Technical No indicators and no cluster activity

[Ucof]

Arse.
As soon as I get one problem fixed, up pops another.

After I had changed the wheels on the car over diagonally, I got in and drove with the GF to her sister's house. As i was setting off, I indicated left and heard clickclockclickclock rather than the normal click - clock - click - clock (it was at double speed)

I got out and saw that the front indicator wasnt working. Easy i thought, the other indicator wasn't working yesterday, so I took the plugs apart and cleaned up the spades and connectors with sand paper, put it all back together and it all worked.

So we drove round to the GF's sisters house and I popped open the bonnet, took the left indicator connectors apart, cleaned the connectors with sand paper put them back together.... and now I have no indicators, and no cluster display activity electrical-wise (no temp, no petrol and no rev counter).

The hazards work fine and all the bulbs light up when the hazards are on, but when I use the indicator stalks, nothing happens. horn
works fine too.

I have checked the two indicator fuses with the multimeter on continuity beepy mode and they are fine.

All the other electrics work (radio, car clock, all lights, rear demist, wipers, water jets, horn and blower) - the only thing that doesn't work are the indicators and the electric cluster parts (rev counter, petrol gauge and temp gauge).


What's happened?

I'm sure it must be something simple but I have no idea where to start looking.

Guys, whats going on?

 

[a73uk]

Nothings jumping out at me as being obvious relating to the recent damage repair on yours, so I`d then be looking at the flasher unit & switch connections & earths, followed by the actual flasher & switchpack.

The fact the hazzards are working leads me to belive the light earths are ok...

You havent had the instruments or steering column shroud off recently have you Ucof?

 

[Ucof]

Nope
Haven't touched it since I connected it all up.

The flasher unit itself is fine as the hazzards work.

I'm thinking that it is a dodgy connection somewhere in the engine bay.
only problem is that I do not know where this is.

 

[a73uk]

The earth is under the battery at the front mate, there are earth points in the front corner of the inner wings as well.

Thinking about it, the recent impact & repair work in the area may have affected it somehow.

 

[a73uk]

Something else I just noticed when I went to take the pics for you, the indicator wiring passes through a small hole in the inner wing, mine hasnt got gromets in either & it looks like its always been like that, check your wiring isnt damaged or shorting out there.

 

[a73uk]

I took a pic of the gearbox filler while I was there too, I remember you saying a while back that you didnt know where it was

 

[Ucof]

Thanks muchly!

The wiring doesnt seem to be broken or damaged in any way.
The annoying thing is that it all seemed to work this morning except for the double time indicating left (indicating right was at normal speed)

Now about to test every one of the fuses.

 

[Ucof]

Fixed it!

It was the "Services/ Servizi" (10Amp) fuse that had blown!
Have replaced it and all it working fine now!

Panic over!

Thanks for all the help!

 

[a73uk]

I thought you checked all the fuses to start with!

In which case you had no brake lights either! Lucky no one followed you too closely!

Isnt it silly that they put the indicator AND the brake lights on the same fuse? You usually indicate before breaking, so with both circuits dead its quite likely you`d get rear ended... Anyway...

Its still strange, bearing in mind they didnt just blow after working properly, you said the NS was flashing fast which you cured by sanding the contacts... I`m wondering if theres some kind of short somewhere that caused all this..

Hopefully it was the bad connection, although that wouldnt usually cause a blown fuse...

Are you sure theres not a short in the NSF wiring or bulb holder somewhere? maybe some water getting in?

 

[Ucof]

I think it was probably me being a bit careless with the screwdriver trying to get the connectors apart

I didn't say they were dying one at a time, yesterday the RHS one didn't work when I replaced it due to corroded terminals (I now have a piece of sandpaper in my car toolbox ) so I sanded it and made it work fine, and today, the other one was acting up, so I cleaned the terminals, then it all went tits up.

Thanks again for helping. Here, have some cake that my GF just made!

It's a chocolate coffee marble cake type thing. its quite good!

 

[a73uk]

LOL

Cheers Ucofs GF! (I hope its chocolate coffee bacon marble cake)

No probs mate, whats happened with the bupbupbup noise since you swapped wheels though?

 

[Ucof]

Seems to have gone, but I really need to take it out later when it is quiet.
I thought I might have heard it earlier, but need to make sure.

 

[Ucof]

I think the bupbupbupbup noise is still there

Also, the front left indicator is very temperamental. Sometimes it works and I get hte normal click - clack - click - clack but other times it goes clickclackclickclack.

I'll give the contacts another clean up tomorrow (after disconnecting the battery first!) and see if that fixes it.

 

[Chas Uno]

Next time it goes "clackclackclack" get out of the car and look at all three indicators (front, back and wing repeater) on the side causing the problem. Chances are you have one dodgy bulb/ connection, which if stops working upsets the load on the relay causing the indicators to work twice as fast. I had intermittent indicator problems when I first got my 70SX, so I spent a couple of hours cleaning every connector and making sure the tangs were springy enough. You can do this with a small screwdriver and scrape at the terminals. I also cleaned the contacts on the bulbs themselves, then liberally applied silicon grease to all connections when reassembling. Result - all lights and indicators have worked perfectly ever since

 

[Ucof]

Yeah, the front one doesn't work when it is going double speed

Im using sandpaper rather than a screwdriver though! Seems to be much easier and quicker.

 

[rawill]

Silicon grease. Educate me, I guess it is different from other types of grease. I am also trying to find di-electic grease for my Saab DI connections.

 

[Chas Uno]

Yeah, the front one doesn't work when it is going double speed

Im using sandpaper rather than a screwdriver though! Seems to be much easier and quicker.

I use a screwdriver to clean the bulb holders themselves, especially the tangs - you can use the screwdriver to prise the tangs upwards so they push on the base connection of the bulb more. I've often found that the connections have a build up up what looks like the solder stuff from the bulb base connectors, so it's easier to use a screwdriver to get into the holder and scrape it off and take the connection back to shiny metal. I've also often found the bulbs to be 'loose' in their holders that leads to an intermittent connection, thus prising the tangs up a bit holds the bulb in the holder firmer and makes a more secure connection.

Silicon grease. Educate me, I guess it is different from other types of grease. I am also trying to find di-electic grease for my Saab DI connections.

It's just grease that is silicone based rather than the standard type of grease. Silicone has water dispersant properties (ala WD40), which prevents water/ condensation build up and reduces future corrosion of the terminals. It's just a preventative measure

 

[Ucof]

Hmmm..
i hadn't thought about the bulb before.
I was going on about the spade connectors.

I'll have a look at that when I can

 

[rawill]

Fixed it!

It was the "Services/ Servizi" (10Amp) fuse that had blown!
Have replaced it and all it working fine now!

Panic over!

Thanks for all the help!

Many thanks!!

Like UCOF I checked the services fuse and it was OK. But after reading this thread I checked it again. It is fine, but jsut incase I swapped the fuse with the horn one!!

Now the horn still works, and the indicators are working again.
So next I will spray all the fuse connections with contact cleaner!!

 

[Hyperspace]

This is almost universal, when your indicator suddenly sounds like its doing double time, you most likely have a dead bulb or socket on your car.