Very slooooooow turn signals with light on...

[tdskip]

So while the TR8 electrics are working, they aren't working quite right.

My turn signal blinkers are really slow when I have the lights on. They work fine with the light off.

Not enough juice from the alternator, or relay?

 

[Andrew Mace]

Does sound like a current draw problem to me!

 

[TR3driver]

It's normal for the stock alternator to not keep up with the headlights at idle, so IMO your problem lies elsewhere as long as the alternator does charge the battery with the engine at fast idle or above.

The stock flasher is designed to be sensitive to how much current the lights draw, so that you can see from the flash rate if a bulb is burned out. However, it should have enough range to cover the normal range of battery voltages whether the alternator is keeping up with the load or not. But anything else that reduces current through the turn lamps may only show up when the headlights are on.

I'd start by checking what the battery voltage is doing (measuring directly at battery terminals rather the gauge on the dash). If it's dropping below 12.0v with headlights on, the battery may be ready to be replaced. 'Normal' is around 12.4-12.6 with a fully charged battery.

Another test is to replace the flasher relay with a jumper wire (eg 6" length of insulated wire with 1/4" spade disconnects on each end) and check what is happening right at the turn lamp with the headlights on or off. More than a volt below what you found at the battery indicates a problem somewhere. (The jumper keeps the voltage from bouncing around, so you can get an accurate reading.)

 

[TR3driver]

Oh yeah, one "cheap and dirty" fix might be to just find a "heavy duty" (ie non-load-sensitive) replacement flasher. That should get the turn signals flashing at the same rate, even if a bulb is out or the battery is running down. But it doesn't solve the underlying problem (which is also making your turn signals dimmer than they would be otherwise).

 

[tr8todd]

This might sound a little strange, but remove the tail lights and reinstall them. The tail light housings ground thru the six little nuts and bolts that hold them in place. When they are out, you can sand down inside the trunk where the bolts ground against the body. If you look in the center of the rearward facing side of the tail light housing, you will see a little male spade. It was built into the unit to run a ground wire to, however, the factory saw fit to never install one. I run a little pig tail down to the screw hole under the tail light that the cardboard cover is fastened with. When the unit's grounds start to corrode, they can only ground one bulb's worth of electricity. When you ask it to ground two, it can't handle the load. I've seen all the lights go off when the directionals are turned on, or when the brake pedal is pushed, or when the radio is turned on. These cars do have some funky ground issues, and they like to be driven every day.

 

[DNK]

Mine does the same thing,slow turn signals, with out the lights. Haven't even had it long enough to do that,.

 

[Andrew Mace]

Ahhh...in rereading the original post, I see nothing specifically is said about HEADLIGHTS, only "lights"! That now makes me think that "tr8todd" is on the right track about its being a grounding problem. But the other suggestions are also worth pursuing....

 

[DNK]

Oh jeez Andy, Sure make the rest of us look bad. It did say headlights and he edited it out. I know it had to be there.I know ,blame it on Randall and TR8Todd. Yea ,that's it. They put the thought in my head.

 

[Andrew Mace]

Oh jeez Andy, Sure make the rest of us look bad. It did say headlights and he edited it out. I know it had to be there.I know ,blame it on Randall and TR8Todd. Yea ,that's it. They put the thought in my head.

/bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/lol.gif

 

[tdskip]

Sorry guys - I should have said headlights.

The loooooong sloooooow blink only happens with the headlights are on.

 

[tdskip]

OK -just tried the blinkers with the headlights on at highway speed. Blinkers worked just fine.

 

[TR3driver]

Ok, so now you know the alternator works fine but the current through the turn signals is low for some reason.

Could be a bad ground at the lamps, but if the symptom is the same on both sides (signalling left or right), then the ground would have to be bad on both sides. Not impossible, but IMO more likely the problem is on the supply side.

 

[tdskip]

Thanks for the help guys.

Randall, the blinking rate is the same in either direction.

 

[tr8todd]

What does it do when you put on the hazards? Sounds like it's time to replace the flasher with one from a parts car. You do have a parts car- don't you? Essential for wedge owners to have several in back of the garage.