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1997 xflow lighting fault


bexxxhill

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Bizarre one this; I did a pre-MOT check around the car, no problems - excellent.  Took it to the MOT station and got a big fat fail due to off-side front lights. 


Turn side lights on - comes on no problem
Turn on indicator - no problem
Turn on headlights - side light/headlight no problem
Turn on indicators with headlights - indicator goes out and headlight dimly flashes

Now I am assuming that this is an earth fault that has raised its lovely head, but where to start?  I've stripped it down and can see nothing obvious (it was a vague hope). So is it just a case of checking every connection, and earth point to see if there is something amiss?  Has anyone also had similar?  I have been told the red/white on the switch can cause a problem, but it does seem a long way from the lights themselves.

Any help much appreciated.

Cheers, Nick

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Yes, could be a false route to earth. One way of locating those is to remove bulbs until the strange behaviour stops occurring. Then investigate the circuit of the relevant bulb. Or remove all of the bulbs and then replace one by one and ditto.

Does the left side all work fine with the indicators flashing at a typical rate?

Do the hazard lights work OK with all of the indicators joining in?

Are there any LED lamps anywhere?

Jonathan

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Congratulations, you have a constant problem.  They are easy to find.  It's intermittent problems that cause PERSD (post electrical repair syndrome disorder) .  Run to your auto parts store and buy a test light with an incandescent bulb.  LED test lights and digital multimeters can smell voltage through some of the worst connections imaginable.  A test light with an incandescent bulb lightly loads the circuit and will find poor connections much easier.

 

Judging by your description, there is a common ground point used by the headlight and turn signal that is poor/corroded.  Whichever one is on, is using the other to find ground.  When both are on, the lower impedence headlight (half-heartedly) wins the day.

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The near side lights all work fine. The off side are wired up using same colours as near side. I've been through the whole lot now with both a multi meter for continuity and with the bulb method to see if the circuit is good, which it seems to be.

Hazards work with all indicators too.

No LEDS in the loop at all.

 

Nick

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