1976 fj 40 blinkers not working (1 Viewer)

[Mud dawg]

Hello: my blinkers are not working on my 40. The lights go on when the turn signal lever is activated but the light stays on and does not blink. This happens all the way around. I am sure this is an easy fix but I need some ideas.
Thanks,
Ed

 

[Pighead]

Usually a bad ground, sometimes a weak battery...

 

[RWBeringer4x4]

Mine did this - it was absolutely a bad battery. It died a few months later. No issues since replacing the battery. If your battery is holding a charge, I'd look to the grounds.

 

[Mud dawg]

Battery was been having problems. I will check that first. Why would that cause the blinkers not to blink but stay on constant?

 

[RWBeringer4x4]

Battery was been having problems. I will check that first. Why would that cause the blinkers not to blink but stay on constant?

This is a great mystery to me as well...battery was strong enough to start the truck, but not strong enough to actuate the blinker switch? Made no sense to me either, but a new battery fixed it!

 

[Mud dawg]

I will try the battery tomorrow. Thanks for the help.
Ed

 

[CBPO]

Could be the blinker control unit (relay) - under dash mounted on driver's side - far left by the front of driver door.



Edit - that being said - I replaced mine and it didn't fix the issue. So I installed an "in line" unit from the parts store - and now they work great!

Edit again - Is it making a clicking noise or does it just click once and stop (lights staying solid)?

 

[Mud dawg]

It only makes one click sound and then nothing else. The blicker lights stay on (on dash and front &rear lights). Ed

 

[Chevypower]

Factory Toyota blinker unit needs full battery juice to fire it off. This past year I installed a full Painless wire harness and used the factory blinker unit. The company said to use a batter charger to test all the circuits and if one was bad I wouldn't "burn it up" by using the battery. The problem was, the blinkers didn't blink.
I replaces a lot of stuff including the column assembly and spent lots of hours on it. Once I was frustrated enough I hooked up the battery and it all worked.

 

[Chevypower]

Factory Toyota blinker unit needs full battery juice to fire it off. This past year I installed a full Painless wire harness and used the factory blinker unit. The company said to use a batter charger to test all the circuits and if one was bad I wouldn't "burn it up" by using the battery. The problem was, the blinkers didn't blink.
I replaces a lot of stuff including the column assembly and spent lots of hours on it. Once I was frustrated enough I hooked up the battery and it all worked.

 

[kurtnkegger]

In had that happen on my '77. Turned out I had a burnt out bulb. Did you check your bulbs first? Grounds would be next on my list if bulbs are all good...

 

[pbgbottle]

i would change the flasher relay somebody posted on here an upgrade to this system from the dealer.
the dealer now offers an adapter and uses a more modern flasher.

does your 4-way flasher work ? when my relay died it would work for the 4-way but not for the turn signal.
i too just cut of the toyota end and use a new cheap electronic flasher.

heres a pic of what toyota offers now. not sure if this is true.
,can't remember where i got the pic, i'm sure it was from here on mud .


..

 

[Mud dawg]

Hello: the flashers/hazards work all the way around. So I am going to run by advanced auto and have the battery checked and if that is fine, I will see about the blinker module.
Ed

 

[Pighead]

Might be easier/quicker/cheaper to clean up the grounds, especially the front fender mounts...

 

[bj40green]

The OEM flasher works on current draw. If the current draw is too low the flasher will not flash, it just stays in the on position. The bi metal is not getting hot enough to do his on - off - on - off job.
This can be caused by a too low voltage at the flasher, which can be caused by bad fuse holder contacts or any other point of resistance.
Check for 12V at the flasher B terminal. Check fuse holder contacts. Check flasher connector for rusty contacts. And so on.

Rudi

 

[cruiserkev]

I have the same problem on my 76, but I think I know why. A few yeas ago I needed a new front turn signal as the mount was broken and ended up buying a low buck pair of non OEM turn signals online. They were new, looked simmilar to stock but were very cheaply made and do not use the stock bulbs. Never could get them to blink after the installation and believe not enough power goes through the non stock bulbs to get the flasher to work right although the hazards work fine. Hope this is not the case with yours. Lesson learned, don't buy cheap, immitation parts for your FJ40. I am going back to stock soon. Good luck!

 

[airon23]

Hello: the flashers/hazards work all the way around. So I am going to run by advanced auto and have the battery checked and if that is fine, I will see about the blinker module.
Ed

Did anything end up working for you? I keep reading all these blinker threads but haven't found a conclusive answer, all the threads just die a sad death and they OP never comes back to say what the issue ended up being. I'll keep searching.

 

[Ackcruisers]

@airon23 I’ve got a 1976/77 cowl and rear harness on my table. Within my testing environment, I’m experiencing the same issue as many others. The flasher relay works with the flasher switch “ON” but when the turn signal column switch is activated (Left or Right) the turn signal flashes once and stops. This appears to be an issue with 1976/77 harnesses. I’ll post once I determine the problem/ solution.

 

[airon23]

@airon23 I’ve got a 1976/77 cowl and rear harness on my table. Within my testing environment, I’m experiencing the same issue as many others. The flasher relay works with the flasher switch “ON” but when the turn signal column switch is activated (Left or Right) the turn signal flashes once and stops. This appears to be an issue with 1976/77 harnesses. I’ll post once I determine the problem/ solution.

View attachment 3338224

From what I've gathered over the years of seeing this issue, seems like the flasher switch requires a certain amount of voltage to pass through to close/open the switch, but the voltage coming through when both/all 4 lights, flash is sufficient to complete the circuit and therefor flashing hazards work as expected. Whereas the single side flashing no longer has enough voltage going through to make it function properly. Possibly bad/not good enough grounding. Weakened/broken wires are another possibility. I think there can be several issues, but perhaps you're right that there simply is a flaw in the wiring harness.
I look forward to your findings.

 

[Ackcruisers]

Decided to make a short tech video to show the fix in my situation. Make sure all bulbs are 1156 12.8v and 26.9W.