.1W
|
| Posted: Tue Jun 08, 2021 7:52 am Post subject: Re: Bizarre Turn Signal Behavior |
|
|
just start replacing stuff, you'll find the problem
_________________
Daily driver: '69 Baja owned 44 yrs - Plan B: '81 Rabbit Diesel LS Deluxe - Plan C: '72 Ghia
Yard Art: 2 Sandrails
Outback: '69 Ghia - '68,'69,'70,'72 Beetle - '84 Scirocco, GTI - Pair of '02 Golfs-
VW Wiring = It's just wires |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
scotty timmerman
Samba Member
Joined: January 10, 2010
Posts: 1000
Location: gigharbor W.A
|
|
| Back to top |
|
|
dclaxon
Samba Member
Joined: April 01, 2012
Posts: 37
Location: Illinois
|
| Posted: Wed Jun 09, 2021 12:05 am Post subject: Re: Bizarre Turn Signal Behavior |
|
|
| runamoc wrote: |
| just start replacing stuff, you'll find the problem |
That's the part I'm trying to avoid. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
dclaxon
Samba Member
Joined: April 01, 2012
Posts: 37
Location: Illinois
|
| Posted: Wed Jun 09, 2021 12:07 am Post subject: Re: Bizarre Turn Signal Behavior |
|
|
| scotty timmerman wrote: |
| What happens when you turn the running lights on? |
Running lights don't change anything. Left turn signals still work normally, right turn still goes nutty.
Last edited by dclaxon on Wed Jun 09, 2021 9:47 am; edited 1 time in total |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
mxl556
Samba Member
Joined: December 05, 2015
Posts: 62
Location: Vermont
|
| Posted: Wed Jun 09, 2021 5:18 am Post subject: Re: Bizarre Turn Signal Behavior |
|
|
| If grounds are good I'd suspect the switch or the switch connector on the steering wheel column. My turn signal switch (SWF replacement that was only a few years old) acted the similar way until turn signals stopped working all together. Replaced the switch and all the problems (that looked like bad ground) went away. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
dclaxon
Samba Member
Joined: April 01, 2012
Posts: 37
Location: Illinois
|
| Posted: Wed Jun 09, 2021 10:50 am Post subject: Re: Bizarre Turn Signal Behavior |
|
|
| mxl556 wrote: |
| If grounds are good I'd suspect the switch or the switch connector on the steering wheel column. My turn signal switch (SWF replacement that was only a few years old) acted the similar way until turn signals stopped working all together. Replaced the switch and all the problems (that looked like bad ground) went away. |
Thanks, that's the way I was leaning too. And a lot less expensive than replacing the tail light housing, $110-$120 for a used one. And I had been thinking of replacing that switch anyway, since the end is broken off the lever so I have to let go of the wheel and reach around behind it to use the turn signals. But since I have the tar board loose at the back, I may go ahead and swap the left and right housings to verify if the problem changes sides, before I go ordering parts.
Dave |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Eric&Barb
Samba Member
Joined: September 19, 2004
Posts: 24764
Location: Olympia Wash Rinse & Repeat
|
| Posted: Wed Jun 09, 2021 5:58 pm Post subject: Re: Bizarre Turn Signal Behavior |
|
|
| dclaxon wrote: |
In the process of checking this out, I found that the 4-way flashers are also flashing the brake and license plate lights, along with the left rear and both front flashers, but still not the right rear. And it appears that there is also no tail light on the right side, but both filaments seem to be lit with the brakes on. Does that give anyone a clue? |
License plate light blinking shows there is a grounding problem in one or both of the taillights.
_________________
In Stereo, Where Available! |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
AirHead1966
Samba Member
Joined: October 17, 2019
Posts: 568
Location: Triad Area NC
|
| Posted: Wed Jun 09, 2021 6:15 pm Post subject: Re: Bizarre Turn Signal Behavior |
|
|
Don’t change anything without finding out what is wrong.
Pull out the wiring diagram and disconnect and check each wire for continuity and shorts. Check all grounds.
Find the cause first otherwise you will have all new equipment with the same old problem. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
rbsurfguy
Samba Member
Joined: August 10, 2008
Posts: 1757
Location: Fairfax, Northern Virginia Formerly Huntington Beach, SoCal
|
| Posted: Thu Jun 10, 2021 7:17 am Post subject: Re: Bizarre Turn Signal Behavior |
|
|
License plate light blinking shows there is a grounding problem in one or both of the taillights.[/quote]
Agreed, I had this same problem when wiring my system, License plate light was blinking because I had a grounding and wire placement problem in the tail lights.
Jeff
_________________
1971 Ghia convertible (Body off rebuild)
2019 VW Atlas 4Motion
2012 Passat-Sold
See my build on The Samba at:
Jeff's 71 Vert Restoration/Reassembly http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=6...highlight= |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
dclaxon
Samba Member
Joined: April 01, 2012
Posts: 37
Location: Illinois
|
| Posted: Wed Jun 16, 2021 8:59 pm Post subject: Re: Bizarre Turn Signal Behavior |
|
|
It seems to be the electrons in the turn signal wire and the tail light wire co-mingling on the way to the back of the car. I bypassed the switches and relays and jumpered straight from the fuse to the wire going to the turn signal, and both brake lights and the license plate lights lit up as before. So I got a long jumper and went from the flasher relay to the turn signal light and it worked as it should. But I also noticed the license plate lights and right tail light weren't coming on with the running lights, so I jumpered around that wire and they also worked. So it appears those two wires have shorted against each other. Tomorrow (or maybe the day after when the weather is forecast to be too wet to work outside, so I can stay in the garage) I will try to find a not too inconvenient route to run a couple of new wires to the back, to get me through the summer.
The car has been "re-wired" in the past, and it's pretty jumbled up, so I've known almost as long as I've had it that it would need a new wiring harness sooner or later, but I was hoping for later. But I'm not highly motivated to take the convertible out of service during convertible weather for long enough to do it, so hopefully the temporary wires will last until winter.
Dave |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
