7 replies to this topic

[OllyGW]

I have been having trouble with my indicator flasher unit for a while now. It first started when my indicators stopped flashing and just stayed on, so all the bulbs work they just don't flash. (You can flash them manually with the indicator stick on the stearing colum). So I replaced the flasher unit and they worked again, however a bit slower. But about after a month they stopped working again and just stay on. Pretty frustrating, my only assumption is that the flasher unit is burning out? But not entirely sure..
Could it be that there are too many volts going through the flasher?

Just don't want to waste another $20 on one that's going to burn out again.

Any help would be great.

Thanks
Olly - 1978 1000 Leyland Mini

[neal]

Are all your connections good and clean?

 

Does your hazard light circuit work ok, I know it operates on a separate relay but was wondering if this is affected as well.

[OllyGW]

Are all your connections good and clean?
 
Does your hazard light circuit work ok, I know it operates on a separate relay but was wondering if this is affected as well.

As far as I'm aware they are all clean, I'll give it another check tonight. And no my hazard lights have never worked since I bought the car a few years ago. There is no hazard relay connected.

[neal]

 

Are all your connections good and clean?
 
Does your hazard light circuit work ok, I know it operates on a separate relay but was wondering if this is affected as well.

As far as I'm aware they are all clean, I'll give it another check tonight. And no my hazard lights have never worked since I bought the car a few years ago. There is no hazard relay connected.

 

I think it's a case of 'Back to the basics' inspect, clean and tighten up all connections, get your multimeter out checking the resistance of the circuit, volt supply etc. if only to satisfy your mind. Hopefully along the way you will stumble across the fault. 

 

When you do sort the problem, it maybe worth taking the time and begin preventative maintenance on other circuits by cleaning and checking terminals and wiring checks.

 

I hope it all works out for you :)

[OllyGW]

Just spent a good hour playing around trying to get it to work and had some very confusing stuff happen.
So basically I tested the cables with a volt meter and there was 12V of current going to the indicator cable when indicator was turned on. And the same with the hazard cables when the hazard switch was turned on (which have been sitting loosely in the engine bay). So the relay wasn't working in the indicator wiring so I tried plugging it into the hazard cables and wierdly they worked (when the hazard switch was turned on), the flasher relay started working, however not very consistent. So I tried putting it back in the indicator plugs and no luck.. Got me very confused, both have the same voltages going to them but one doesn't want to make the flasher work.

Anyone got any ideas? I'm guessing the flasher unit is faulty, however it worked as a hazard flasher.. I also ended up taking the flasher apart to see what was going on inside and couldn't see any physical damage.

[OllyGW]

Are all your connections good and clean?
 
Does your hazard light circuit work ok, I know it operates on a separate relay but was wondering if this is affected as well.

As far as I'm aware they are all clean, I'll give it another check tonight. And no my hazard lights have never worked since I bought the car a few years ago. There is no hazard relay connected.

I think it's a case of 'Back to the basics' inspect, clean and tighten up all connections, get your multimeter out checking the resistance of the circuit, volt supply etc. if only to satisfy your mind. Hopefully along the way you will stumble across the fault. 
 
When you do sort the problem, it maybe worth taking the time and begin preventative maintenance on other circuits by cleaning and checking terminals and wiring checks.
 
I hope it all works out for you :)

Just spent a good hour playing around trying to get it to work and had some very confusing stuff happen.
So basically I tested the cables with a volt meter and there was 12V of current going to the indicator cable when indicator was turned on. And the same with the hazard cables (which have been sitting loosely in the engine bay). So the relay wasn't working in the indicator wiring so I tried plugging it into the hazard cables and wierdly they worked (when the hazard switch was turned on), the flasher relay started working, however not very consistent. So I tried putting it back in the indicator plugs and no luck.. Got me very confused, both have the same voltages going to them but one doesn't want to make the flasher work.

Anyone got any ideas? I'm guessing the flasher unit is faulty, however it worked as a hazard flasher.. I also ended up taking the flasher apart to see what was going on inside and couldn't see any physical damage.

[browno]

Could it be that you have a hazard relay rather than indicator relay? The hazard relay is rated to higher power than the indicator one (as it has to light 4xbulbs plus side repeaters, rather than 2 bulbs plus 1 repeater). It should have a rating on the side of it - indicator is 2x21W+5w while hazard is 4x21W+2x5w. I would expect a hazard relay to result in a slower flash when used in the indicator circuit, but not for it to not flash at all... Also, worth checking the wiring diagrams as I know the hazard and indicator circuits are linked together, so double check both circuits. 

 

I have had some issues with my indicators and hazards on mine, (I killed both relays, and was blowing fuses) but that was down to a short on a dodgy connector on my front lamp units - but in the process I replaced both relays and the hazard switch to rule them out too, so can understand how frustrating it can be!

[Ethel]

Understanding how they work might help...

 

The indicator flasher has a bimetallic strip that heats up when the circuit is on (indicators lit). when it's hot the contacts open, turning it off until the strip cools down to close the contacts and so on - making the lights flash.

 

The hazard flasher has a permanently connected internal resistor that heats up the bimetallic strip to close the contacts. When they're closed current can bypass the resistor, it cools and the lights turn off again.

 

So,

 

Hazards will stay off if the unit fails, but will almost always flash at the same rate, regardless of circuit resistance (how many bulbs connected).*

 

Indicators tend to stay on if the unit fails. The rate they flash at depends on the circuit resistance, they flash slower, or stop, if you have poor connections and earths - but also if the voltage drops, flat battery or a large current drain elsewhere.

 

Putting an indicator flasher in a hazard socket should make it flash like billyo as it's got twice as many bulbs in parallel so half the resistance.

 

 

 

....as above check it's the right indicator flasher, either for side repeaters or not (the +5w bit)

 

 

 

*if you need your hazards because half the bulbs got smashed in an accident, they still work. They should also stop flashing before your battery goes totally flat, giving you half a chance of bump starting your car - clever stuff for ancient electrics.