Front Indicator Problem

[odpl_Razor]

Sorry I got heaps of issues with this new pickup i got and this is the only site I can ask for help.

My indicator is not working as it should, the rear ones work great but the front ones are the culprit.

Now for the front indicators ...

        when I put the left (passenger side) indicator on it blinks but the right (drivers side) stays on where I think it should be off while the other is blinking.

        When I put the right indicator on it doesnt blink but the left indicator is off.

Anyone knows how to fix the problem?

Cheers

Rob

[odpl_Razor]

do 320s have flasher unit? can that be causing the problem?

[matti]

yes they have a flasher unit, However this will not lead to both left and right lights coming on at the same time. If your rear indicators are working fine you can rule out indicator switch, flasher unit and all your rear wire loom. Your fault therefor is most likely in the forward loom. I will have a look at the wiring diagram and get back to you. cheers

[odpl_Razor]

thanks matti

It failed the roadworthy today....

the indicators not working properly

the horn stopped working

need to replace tie rod end for the passenger side

and need to bolt the fuel strainer as its on cable tie (stupid of me did not notice it) by previous owner.

My headlight stopped working as well but I know whats wrong with it need to change the connector, its funny cos I made sure its working before the guy came and it stopped working when he came grrrrrr! I should've replaced it in the 1st place not just clean it.

[matti]

None of my electrics were working when I got mine but now they're all good. I even had to make up my own horn assembly. I just need to make up a tidy horn button now. I'm an Av Tech by trade so wiring is my game. I will help as much as I possibly can. Cheers

[odpl_Razor]

I'm thinking of just replacing the whole horn unit as the original looks like a baby bowling ball or a cannon ball.

I've checked the fuses already

I should try testing if I get 12V on the horn connector right?

Thanks lucky me!!!

[matti]

if you have a multimeter or test lamp you will be alright. My choice is the multimeter. The problem you described with your indicators is usually due to bad earthing. This is where the multi meter comes in. You need to test the earth side of each of your indicators. Is all your wiring original?

[odpl_Razor]

Yes I got your choice of weapon

I have a multimeter

To me it seems like some wiring are new I will take a photo of the engine bay tomorrow. But the indicators and horn wiring seems like its original

[odpl_Razor]

I just tested the fron indicators again

It is working fine when you pull the switch all the way (Headlights ON)

but if you pull the switch to parkers only (both indicators lighting on) and you put the right indicator the driver side indicator just stays on the left indicator is off. With left indicator on the passenger side indicator blinks but driver's side still on.

I tested the actual horn by connecting a wire direct 12v from the battery and it works! it scared the s*** out of me! its sooo loud!

Now i tried following the wire (Green) and still havent worked it out yet.... I'm really bad at electrics. Does it go to the fuse box? or directly in the dash to the horn button? I tried testing the plus that connects to the horn while horn is pressed and no power going through.

 

[odpl_Razor]

I think the horn problem is from the horn button itself

I took the steering wheel off and I notice the ground wire? is cut off

here's some pics

[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v390/ ... /Horn2.jpg[/img]

[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v390/ ... /Horn1.jpg[/img]

I'm not sure where the ground wire should attach to, any ideas?

[odpl_Razor]

I also tested the horn relay and its getting 12v from the input and output but nothing on the switch.

[matti]

Again with the indicators check all your ground points. You do this by selecting the ohms range on your multimeter. Remove the light bulb and check for a resistance between the body and the ground terminal (of the light) It should be less than 1 ohm. Do this with all your lights. It's quick and a good starting point. With the horn when you remove the button you will see four screws in a plate. Look hard and you will see three of them have an insulating washer under them and the other does not. The one with no insulating washer under it is the one you connect 12v to. washers under the screw will let you set the height. The metal ring in the back of your horn button should now connect the 12 v screw to any of the other screws completing the horn circuit to your relay. This is how I did mine. If this is different to how it was originally I too would love to know how. s***, I forgot to ask if your ute is positive or negative ground?

[odpl_Razor]

wow I need to read your reply one more time to fully uderstand that...

my ute has new wirings installed by the previous owner I'll take a photo of the alternator as I think he might've replaced it.

I dont know if my car is positive or negative ground

how can I tell or test it?

[odpl_Razor]

when you say "check for a resistance between the body and the ground terminal (of the light) It should be less than 1 ohm" do you mean the socket where the light bulb sits in?

[odpl_Razor]

Yes I saw those 4 screws, 2 broke one is a smaller one which has a broken wire on mine. so on that smaller screw I should connect a wire for 12V source? how do I do that? do I have to feed a single wire all the way in the steering column?

is it possible for you to draw a simple diagram please

[matti]

Here is another brilliant pic I just did. I hope this clears things up for you. You tell if your car is neg or pos ground by looking at the leads coming off your battery terminal. Your battery terminals are marked "+" and "-". Follow the "+ wire. If it goes to the starter relay then it will be Negative ground. To confirm it follow the "-" wire. It should go to either the car body or the engine.

[matti]

Yet again another crappy pic. I've assumed a neg ground car.  Hope it helps. The sprung connector allows the steering wheel to be turned through 360 degrees without tangling wires. The wire which snapped on your horn should connect to the ring on the back of the steering wheel. I think the ring has a little tongue on the inside of the steering wheel to connect your wire to. I can't remember sorry. Cheers

[matti]

Sorry i forgot to mention to clean the sprung contact and the ring on the back of your steering wheel or is that just obvious? cheers

[odpl_Razor]

thank you very much for your effort with the diagrams

I really appreciate it.

will have a look if my ute is negative or positive ground.

 

[odpl_Razor]

if i measure the resistance between the body and the ground terminal and its less than 1 ohm what should I do? what if its more than 1 ohm?

thanks

[matti]

If it's more than 1 ohm it means that your earthing straps and body panels and all that metal stuff that makes up your car is well insulated and not creating a proper ground circuit. If your multimeter leads reach from the battery neg terminal to the light you're checking by all means do it. What this will do is test your cars earth from the light socket all the way through the panels and screws and crap back to the battery terminal. If its a low reading say <5 ohms it should be cool. Play around with it and you might just stumble across a bad earth. If you test the resistance between say the mudguard and the battery terminal and it's 3 ohm just remember to minus that from the reading between the battery terminal and the socket. This will give you your socket to mudguard resistance. I was saying less than 1 ohm because this is ideal. However a little over wont hurt it's the big difference that matters. Why don't you set up a truth table and then check your results at the end to see if anything stands out. It will just set it up systematically for you. I have done up a quick sample of what I mean for you. Cheers

[odpl_Razor]

Thanks matti for the replies

I will try all of this this weekend

will let you know the update

[odpl_Razor]

My ute is negative earth

I tried testing the resistance and I did not get any reading at all from socket to battery terminal, battery terminal to mudguard and socket to mudguard.

I got something when I connected red wire to negative terminal of battery then black wire to one of the socket contact at a time and I get 3.7 & 1.0 for the driver side, 0 & 1.2 for the passenger side.

The passenger side insulator? the round brown thing with the contact on it is broken its like half is gone or worn out.

I've attached a photo but not that clear.

[img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v390/ ... erSide.jpg[/img]

I followed your steps and did not get results... dont know why

I'm getting frustrated with this, right now I'm not even motivated to fix or keep the ute anymore.

[matti]

Sorry your getting frustrated mate, but electrical probs can be that way. Starting with the basics did you try removing the left hand globes and turning on the right hand indicator and vise versa? When I look at your pic it looks like there are two contacts on the plate thing in the middle. Are there two wires going into the back of the light or one? Due to having a completely modified ute none of my stuff looks anything like yours so I can't walk out to my ute and give you a simple explanation. If you have a cordless telephone you could give me a call while you are doing some testing and I can talk you through it. If you're interested let me know. If you end up cracking the sh!ts totally I'll make you a completeley new blinker harness to drop in instead of the original. Did you have a look at your horn? As for the Tie rods, that's pretty unlucky. Maybe they're the originals ie 40+ yrs old. Did you look into seat belts? The seat belts could be ripped out of another ute for about $30 each Ipswich spare parts.

 

cheer up it won't be long till you're cruisin vintage style!

[matti]

Forgot, originally you asked about the flasher unit. The dato ute in your drive way next to this one will have the same flasher unit (they're all generic) swap em and see if it makes a difference. It's quick and easy.

cheers

[odpl_Razor]

Unfortunately I sold that other 1200 ute

But I can try and see if that will solve the issue.

I doubt it though from the symptoms I posted.

The clicking noise from the flasher unit is quite loud as well and even not slowing down or anything like that.

If the flasher unit doesnt solve the issue might just have to call an auto electrician to come over and sort it out for me.... just need to fork out $$$

[matti]

I too doubt it would be the flasher unit. Have you tried cleaning all your contacts and plugs and any points where the wiring harness is bolted to the body? There are a lot of quick tests you can do if you understand a little about electronics. things like breaking into the loom where the loom plugs in at the mudguard and hooking up your light bulb there with your ground wire running straight to the battery. The auto electrician will do all the same things till he rules everything out. However paying him is definately the easy way of doing it. Good luck.

cheers

[odpl_Razor]

The passenger side "plate" looking that has two contacts is half broken, I think that might be causing the contact to touch the spring behind it. But I tried putting electrical tape so it wont touch anything but still same problem.

Yes there's two wires behind the plate contact.

I did look at the horn, right now my steering wheel is off just need to put new wire and maybe I'll put it back tomorrow before work.

In regards to seatbelts, I think I will leave it to the professionals and get it engineered as well.

I'm really thinking of selling the ute, as my gf and I are deciding to get a mini.

[matti]

I take it you like your classics. I have a 49 morris minor in my garage which is almost complete. It has been modified to fit all dato gear. What sort of price are you after for your ute? If there are two wires on the back of the plate then one will be the ground. That will explain the readings you got which all look to be OK. Go for the trial and error approach of swapping bulbs, removing one at a time, testing voltages at different points along the loom and so forth.

cheers

[odpl_Razor]

I bought new contact plates with 2 wires attached to it $7.50 each i bought two.

I'll see if that will solve the issue.