Brake light/parking light/turn signal troubles
Thread Starter
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Trailering
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 24
Likes: 0
From: Cape Cod, MA
Brake light/parking light/turn signal troubles
[updated:LAST EDITED ON 08-Jan-03 AT 03:07 PM (EST)]1993 F-150 4.9L straight 6, 2Wheel, Auto.
I've experienced a very strange electrical problem, involving my brake light circuit, my parking light circuit, and my turn signals. With the parking (or head) lights off, when I press my brake pedal, the front parking light filaments (not turn signal filaments) also light, both front and rear. With the parking (or head) lights on, the rear brake/turn filaments are constantly lit. With the key in Run, turning the left signal causes the front left turn filament to light (like it should) but they don't flash. When turned to right signal, those work as intended. With the parking (or head) lights off, but key in Run, left turn signal will blink extra fast, nearly like a strobe light, and all left turn filaments (front, rear and indicator) flash extremely dim. Right side still works fine.
I checking the lamps (both front parking/turn and rear stop/turn/tail) and sockets to see if anything was shorted but found nothing. I even pulled the connector near the back bumper to completely disconnect all of the tail lights (and the trailer light connecor which is wired in back there) but even though there were now no brake lights, pressing the brake pedal still made the front parking lights come on. I then proceeded to replace the turn signal (multi-function) switch. I put it all back together with the new switch, but the problems are still occuring. I'm left thinking it must be a wire somewhere (or connector) that is somehow connecting the parking lights with the brake lights, so that whichever one is live will feed back into the other. The fact that the right turn signal works properly but the left one doesn't must mean something, but I don't know what!
Any help or ideas will be greatly appreciated!!!!
I've experienced a very strange electrical problem, involving my brake light circuit, my parking light circuit, and my turn signals. With the parking (or head) lights off, when I press my brake pedal, the front parking light filaments (not turn signal filaments) also light, both front and rear. With the parking (or head) lights on, the rear brake/turn filaments are constantly lit. With the key in Run, turning the left signal causes the front left turn filament to light (like it should) but they don't flash. When turned to right signal, those work as intended. With the parking (or head) lights off, but key in Run, left turn signal will blink extra fast, nearly like a strobe light, and all left turn filaments (front, rear and indicator) flash extremely dim. Right side still works fine.
I checking the lamps (both front parking/turn and rear stop/turn/tail) and sockets to see if anything was shorted but found nothing. I even pulled the connector near the back bumper to completely disconnect all of the tail lights (and the trailer light connecor which is wired in back there) but even though there were now no brake lights, pressing the brake pedal still made the front parking lights come on. I then proceeded to replace the turn signal (multi-function) switch. I put it all back together with the new switch, but the problems are still occuring. I'm left thinking it must be a wire somewhere (or connector) that is somehow connecting the parking lights with the brake lights, so that whichever one is live will feed back into the other. The fact that the right turn signal works properly but the left one doesn't must mean something, but I don't know what!
Any help or ideas will be greatly appreciated!!!!
Hotshot
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 12,679
Likes: 15
From: BC, Canada
Brake light/parking light/turn signal troubles
It sounds like your left park/signal lights dont have a good ground. You might want to try finding the ground for them and ehcking/cleaning it or just run a new ground to them.
Thread Starter
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Trailering
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 24
Likes: 0
From: Cape Cod, MA
Brake light/parking light/turn signal troubles
All fixed now! It ended up being in the aftermarket trailer light connector that some previous owner installed. I don't plan on hauling a trailer anytime soon, so I just unplugged it and zip tied the connector up inside the bumper. Everything works great again! I was pretty sure it would be something easy ;-)
