Electrical Stumped ... maybe?

[JohnnyC]

Hello

I have a 1974 fj40... back ground>>> my pass side directional rotted out

... but... i knew it was and had a new replacement... i replaced the taillight and have a odd problem

hazards work
left directional works
right directional ( the side that rotted) stays on

the right directional bulb lights in the front and rear.... but... doesn't flash?

as a temp directional i was using a light wired to my trailer connector.... that also didn't flash



Would the flasher be bad on one side only?


I went thru and cleaned all grounds... checked and cleaned fuse and checked harness connectors

I opened up the flasher cleaned the points and regapped to 014 and 008... still does it


maybe @Coolerman or @bj40green electrical masters would know?

 

[bj40green]

Just a question.... when you have the hazards on and look at the front or rear lights.....
Are Driver Side and Passenger Side equally bright or is the PS a bit dim compared to the DS?

Rudi

 

[JohnnyC]

checking BRB

 

[JohnnyC]

checked... seems very much the same brightness to me

 

[JohnnyC]

Rudy

Now that its dark out (night) I can see a difference in brightness... The ps side (ol rusty side) is not as bright... It is noticeable now...

Btw my flasher is a bit faster than it was before... Gap too big or small maybe?


What say you

 

[bj40green]

It seems that you have a point of resistance somewhere which causes to limit the current draw.
You say: hazards are working. All lights are equally bright?
Do you have one or two flashers?

You can run a piece of wire from the negative battery to a blank bolt or piece of metal on the inside fender to see if that makes a difference.

Rudi

 

[occruiser]

I'm jumping in on this one.

I disconected my gauge cluster because I was having problems with the speedometer. While I was at it, installed a new turn signal switch I bought from Mark, and put everything back together. Hooked everything back up according to how it was taken off. Now, when I turn on my left turn signal, the front turn signal lights up very dim on the top marker only and the rear turn signal turns on, but does not flash. If I press the front turn signal with my hand, the bottom light turns on, but does not flash. My right turn signals don't turn on at all. When I turn on my hazards, they both flash perfectly... Any idea what I've done wrong?

 

[bj40green]

I'm jumping in on this one.

I disconected my gauge cluster because I was having problems with the speedometer. While I was at it, installed a new turn signal switch I bought from Mark, and put everything back together. Hooked everything back up according to how it was taken off. Now, when I turn on my left turn signal, the front turn signal lights up very dim on the top marker only and the rear turn signal turns on, but does not flash. If I press the front turn signal with my hand, the bottom light turns on, but does not flash. My right turn signals don't turn on at all. When I turn on my hazards, they both flash perfectly... Any idea what I've done wrong?

Why did you replace the turn switch? You had these problems with the old switch too?

Rudi

 

[occruiser]

Thanks for your response Rudi. No, I didn't have any issues with the old one. But, I replaced the old switch because it was completely broken and was being held together with electrical tape. It wouldn't engage and I had to hold it in place for the blinker to stay on.

 

[occruiser]

Thanks for your response Rudi. No, I didn't have any issues with the old one. But, I replaced the old switch because it was completely broken and was being held together with electrical tape. It wouldn't engage and I had to hold it in place for the blinker to stay on.

I just tested it again now. If I turn on the left turn signal, on the cluster, the left indicator remains on, with no flash. When I apply pressure to the left turn signal assembly, it flashes normally. Could it be that something isn't grounded properly? A short somewhere?

 

[bj40green]

I just tested it again now. If I turn on the left turn signal, on the cluster, the left indicator remains on, with no flash. When I apply pressure to the left turn signal assembly, it flashes normally. Could it be that something isn't grounded properly? A short somewhere?

Right! Not a short but a bad ground. When you put pressure on the assy the ground is totally gone and the current finds a new way through the running light or you made a good contact to ground and it works OK.

Open the unit, check the wires and where the ground wire is connected to metal.

Rudi

 

[occruiser]

Will do. Thanks Rudi.

 

[JohnnyC]

You can run a piece of wire from the negative battery to a blank bolt or piece of metal on the inside fender to see if that makes a difference.

Rudi

You say: hazards are working.... Yes

All lights are equally bright? Upon checking it at night time... there is a bit of a difference between them... the non flashing side is a tad bit dimmer

Do you have one or two flashers? I have one flasher that runs hazards and directionals

I will check by attaching a ground wire directly to rear tail light... my front directional i moved the ground to a new location with no effect

if there is no effect with attaching a direct ground...

In your opinion do you thing it could be ...
a bad turn switch (as mentioned above)?
a bad flasher?
a harness problem?


Thanks Rudi !

 

[JohnnyC]

took the turn switch apart.... cleaned it ... looked good... no change

took a ground wire direct from battery to rear tail light... no change



all i have left is:
bad flasher or harness problem?


if i flick my finger on the flasher when in the bad directional position it will flash one time .... tap again... flash one time

have you heard of a flasher being bad in one position and not the other.... its very odd

 

[spotcruiser]

Hey Johnny, what bulbs are in the replacement tail light? Standard incandescents? The light wouldn't be for 24v, would it? Is your flasher electronic or thermal?

That brings up a good point. You know how LEDs will not have enough current flow to actuate a thermal flasher. I suppose incandescent bulbs of a higher resistance (you said the lights were dimmer), or some extra resistance in the circuit, could have somewhat the same effect on the flasher as LEDs.

You could check the bulbs for proper rating and go through every connection (including bulb terminals) to ensure good clean contact. You might also find that an electronic flasher would function properly. Just a couple of ideas.

 

[JohnnyC]

BINGO!!!!


Spot for the win!!

the bulb was only a 10W bulb... i swapped in one from the left side rear and it works!!! (23w)



BIG TIME tank you to Rudi and Spot!!!!

 

[bj40green]

How came that 10W bulb in there? So the problem popped up after the replacement?

Rudi

 

[JohnnyC]

the 10w came with the cheap replacement Taiwanese tail light

I had the issue with the temporary light I had wired into my trailer plug.... but... I had it wired into the low side of an 1157 bulb... which is under 10w AFAIK

Pic 1: old tail light rotted out
Pic 2: temporary light fitted into taillight from trailer plug
pic 3: new taillight next to old
pic 4: new taillight rustbulleted then outside painted black