[84z]

Hello All! I am new to the forums and just bought a 1984 Seville. My dad had one of these a long time ago and have always wanted one. Needless to say, the car runs great with a few minor things that I am working on to get it complete.

Anyway, I noticed 2 bulbs were out on the car, one on each side, and replaced them with new bulbs but it wasnt the bulb but the socket. Being new to cars, and not sure what to do, I went and bought 1 new socket. I cut the old socket out(right side), spliced it to the socket next to it, and now it lights. I did the same on the other side (left) but instead of buying a new one I just used the old one and extended the wire. This is very jerryrigged way, I know.

All the lights fire up and work. The only issue I am having now is the right side will not blink but instead lights up when I push the turn lever up. The left side works fine, hazards work, checked all the bulbs, and there are no dead bulbs. According to my Haynes manual, if one side doesnt flash then it is a bulb but I cannot find the darn thing.

My next step is to pull the turn signal flasher and get it replaced but wouldnt both sides not work if it is the flasher instead of just one side? Would jerryrigging the wires cause this issue?

 

[rodnok01]

Flasher operates both sides so if one works it's good.
You have a bad bulb, connection, corrosion or bad ground on one side. Very common issue to have a corrosion or connection issue. When you splice wires outside the car you really need to use heat shrink or the connections will corrode rather quickly(quicker in salt belt). Also when use a crimp connection is it easy enough to not get a good crimp and have an issue. A 7 dollar solder gun and heat shrink makes a long lasting permanent splice. A great time to learn how to solder also as it will serve you well.
If you can afford it get a real service manual as Haynes/Chilton are very basic and general at best.

 

[84z]

Thanks for the quick reply! Will be soldering it tonight and see if it helps any. I went ahead and ordered the service manual a few minutes ago as well so thanks for the heads up on that.

As for the ground, where do all these lights go to?

 

[carnut]

The easiest way to find a faulty bulb is to engage the 4 way flashers and walk around the car. If one's not blinking or is dim, check that socket or bulb. I presume you checked the fronts as well? On that year Seville they used a Diode module at each taillight to prevent feed back to other bulbs. By you jumpering around it, you could have caused your issue.

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[84z]

yep checked the fronts and all lights work. I, too, am thinking it is from me cutting the wire and splicing it to the one next to it.. but wouldn't the other side be the same? I couldn't figure out how the wiring goes from each taillight and back to the turn signal flasher which is why I rigged it that way. The manual is kind of vague.

 

[84z]

Thanks everyone for the help! I pulled the turn signal flasher and replaced it with the hazard light one and voila! All my lights started working again.

With that said, I am going to solder everything and heat shrink it. Thanks again everyone for your input.

 

[DiodeDan]

Hi,
Are you sure that the high current (bright) filament is connected for both front and rear on your right side? I have seen the low current filament accidentally connected into the signal light circuit and it
lights OK, but will not flash as not enough current is drawn to activate the flasher. Another way to trouble shoot this is to use an electronic flasher which is independent of current, and will
flash even with low (dim) filaments in place. Hope this makes sense to you, if not, send me a message and we can discuss further.

Diode Dan.