FreezyRider Posted September 7, 2009 #1 Posted September 7, 2009 Just noticed a strange thing with my turn signals. Other riders behind me have told me that the signals are hard to see in the daylight, they say they are dim. Well, just checking things out in my garage, I notice that when I turn the right signal on, when the bulb flashes bright, the left signals and the brake light go slightly dim. When the bulbs go back to regular "running" brightness, the other bulbs brighten back to normal intensity. The same thing occurs in reverse when I turn the left signals on. In a sense, it almost looks like alternating flashing lights when I turn the turn signals on. Anyone seen this before? Could this be a bad flasher unit? A bad ground somewhere? Kinda scratching my head on where to start.
Confused Posted September 7, 2009 #2 Posted September 7, 2009 Mine was doing the same thing, but I also noticed that the hazards would only flash on the right side. After hours of electical checks and testing, I found the bulb sockets in the front signal lights were rusted so bad that I couldn't get the bulbs out. Had to replace the sockets. Also the hazard relay, inside the fairing on the left side, was bad. The relay I replaced was part# 4XY-81950-00-00. If you look at an electrical diagram of our bike, you'll see that the signal system is not a simple one. There a 2 flasher relays and 1 hazard relay that are all connected. Plus the power is shared with horns. Hope this can help and good luck.
Steve S Posted September 8, 2009 #3 Posted September 8, 2009 I have had some similar problems with the front bulbs not staying grounded. It seems that water can get in them and start the rust process. I have started using a dab of di-electric grease on the bulbs to try to keep the corosion down. I don't know if it helps with the corrosion issue, but it sure makes it eawier to get the bulbs in and out...
LilBeaver Posted September 8, 2009 #4 Posted September 8, 2009 I had read a while back that someone had drilled a very small hole in the bottom of both of the front turn signal housings (after they had cleaned or replaced the turn signals due to corrosion) and after that hole was put in they have not have any problems with corrosion.
KiteSquid Posted September 8, 2009 #5 Posted September 8, 2009 Read THIS thread for some info on alternative bulbs.
CMIKE Posted September 8, 2009 #6 Posted September 8, 2009 Replace them with LED boards...and grease the lamp sockets with di-electric grease...you will not be disappointed
FreezyRider Posted September 8, 2009 Author #7 Posted September 8, 2009 Replace them with LED boards...and grease the lamp sockets with di-electric grease...you will not be disappointed I thought about it, but don't want to lose my self-cancelling feature. Actually, I'm not convinced that would solve my problem. I also have the Harley license plate frame with lights, and the signals cause those lights to dim as well when the turn signal flashes. And the HD lights have already been converted to LED. Joe
FreezyRider Posted September 8, 2009 Author #8 Posted September 8, 2009 Read THIS thread for some info on alternative bulbs. Thanks, but I don't need a brighter bulb until I figure out why using my turn signals causes all the rest of the lights to dim. Gotta fix the problem first.
Ozlander Posted September 8, 2009 #9 Posted September 8, 2009 Your right turn signal bulb is not grounded. Either at the socket or the socket is not grounded. Fix the ground and you'll fix the problem.
FreezyRider Posted September 8, 2009 Author #10 Posted September 8, 2009 Your right turn signal bulb is not grounded. Either at the socket or the socket is not grounded. Fix the ground and you'll fix the problem. Does the same thing in reverse when I turn on the left side. Still dims the other side as well as the brake light. So, you think I have a grounding problem on both sides?
Two Tone White Posted September 9, 2009 #11 Posted September 9, 2009 I had read a while back that someone had drilled a very small hole in the bottom of both of the front turn signal housings (after they had cleaned or replaced the turn signals due to corrosion) and after that hole was put in they have not have any problems with corrosion. I drilled two small holes on the bottom rear of the front run signal housings. No one could ever tell as they are not visible unless you go hunting for them. It has solved the problem of allowing water and moisture out. Also when I had the housing open, I used a dremel to grind away the rust and corrosion of the socket then replaced the bulbs using the dielectric grease. Works like a champ. Squid's article that he provides the link to below is very thorough and a great resource.
saddlebum Posted September 9, 2009 #12 Posted September 9, 2009 Just noticed a strange thing with my turn signals. Other riders behind me have told me that the signals are hard to see in the daylight, they say they are dim. Well, just checking things out in my garage, I notice that when I turn the right signal on, when the bulb flashes bright, the left signals and the brake light go slightly dim. When the bulbs go back to regular "running" brightness, the other bulbs brighten back to normal intensity. The same thing occurs in reverse when I turn the left signals on. In a sense, it almost looks like alternating flashing lights when I turn the turn signals on. Anyone seen this before? Could this be a bad flasher unit? A bad ground somewhere? Kinda scratching my head on where to start. I see this all the time working on transport trucks . the cause is almost always bad ground and so the light trys to get ground through the other lights. this cause a sort of feed back which in affect cancels out the other light. check and clean all your ground connections to the signal lights. a simple quick test to verify it is run a wire form bat neg to the ground side of the signal light. If it starts working normal you know for sure there is a ground issue in your signal light circuit
LilBeaver Posted September 9, 2009 #13 Posted September 9, 2009 Does the same thing in reverse when I turn on the left side... You've got a reverse on your bike!?! How did I miss that option?
BuddyRich Posted September 9, 2009 #14 Posted September 9, 2009 Yep, You have a bad ground somewhere. Easy to check. Just ground a long wire and hold it to the outside of the bulb sockets one at a time. When you find the bad one you'll know it. Check your brake/taillight socket also.
FreezyRider Posted September 9, 2009 Author #15 Posted September 9, 2009 Yep, it's a ground problem. BOTH rear turns are suffering from a bad ground. When I ground directly from the socket to a ground point the issue goes away. Now I have to find where the sockets are supposed to be grounded. Is it inside the rear fender? I can feel that the wiring comes through there, didn't have time last night to track down the grounding point for those signals.
Cougar Posted September 9, 2009 #16 Posted September 9, 2009 Joe, I think if you added about 1/2 oz of MotorKote to the signal it should fix it! Got so darn busy over the weekend I could not get in touch with you. I will try this week my Friend! Jeff
saddlebum Posted September 9, 2009 #17 Posted September 9, 2009 Joe, I think if you added about 1/2 oz of MotorKote to the signal it should fix it! Jeff ! did that and I found my signals definitly flash much smoother:rotfl::rotfl:
FreezyRider Posted September 9, 2009 Author #18 Posted September 9, 2009 Joe, I think if you added about 1/2 oz of MotorKote to the signal it should fix it! Got so darn busy over the weekend I could not get in touch with you. I will try this week my Friend! Jeff Hey, if they had a chirp or a whine you can bet I'd be dumping some MK into my flasher fluid reservoir!!!
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