Left turn signal intermittently stops working when the lights are on

scottevest

scottevest

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I noticed on my road trip that occasionally he left turn signal stop operating. It only seem to occur when the lights were on and when I turn the lights off it would operate properly. Also, it is not all the time as sometimes it works just fine when the lights are on. Just trying to get all these little minor things taken care of. Thank you all so very much.


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right turn signal works w/on or off?

Sounds like a bad ground maybe. Or the turn signal switch is on the fritz
 
The right turn signal works fine all of the time. I believe Bill Arnold thought it might be wearing out or overheating or something. Does that make sense?


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Too much resistance going through the wire(s) w/the headlights on. Which can cause a wire to overheat.
 
it will be a bad ground or earth as when the lights are on there is more current going through the same ground, check the ground connections and body ground points for the left side lamps, front and rear, Pat
 
I suspect you have a number of bad contacts, grounds included. The flasher isn't working when the lights are on because there isn't enough current passing through it's element to cause it to actuate (blink). Thus, I'd suspect a bad ground for one, or both signal bulbs on that side. Don't forget the contacts on the bulbs themselves.

Bad grounds, and dirty fuses, result in resistance that cause voltage drops. The headlights pull more power, leaving less available for the signals.
Taking the time to clean all the fuses (or replace them with new) and all the ground points will likely improve things and prevent future issues.

There are some products that can prevent deterioration of the electrical connections. You'll probably find some at your local parts place, I Googled and found this one, http://www.sanchem.com/electrical-contact-lubricant.html

There are electronics spray cleaners that can remove contaminants from connections (Don't get the spray on your skin! They are super powerful degreasers, and humans are mostly grease), but mostly since rust and dirt can often be the primary factor, I use some fine sandpaper and a really tiny file to reach inside spade lug connectors to ensure bright fresh surfaces to make solid contact.

Ian
 
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occasionally [t]he left turn signal stop operating
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The symptom description is unclear. It is possible, for example, that the exterior lamps are flashing, but the dash light or lights are not illuminating. Or you could mean that there is no audible clicking or that none of the turn signal bulbs are flashing/illuminating. o_O

pat cooks said:
it will be a bad ground or earth as when the lights are on there is more current going through the same ground, check the ground connections and body ground points for the left side lamps, front and rear, Pat
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Agreed. Your running light circuitry is clearly imposing an electrical load that is probably taxing an otherwise compromised turn signal circuit. Wouldn't be surprised if you encountered similar results - especially at idle - with the air conditioning fan on or with your foot on the brake pedal, engaging the brake lights. Although I suspect electrical resistance caused by poor connections is your problem, it is always possible, albeit improbable, that you have an under powered alternator or a maladjusted voltage regulator. I remember an E3 with an intermittent stalling issue that seemed strangely connected to electrical loads. The last thing that was checked was the alternator, with a sticker clearly indicating a rated output of 35 or 44 amps, rather than the more-typical 55A. (I suspect that someone borrowed the 35A/44A alternator from a familiar four cylinder model.) Changing the alternator fixed "that" problem, but I doubt you share the same affliction.

Tail light and turn signal connections generally do not get stronger over time, and in some cases, dissimilar metals and moisture also make for poor electrical contacts. This even includes the metal connections that are integral to the bulbs. Having said that, - this is not a personal endorsement - but some owners of off road vehicles that are exposed to moisture extremes claim electrical connection problems are minimized or prevented with the use of something called Stabilant22 or Stabilant22A. Of course, there is always good 'ol dielectric grease on clean connections.

stabilant.jpg


http://www.fixhybrid.com/stabilant-22a/

crc-di-electric-grease-grease-10-oz-aerosol-can-opaque-white-e652b5a8926dfe75ba64f3af07aa9b84.jpg
 
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All of the above advice is excellent. But I would mention that sometimes the indicator lights are actually working fine, but the light on the dash stops after a few flashes which makes you assume the lights have also stopped flashing. This specific issue has been discussed before, I'm sure a search will find it.
 
damienh said:
All of the above advice is excellent. But I would mention that sometimes the indicator lights are actually working fine, but the light on the dash stops after a few flashes which makes you assume the lights have also stopped flashing. This specific issue has been discussed before, I'm sure a search will find it.
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In my case the signal does not work when the indicator there’s not work


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damienh said:
All of the above advice is excellent. But I would mention that sometimes the indicator lights are actually working fine, but the light on the dash stops after a few flashes which makes you assume the lights have also stopped flashing. This specific issue has been discussed before, I'm sure a search will find it.
Click to expand...

Don't mean to hijack, but I have that issue.
 
I found that a couple of things that needed attention when I pulled my rear light assemblies. The grounds for each of the lights are in the socket bodies, and these are daisy chained to one another through a copper strip riveted to the back of the assembly. I had a small amount of corrosion in the sockets themselves and at the ends of the assemblies where the dissimilar metals met. I cleaned up the sockets, drilled out the rivets, cleaned up those connections and bolted the assemblies back together, adding wire on the inside across the copper strip for good measure. I also followed the ground wire to the body and cleaned up the connection at that end.
 
when the dash indicator does not flash but the indicators flash that is usually due to the indicator relay requiring a higher resistance to trigger the dash indicator, you need to replace the relay or add a resisitor to the feed wire to any of the indicators on the side that does not flash, so if the left dash indicator does not work add either a resistor to the wire in the boot or as a temporary measure add an extra 21watt bulb, if that works the relay is getting old, Pat
 
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