Quick check does  both brake lights work. They use the same filament as the rear turn

Last edited by wsinsle (8/19/2013 5:06 PM)

MustangSteve wrote:

Be sure the spring loaded contacts in the bulb sockets have not "sprung" out of their bores and shorting out.

Do the brake lights work?

Do the running light work?

 
The brake lights do not work but the running lights do for some reason. Any ideas? Plus if you have suggestions on getting fused front blinker bulbs out of the socket I'd appreciate it too. Thanks guys.

dwalker2 wrote:

 
The brake lights do not work but the running lights do for some reason. Any ideas? Plus if you have suggestions on getting fused front blinker bulbs out of the socket I'd appreciate it too. Thanks guys.

By fused if you mean they are corroded up and wont turn to come apart, then put some leather gloves on and start getting rough with it. The gloves will protect your fingers in case the bulbs break. I had one time that I had to break the bulb and then take some pliers and grab the bulb base to turn it out.  Good luck  Mike

Will this fix your brake light problem, they go through the turn signal switch also. You may need a new switch.

Thanks a lot guys. I'm probably gonna need to repost with questions but at least now I have some ammo in tackling this.

MustangSteve wrote:

Buy a new switch.  Trying to fix an old one is a lost cause.  You can spend an entire day monkeying with it to have it just break the next day.

Get a FORD switch if at all possible.  You will pay 4 or 5 times as much, but will have something that will hold up for a while and work properly in the process.  Most of the aftermarket ones have very weak pieces in them and the turn signal function starts to feel like spaghetti, AFTER it has been cooked.  Maybe even after it has been digested.

If budget is an issue, an aftermarket switch will get it working again, though.  Be careful when installing it to not get any wires caught between the column housing and the switch.  Be sure to lube the horn contacts and make sure the steering column gap is sufficient for the springs to have some preload on them, but not be crushed.  That is adjusted by loosening the saddle clamp under the dash and pulling up to tighten the gap or pulling down towards the steering box to woden the gap.

For the plugs...  There are two under the dash.  The new part will come with the wires but not the plugs.  You have to remove the plug before you can pull the wires through the steering column.  My tip for this is to just cut the wires about 2" away from the plug, leaving the 2" pieces in the old plug.  Then you can pull the switch out and stick the wires for the new one through the coulmn's conduit.

You will then be glad you still have those short old wires still in the plug.  Use the brass tube inside a ball point pen as a tool to release the old wire from the plug.  You will see the little tang on the new wires so you can tell what you have to do to get it out of the plug.  Remove the wires one at a time, inserting the new wire of the same color right back into the plug you just pulled the old wire out of.  This makes a foolproof way of getting the right color wires back into the same hole.  One of the wires is sometimes a different color than the old one, but a simple process of elimination will get it in the right spot.

Any suggestion on a good source for the fomoco switch?

Dw2,  This is a good source for real Ford parts:
http://www.fordparts.com/Commerce/ShoppingCart.aspx?addpart=C5OZ-13341-B
This is for the part number JKB listed.  I usually try to figure if I would be willing to re-do the job for the price difference between the REAL thing and some Chineese made repop.
Good Luck

Hey guys so I got a FoMoCo turn switch and am very happy with the quality to start with. A lil pricey but worth it. Turn signals all around work great now but I have 2 new problems as things go sometimes. My rear running lights do not work and I'm hearing something short out under the dash, possibly inside the steering column. With the ignition off it ends up draining the battery completely. I checked for loose wires or any other issues and could find none. Obviously it's something that getting constant power and is in turn draining the battery. Could it be the horn contacts? Also, does anyone know what could cause the rear running lights not to work. I don't know what wire this is tied to. Thanks.

Dw2, if it'll ease the sting of the cost for the switch, about 5 or 6 years ago the turn signal switch with contacts for the horn and the cruise control for my '83 F-150  (with tilt steering wheel) from FoMoCo was $125.00.  I've repaired the contacts for the horn and the cruise control 3 or 4 times now with 22 caliber shell casings turned upside down, and the cruise control is past the point of any more repair.  I'm almost afraid to see what a new one will cost now.
Good Luck

I would have to agree with BB on this. Pull the steering wheel and see if the horn circuit is getting shorted out. I think the horn positive and rear running lights come from the same place. Problem is its after 5PM and I'm on vacation. Things seem to get foggie during these times, don't know why.

Bullet Bob wrote:

dwalker2 wrote:

Hey guys so I got a FoMoCo turn switch and am very happy with the quality to start with. A lil pricey but worth it. Turn signals all around work great now but I have 2 new problems as things go sometimes. My rear running lights do not work and I'm hearing something short out under the dash, possibly inside the steering column. With the ignition off it ends up draining the battery completely. I checked for loose wires or any other issues and could find none. Obviously it's something that getting constant power and is in turn draining the battery. Could it be the horn contacts? Also, does anyone know what could cause the rear running lights not to work. I don't know what wire this is tied to. Thanks.

About the "something" you hear shorting out under the dash.  Is it clicking   ON...OFF..........On...Off...........ON...Off?

Could be the circuit breaker in the headlight switch.  You may have pinched  a wire when installing the new TS switch.  The only wire in the steering hub that is hot all the time  is the horn.  What that will do is keep the headlights and tail lights from working....Ask 6Sally6 about this.  Took a lot of Jack Daniels in Dallas to figure  that out. LOL

BB
 

 
It was a clicking on and off sound. I pulled the column back apart and made sure nothing was being pinched or shorting out. I didn't find anything but reinstalled and the problem went away. All blinkers, brake lights and running lights work. The battery doesn't drain within a few minutes but after running the engine for 10 minutes or so it doesn't restart. It's not completely dead but does not have enough juice to turn over. Should I have run the engine longer to recharge the battery you think?

Bullet Bob wrote:

Well, you didn't see the problem butt (TS&T) you probably found where it lives.  I just hope it doesn't come back to bite you.  If you disturbed the wiring in the column and the problem went away then you had the horn hot wire from the headlight switch shorted to ground in some manner. 

As for the battery, if it was pretty near dead you should bring it to, or near to, a full charge before trying to run the car.  If it still goes dead, well then, you have something else going on.

BB

PS:  How did you start the car?  Did the battery have enough to start it when you let it run for 10 minutes or did you have to jump it?

 
Hey BB. The battery was very low when I went to start it. Just enough to run the interior lights but not enough to crank it over. I jump started it and ran it on the highway for 10 minutes and now back to just limited power, not enough to start. Should I do a full battery charge with a charger or look elsewhere you think?