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Turn signal problems
#1
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smith
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1955 400 has developed sporadic to no turn signals. Are the switches prone to failure? I have had troubles with the horn as well. When turning the car, the horn would occasionally blare. I did locate another turn signal switch. What is the proper way to pull wires from rubber grommet if the new switch is to be installed? Thanks!!

Posted on: 2014/7/24 18:39
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Re: Turn signal problems
#2
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Steve203
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A couple general bits, not specific to your model

-turn signal switches wear out. As the contacts approch failure they first go intermittant, then quit entirely. I replaced the switch in my 70 Mercury when it was only about 6 years old.

-when my Dad's 51 Studebaker was nearly new, he first noted a slight toot of the horn as he turned a corner. The toots got louder and longer as time went on. He took the car into the dealer, who found the steering column full of metal shavings. The metal shavings had chewed through the insulation on the horn wires.

Given that your car is nearly 60 years old, wear and age, rather than sabotoge like my Dad's Studie, is probably the problem

So, if I was in your shoes, first thing I'd do is pull the steering wheel, then pull the wiring harness out of the steering column and inspect for broken or worn through insulation and broken connectors. A broken connector could be the cause of the turn signal issue, instead of the switch, though my first suspect is the switch.

The easy way to fish a new wire harness up a steering column is to tie a string onto the old wire before pulling the wire out, so the string will be pulled up the column. Then use the string to pull the new wire through.

Posted on: 2014/7/25 1:21
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Re: Turn signal problems
#3
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smith
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Hi & thank you for the input and knowledge. I now have the steering wheel pulled, but am unsure on how the end leads come out of the rubber fitting that connects to the mate under the dash. Any ideas on proper way to get leads out of that so I can pull it up thru the column & still reuse the rubber fitting??
Thanks!!

Posted on: 2014/7/25 20:11
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Re: Turn signal problems
#4
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HH56
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If your plug is like mine it appears to be a molded plug with pins cast into the rubber. Mine has pins with rounded tips -- no sign of any crimping -- with the end of the wire sticking thru about 1/16" and soldered.

Don't see any obvious separation points available in the plug so I believe the wires will have to be removed by unsoldering. If you have a decent watt gun you should be able to free the wire by heating just the tip of the pin trying to be quick enough not to get pin so hot the rubber starts melting. If there is not solder filling the entire pin the wire should be able to be pulled back immediately after the gun is removed. If there is excess solder then the pin will have to be kept hot while the wire is pulled. It could be messy so protect the carpet from hot solder falling.

If there is another non obvious way then I'd like to learn too.

I think the switch is very similar to earlier as far as the inner construction. On the earlier switches the movable contacts are set into a fiber board. Those fiber pieces had a nasty habit of warping due to moisture or just old age. Once warped the contacts are very iffy.

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Posted on: 2014/7/25 20:53
Howard
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Re: Turn signal problems
#5
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Ross
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I recommend you do anything in your power to avoid fishing those wires in and out of the column. It is not remotely fun.

That switch is not a troublesome unit. Try some contact cleaner on it first, or even take it apart in situ and clean the contacts individually. There is enough wire to pull it some distance out of the column.

Posted on: 2014/7/25 21:42
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Re: Turn signal problems
#6
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Steve203
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If there is another non obvious way then I'd like to learn too.


I am amazed that the company would pick a connector that was too large to be fished through the column fully assembled. My Merc had a retangular connector that was only about a quarter inch thick, but an inch wide and curved to fit in the column.

Is the wire harness hard wired into the switch?

If you go the desolder route, it might be helpful to have a desoldering tool, aka a soldersucker.

The cheapest type is a rubber squeeze bulb with a teflon tip. Melt the solder with the iron, then suck it out with the desoldering tool. Otherwise the solder will reharden inside the pin after you pull the wire.

Remember to make a sketch showing which color wire goes to which pin before disassembly.

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Posted on: 2014/7/25 21:58
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Re: Turn signal problems
#7
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smith
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The plug is the same as pictured. I'm with Ross on the idea that this would not be at all fun, although I did plan on using a sneaky pete seal tool to pull it thru. I did take the nos switch and secured to column, then took wires looped outside of column & plugged them in without the rubber plug. Turn signals still did not work..?

Posted on: 2014/7/28 6:39
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Re: Turn signal problems
#8
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Dave Brownell
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Both the horn relay and turn signal circuits end up behind the radiator support frame under the hood. It's where "the sun does shine" so it might be the best place to start your search for a problem. It's where I go every time my left signal fails to flash, and sure enough, one very guilty wire needs re-connecting. If nothing else, it is the easiest vantage point to check for integrity and beats the uncomfortable bending and twisting under the dash. Dante might have reserved that for another vision of Hell.

Posted on: 2014/7/28 7:29
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Re: Turn signal problems
#9
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HH56
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On the horn, a couple of more places to look. The horn contact is a metal ring clamped around a plastic insulator just below the steering wheel. As I recall the plastic can deform or even break changing the spacing or angle on the ring so that might be one possibility. If the ring has loosened so motion of the wheel can move it around that could make the horn blow intermittently. Also, there are some spacers on the bottom of the wheel that could be broken or loose allowing the contact plate and ring parts in the wheel to shift and touch ground.

On the turnsignals, the female side of that round plug has tube like terminals that just slide into the slotted rubber holder. I believe they are just thin metal sleeves formed into an open tube and sides are not soldered or fastened together. If one or more of those "tubes" has stretched and opened up for whatever reason -- frequently caused by starting the plug at an angle and stretching the metal -- that could cause an intermittent connection when the plug is inserted. Under that condition, the male pin is straight and in the center but because of the enlarged tube it no longer makes a solid and tight connection.

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Posted on: 2014/7/28 9:39
Howard
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